Page 123 - Marky Stein - Fearless Career Change_ The Fast Track to Success in a New Field (2004)

Ten Success Stories About People Just Like You

Research the position carefully to see if a certain degree or cer-
tification is mandated by law or simply expected by the employer.
There is a vast difference between the two, and if you’re not aware
of it, you may miss a good opportunity to get hired in a position for
which you are qualified by experience and for which an advanced
degree is merely a preference.
Even if you are competing with others who might have superi-
or academic qualifications, it is your ability to communicate how well
you can help the employer make a profit that will win over any aca-
demic degree.
In Chapter 8, we’ll talk about ways to present yourself, using
what I call Q statements, which will enable you to prove to the employer
that you will make the competitive difference—not by having a
degree, but by having the ability to draw on past successes, to
demonstrate, without a doubt, that you can bring more to the com-
pany than others competing for the same position.

If you have enough of a certain kind of
experience, or if, like Rodrigo, you are simply
enrolled in a more advanced degree program,
you may very well get the job despite not
yet having the degree.

When Rodrigo became aware of this fact, he discussed his plan
with his employer. The employer agreed to promote him if he were
to enroll in an MEd program (master’s in educational counseling)
at a local university. Not only that, the employer agreed to pay a
tuition reimbursement of 50 percent. About a month into his classes,
Rodrigo was promoted, and he received a substantial raise.
Rodrigo was yet another person for whom strategic education real-
ly paid off. Rodrigo’s $450 investment in strategic education result-
ed immediately in a 56 percent raise.
As a result of showing his employer where he was headed, he
ended up getting a promotion that he would not have been eligi-
ble for had he not enrolled in a master’s program.
Here is a picture of how Rodrigo gained the leverage for his
promotion:

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