Grow What You Know - Increase Your Marketability by Expanding Your Knowledge Base

It's never too late to learn something new or to learnusually require only a few courses (three to six
more about what you already know. Here are a fewdepending on the program). Depending on the subject
tips that will help you to make the most of yourmatter, the certificate you receive upon completion can
options.open just as many doors as a diploma.
Go Back to School·Take a Community College Course -
The evidence is irrefutable when it comes to this one.Community colleges were created to make education
Earning power increases as your level of educationmore accessible both financially and academically.
increases. And before you say that your mechanicThey frequently offer courses on a wide range of
makes more in a year than your son's collegetopics at a significant discount from what it might cost
professor, keep in mind that a professor can put into take the same course at a private university.
fewer hours and earn the same income as yourAdditional discounts and other forms of assistance are
mechanic without the risk of having anything heavieralso offered by many schools for Senior Citizens and
than a blackboard eraser fall on his head. According toVeterans.
one source, 75% of corporate jobs require aSet Aside Reading Time
bachelor's degree but only 27% of Americans actuallyCommit yourself to reading about current events,
have one. That means that by earning a degree youeither within your profession or on any topic of interest.
will be enlarging your pool of options for employmentSet aside a certain amount of time each day or at
at a time when more and more people are at risk ofleast once a week to keep abreast of what's going
losing their jobs. The great thing about this option is thaton. It will not only give you something to talk about at
it contains so many alternatives.the next cocktail party or interview, it will alert you to
·Get A Degree - Many colleges andareas you need to learn more about.
universities offer life experience credit for adults whoVolunteer
are returning to school to complete a degree. TheseOne excellent way to learn a new skill is to offer your
credits can significantly shorten the time it takes toservices for free. The value of free labor of a
earn an Associates or Bachelors degree. In addition,consistent and high quality is usually more than a fair
the explosive growth of online degree programstrade for the time it will take your sponsor to teach
makes it easier than ever to fit going back to schoolyou a few new skills. In the process, you will also add
into your schedule.a new set of contacts to your network and it may
·Get a Certificate - Not all fields ofeven lead to a new career.
specialization require a degree. Certificate programs