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I've been in "the business" for almost 15 yrs. and I'm
always amazed at the depth and breadth of degrees
among us. To whit:
BA French major, minors in Spanish and Secondary Education
MA French
Both degrees have helped me in tech writing (or "information
development and design"). Education minor had some good
psychology on motivating and working with people, made me
think about structure, what's important, what's nice-to-know.
French is very structured and its grammar helped me to clearly
communicate, look for the right word and better understand
English (first language). Masters degree helped with researching,
delving, digging, analyzing (taking apart), synthesizing (putting
disparate items into a new whole), which leads to seeing the
big picture, sometimes being the only one who sees the whole
overview about the the system I'm writing about. Everyone
else is busy with the pieces.
Getting a degree is not just about finishing something and
getting the paper, though there is value in this. I finished a
Masters degree as an accomplishment for myself. But
more that this, education structures the mind, builds
thought patterns and exercises the brain cells. It's good
for the gray matter upstairs. _And_ I believe I make
more money because of it.
I enjoy you guys and gals. Keep writing!
Betsy Maaks
reply to: bmaaks -at- tellabs -dot- com
