A Gallaudet University alumnus I know personally (let's call this person Unhappy Grad) graduated from Gallaudet University in 2005 (before the protest time) with a degree in Computer Information Systems. After graduation, during a time that the economy was strong and healthy, Unhappy Grad looked for a job. And looked and looked....
No one would hire Unhappy Grad despite having some work history including two internships. It is now almost 4 years later since Unhappy Grad completed the degree that Unhappy Grad worked hard on. Whose fault is it that Unhappy Grad does not have a job? The following year, Gallaudet experienced the Unity for Gallaudet protest and the world learned about the "quality" of a Gallaudet degree.
No wonder Unhappy Grad still can not find a job. Plus Unhappy Grad can not get vocational rehabilitation support to return to another college for a better, more marketable, degree.
Tonight when chatting with Unhappy Grad, a strange thought crossed my mind: Should Unhappy Grad sue Gallaudet University over having received a low quality degree that is not marketable enough to get a job with? Is anyone else in a similar boat to Unhappy Grad (degree earned from Gallaudet prior to recession)? It was bad enough when Unhappy Grad could not get a job during the boom times, now that we are in a recession it is near impossible for Unhappy Grad, who is becoming resigned to a life on social security.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
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No, because the university was still accredited. It cannot be held accountable due to the changing of economy and the exporting of IT overseas.
One still can get a good education at Gallaudet by applying oneself fully, studying further than the course requirement. If one is qualified, the honor option can be applied to the major courses. Then there are internships.
I've used all these options.
You get what you put in education-wise.
Boo hoo for Unhappy Grad. People have accomplished great things while holding a Gallaudet degree. Yet more people have accomplished awesome things while not having a college degree at all.
Colleges have absolutely no responsibility for whether its alumni find jobs or not. I suspect the problem is with Unhappy Grad itself, not the degree she/he's holding.
It may be his interview skills that need to be polished.
I totally agree with MZ. A good education can be had at Gallaudet if students take advantage of all of the opportunities that exist, and most motivated graduates go on to become gainfully employed, especially those who have good technical skills.
It is too easy to point the finger of blame atp Gallaudet for Unhappy Grad's own inadequacies. How hard has he/she looked for a job? What is his/her job search strategy? Is he/she willing to relocate if he/she lives in a small town? Does he/she have unrealistic expectations for a first job in terms of salary? Many Gallaudet undergrads think they will leave Gallaudet and move immediately to CEO positions. Has Unhappy Grad worked hard to improve reading, writing, and technical skills while unemployed? Maybe Unhappy Grad needs to take a look in the mirror to figure out what he/she is doing wrong that no job offers are coming his/her way.
Second to previous comment. No to sue.
Also, its just not just Gally as its happening everywhere depending on the economy. Some years are good than others as well depending on your field of study which can be if such as IT, Computer Techs these are very competive to get in the door.
SusieQ
I agree with Mishkazena. This Unhappy Grad isn't alone. Many college graduates regardless of being hearing or deaf, haven't been able to get jobs in the last several years. It is getting harder and harder as the economy gets worse. College graduates now have to take whatever they can get, which might not even be in the field they have studied.
Graduates needs to take boards (tests) to prove their knowledge, whichever that would merit him a job, especially in IT. That's all there's to it, really.
If the deaf person can communicate effectively to prospective employers without interpreters or assistive technology. It's an 70%+ higher chance the person will be hired.
That's what we're seeing with our agency's deaf clients looking for work.
LOL @ suing the college because you can't find a job. There are some doctors out there who have difficulty finding jobs. Get real.
Gally Is comfort zone. Definitely not marketable. It would be deaf musuem a long time ago. It's deaf cult's fault. Rejecting relationship with hearing majority industries and mainstream society. See what happened! How pity! Deaf is too tiny in this real world. No quality. No job.
From talking to recent graduates, it is my feeling that the main reasons for not finding a job is unwillingness to accept alternatives outside one's major, not being aggressive enough in seeking employment, and timidity in exploring less-attractive possibilities.
This applies both to deaf and hearing graduates equally. I've seen some hearing graduates work in restaurants or stores for one to two years before finally finding work in their major.
Internships are often saving factors. Sometimes they are low paid or unpaid, but most of the time lead to jobs within the company.
No, it does not make any sense to sue Gallaudet University just because a graduate could not find a job. The university never promised 100% guarantee in job placement.
Take few moments reading the annual report for 2007 at http://www.gallaudet.edu/annualreportachievements.xml . The numbers on page 28 are not reliable that we cannot put complete trust in them but they should give you some rough idea of how many graduates were employed.
My suggestion for the graduate that you were referring to is to try to get money from different sources such as scholarships and grants. Also, while he has spare time, use the spare time to continue learning.
Joseph Pietro Riolo
josephpietrojeungriolo@gmail.com
Public domain notice: I put all of my expressions in this post in the public domain.
Well, depends. Did this person get their internship; take advantage career counseling regarding job search, assist this person with resume writing skills, etc?
This is where this person need to take advantage of this opp'y. Suing Gallaudet is not possible since they are now accredited and University status.
Deb "Harleygirl248"
I agree with Mishkazena, you get what you put into it. Im tired of hearing people complain about their subpar education from Gallaudet.
A Gallaudet education like any University in the world is only as good as the student who puts effort into it.
Well, maybe Unhappy Grad have bad attitude, disrespectful to others,and maybe asking too much money. Maybe you ought to start sweep the floor then move up to higher officer. More likely it is Unhappy Grad's attitude.
No, because Americans, in general, need to get over this misconception: "Once you have a degree, you'll have a job."
That is far, far from the truth.
A university instructor is required to teach you the content established for a course. Sometimes the instructor has a lot of say in that content, but most of the time he or she doesn't, because a university needs to remain accredited, so course content is routinely reviewed. An instructor isn't normally required to teach you job search skills, resume polishing skills, interviewing skills, and so forth. Not unless that's what the course is specifically about. If there's even ONE mistake in your resume--and plenty of hearing people screw up there resumes too--kiss your job prospects goodbye. If an employer figures out you're deaf (not hard because surprise, you went to Gallaudet or are inquiring about the job over the relay) and decides to weed you out because he doesn't want to put up with deafness in his workforce, that's his fault, not Gallaudet's. And finally, Mishka is right, you get out of it what you put into it. So if you went to Gallaudet and partied all the time and now can't find a job because you never opened a book, well. Go sue yourself (that wasn't meant for the student this article is about... but the problem exists).
Gallaudet isn't responsible for the sum totality of everything that is screwed up in Deaf Education. NTID has students with English and math problems. CSUN does too, and so does every school out there with a deaf program. If you want to sue them, make sure you sue the high schools that graduated these students in the first place, and all of the teachers that never learned to sign/cue/pronounce-things-s-they can-be-easily-lipread at expert levels. Sue Mom and Dad for not getting you in the right program to begin with, sue the state governments for not adequately funding Deaf Ed from the very beginning.
But then keep in mind that you've also got to get in line behind all of the people who want to sue Gallaudet for not practicing inclusion simply because they no longer accept students who don't look all that promising to begin with (for reasons that have more to do with their brains and less to do with how deaf they are and how they choose to communicate).
I don't mind Gallaudet taking criticism. It's programs should be the equal of the best deaf programs in the United States. I simply resent it being bashed no matter what it does.
Many people don't get a job in the field they majored in. I graduated with an education degree and I'm not teaching. Unhappy Grad should apply for other fields as well, and if he has, then there may be another reason for his/her unemployment.
Does this Unhappy Grad look for a job in the DC metro area? If so, the name "Gallaudet" can be problematic on his/her resume. Resumes from that college quickly find its home in office wastebaskets.
It is an interesting question you pose, and I need to chew on it before answering the main question, but I would like to comment on the situation itself.
I am an IT professional without an IT degree. My degree is in the natural sciences. I was able to break into the IT field easily during the dotcom boom because I learned everything I know about computers, specifically unix, on my own time as a hobby. the timing was pure luck, but that got me the job experience I really needed to solidify my career.
The time has never been better for self-learning in the IT industry. Documentation is everywhere, many times free. computers have never been cheaper, so practice at home is cheap. I believe all you really need is self-motivation.
I will give you a huge hint for getting a job. you can lie about the experience you have for any skill.... AS LONG AS YOU CAN BACK IT UP. if you have become an expert in Photoshop on your own time, for example, tell them you spent a year internship doing photoshop work. just DONT tell them you know something you dont.
in many other fields, you are helpless without money for training or degrees. in IT you are never helpless as long as you are motivated.
No....absoultely NOT. When you begin holding universities accountable for whether or not someone lands a job, you are beginning a descent down a slippery slope. There are too many intangibles that come into play in a situation such as "Unhappy Grad"'s situation.
For example, is this person being realistic in their job search, or are they only looking for full time jobs at a high salary and not applying for those entry level, sometimes part-time jobs that can lead to the jobs he/she seeks? What is this person's work ethic? All the degrees in the world won't get you a job if you have a rep for a poor work ethic following you from your previous internships.
If we begin to sue colleges and universities because grads can't get jobs, they will then reciprocate by becoming even more selective in their admissions processes, excessively high in tuition (costs of insurance to protect against those frivolous lawsuits isn't cheap, you know, gotta pay for it somehow), all of which will feed the vicious cycle of making it harder for kids to pursue/get a college education, thereby dooming us to a generation (or more) of undereducated and poorly qualified low skill workers, and the US will fall further and further behind in technology, education, etc.
We spend more money per capita than any other country in the WORLD on education, yet we get a piss poor return on our investment. SOMETIMES, it is time to look at the individual and stop blaming the institutions. Of course, BOTH deserve to be looked at to figure out how to fix the problem.
I agree with Mishkazena on this one.
I think if the student did his research before choosing his major, he will find that CIS is a declining field, there is not much demand for it now. Its like all those kids who went to RIT and majored in graphic design and never finding jobs in the field- because it is highly competitive and there is not high demand for it.
Discrimination against deaf people is really really deep-rooted. Most people don't even realize they are being discriminatory, but I'm sure that a hearing person with a degree from Gallaudet wouldn't have that much of an issue. I work at a grocery store (which is not exactly an A-list job) and the management here wouldn't hire deaf people. It's crazy.
I would suggest that he consult a career advisor at Gallaudet and/or
a psychotherapist. Either or both would be happy to do the evaluation.
Jean Boutcher
Gallaudet's problem is that it admits and graduates unqualified students. Here is a simple marketing principle at work: when an unqualified Gallaudet grad lands a job, the employer quickly think less of Gallaudet and tell his/her friends about this. As a result, it is harder for the qualified Gallaudet grads to find jobs.
This is why Gallaudet needs to raise its admissions and graduation standards. Nobody should be able to cruise through Gallaudet.
There's also graduates who are overly qualified can't find jobs either. I totally agree with some commenters about having a backup plan. Also, I've noticed that a lot of graduate expects to start at the top of the corporation than at the bottom which I do believe the bottom is a step into the door and gradually moves up like I did 19 years ago I'm moving up as well. ;) anything is possible!!
SuzieQ ;)
Thought that y'all needed a perspective from a student of Gallaudet.
Truth be told-- Gallaudet certainly have raised its academic standards ever since the UFG protest but we can't see the results overnight. I can assure you that we'll start seeing good things start to come out of it within several years. For example, before fall of 2007, Gallaudet didn't have any minimum score for ACT scores of the prospective applicants. It is 18 now. NTID's minimum is 13, which pretty much explains why they're experiencing record numbers in enrollment this year. RIT's minimum is 21. So, I can say for sure is that Gallaudet are getting there. But we have to look at the downside of our new standards. Less and less students are going to Gallaudet now thus giving even less money to the university. This is one of the problems in which Gallaudet are trying to address right now.
Caveat emptor (Buyer beware). That's the risk we all take when we choose a field of study. My suggestion is this.. take any job for the time being and continue to take certification courses for specific skills for your desired field at a local community college. I think too many people are sitting around and complaining instead of being proactive. Other people in this field are being competitive. In order to land a good job, we also must be competitive to gain an edge.
A lawsuit is foolish and you will lose.
Well, unhappy grad may have a point. He does have a right to sue gallaudet for it's sub-par education.
Worthy of re-accreditation? No. Had President Jordan improved the level of education and stayed out of the presidental search process, Gallaudet might have been in a better position. re-accreditation might have been better waited till after the next pres is installed. Davila is only an interim pres.
Know what? I, as an unemployed graduate of GU as well, remember the day the shut down of the campus by the student protesters, was on the same day of the job fair that was suppose to be in the GUKCC. The protest leaders were *WARNED* not to do anything stupid because we needed these employers to hear our cause. But no, *wham* closed campus. The employers who had their time and energy to come to this campus for the job fair, took revenge. They have been dumping resumes of GU Graduates and students for the last 2 years. We warned these protest leaders of what could happen. We are paying that price for their decision to close the campus.
Now, Davila is nearing the end of his time. The BOTs are in the process of a year long search (proper search we hope) for the Next President of GU. But what's to say if the students don't like the next selection and PROTEST again? Does it mean that Gallaudet will finally have to close it's doors after 3 student protests? It can be possible. Unless GU lays down the law on the protesters this time, it will have to close.
So in the lawsuit happy society of USA, I do know that an "unhappy grad" has a lawyer and is preparing to sue GU. If he gets sucessful, GU could face a legal wave of suits where it will have to face a remake of the campus again.
Perhaps, GU was better off with hearing President that made GU in the way that Gallaudet wanted. Jordan has had his power mad days. Fernandes? same. Davila? who knows. A return to a hearing president might bring back a return of employers that sees GU as a successful school that trains it's students successfully. That was EMG's dream: Training the students to be productive members of society. What is GU's mission today? Vastly different. Chew on that in these economic times.
I would like to point out several errors in the comment made by the anonymous person who claimed to be a student of Gallaudet. It was posted at 4:29pm without specifying the date.
The current minimum ACT score for Gallaudet is 14 in both English and math according to the report at http://ims.gallaudet.edu/pdf/20070914-0003.pdf . The charts on ACT score as shown in http://aaweb.gallaudet.edu/Documents/OIR/fall08.enrollment.expanded.pdf seem to support this except for English score where there was a number of freshmen having ACT score less than 14 in English.
NTID has different minimum ACT scores for different programs. The lowest minimum ACT score is 14 for some associate degree programs, not 13 as claimed by the anonymous person. The lowest minimum ACT score for the bachelor programs is 22. More information about ACT scores can be found on pages 46 and 47 in http://www.rit.edu/upub/pdfs/Prospectus.pdf .
Joseph Pietro Riolo
josephpietrojeungriolo@gmail.com
Public domain notice: I put all of my expressions in this post in the public domain.
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