Bettering myself and my career

[ErorZ]

I will be deploying to Afghanistan in a few short weeks for 9 months. I have been looking into "upgrading" my education and see this as an oppirtunity to get started. I currently hold a college diploma and would like to start the process of getting a University Degree.

This whole University lingo however is somewhat confusing and I don't know where to start. The University lingo is even more foreign to me being I did all my schooling in french in Quebec, I've only just recently found out there's a difference between a degree and a diploma

What are all these different types of degrees offered ? (Associate Degree, Bacc, 3 yr, 4yr, Masters) Anyone have a typical program outline for short and basic program ?
Which 2-3 courses could I start with if I am not sure exactly where I want these to lead me ? Which would be "easy" to do while on deployement ?

What are my ressources within the DND, I've heard the term DPSO, but what is a DPSO ? Are OPME's an option or are those strictly for officers ?

All these questions ... from a confused no-hook private

 

[Zombie]

Hey ErorZ,

You will likely get more helpful replies, but I read this post today and found the links in it useful.

http://forums.army.ca/forums/threads/38287/post-319366.html#msg319366

Good luck

 

[George Wallace]

Questions on OPME's can be found at:  http://forums.army.ca/forums/threads/35604.0.html

 

[xFusilier]

As you already have a college diploma, I would contact the university you want to attend and see what can transfer over, no sense paying for credits you don't need.

2-3 courses you may want to start with are a first year english course (usually English composition, some universities require both English composition and English literature), a first year hummanities course (History, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, etc.) and if you're mathematically inclined Statistics.  This will give you some ammount of flexibility, with reference to making up your mind down the road as to Arts or Sciences.  Also give the U of A a call and talk to them, most universities are happy to help out prospective students. 

 

[ErorZ]

Thank you, Zombie and George for the links, it answers a few questions. One remains about this tho, from previous visits to the OPME web site, it seems geared to Officers only, can a NCM do these courses ?

Thanks xFusilier for the general info on where to start in regards to courses.

***
Now for a follow up question
What ressources do I have as an NCM wanting to start a University degree ? I've read on the CF and DIN web sites all kinds of different programs with different acronyms but most seem geared towards current Officers wanting to keeping going to university.

 

[kincanucks]

Thank you, Zombie and George for the links, it answers a few questions. One remains about this tho, from previous visits to the OPME web site, it seems geared to Officers only, can a NCM do these courses ?

Thanks xFusilier for the general info on where to start in regards to courses.

***
Now for a follow up question
What ressources do I have as an NCM wanting to start a University degree ? I've read on the CF and DIN web sites all kinds of different programs with different acronyms but most seem geared towards current Officers wanting to keeping going to university.

Yes NCMs can do OPMEs and I think you should take some time and go and talk to your local BPSO.  They can give you the most accurate information of what you can and cannot do as far as educational upgrading is concerned.

 

[George Wallace]

Your BPSO has info on all the plans you can access.  There are also agreements with the University of Manitoba and Athabasca University http://www.athabascau.ca/
that the BPSO can set you up with.  And again, they are not all restricted to officers.

 

[Sheerin]

As you've found there are many types of degrees out there, I'll do my best to sum them up for you.

The associates degree takes approximately two years to complete,its basically the bottom end of the degree totem poll.  I'm also not entirely sure which schools offer these, as I've really only seen it advertised by places like DeVry in the states.
The three year degree, also known as a general degree, is basically as it sounds a three year degreethat requires you to finish 15 As well there are other, school specific regulations such as do X amount of credits in non-major disciplines.  However the rules are less strenuous than with an honours degree.  For example at my school (Trent University) all you need to do is pass all your courses, whereas for an honours (4 year degree) you must maintain a cumulative average of 65, AND have less than 6 credits that are unsuccessful - unsuccessful being 59.99 or lower final mark. 
The honours degree also has the option (depending on the school and the discipline) for an honour thesis which is a significant research project designed to get prepare the student for graduate work.
Also each school has other rules that regulate who and who cannot get what degrees.  For Trent to get an honours you can only have a maximum of 13 credits in your major, the remaining 7 have to be electives, you also have to have at least three credits that lead to three different majors. 

Then there are masters degrees.  To get into one of these programmes you need to have maintained a high average (usually at a minimum in the B+ range), as well as to be recommended by 2 or 3 of your professors.  You also need to have finished an honours degree.
There are two types of masters degree: one with a thesis and one without.  To go on to PhD studies one has to complete a thesis based MA/M.Sc.  I'm currently in the process of applying for grad school and damn its stressful

My suggestion would be go for the Honours degree as the more education you have, the better.  The honours degree will take a little longer to do, especially if you do it part time, but it'll open more doors for in the future.

As for course selection, just go with what you want to do.  Just be sure to check the regulations as not all schools are the same.  Like for instance some schools require you take at least one English course while others (like Trent) don't. 

 

[ErorZ]

Thank you all for your info! It's a good start and I'll look into all my options.

Thanks again

 

[ZipperHead]

**
Now for a follow up question
What ressources do I have as an NCM wanting to start a University degree ? I've read on the CF and DIN web sites all kinds of different programs with different acronyms but most seem geared towards current Officers wanting to keeping going to university.

I didn't see it mentioned by anyone, and unless something has changed, the program you want is UTPNCM (University Training Plan - Non-Commissioned Members). I know of a guy who just finished his education, and is waiting to do Ph IV Armour (or DP1 AO Tp Ldr, as it is now known). I can ask him (about the process), or better yet you can try to track him down here on this site. His "handle" here is Scants. Go to the members section, do a search, and send a PM via his profile page. Tell him Al sent you (I'll probably see him tomorrow, and he will kick me in the scronch, but that's OK .... we go back a ways).

Al

 

[ErorZ]

Thanks Allan, with the program name (UTPNCM) and your friends name I was able to find alot of good post on this forum on the subject, including from Scant, so I won't need to bother him right away   I'll keep his name handy though.