July 15, 2004

Flexibility and Focus

Had some trouble with my webhost again. It all seems to be resolved now, though the outage was rather frustrating - especially considering the poor response activity from the host. But then, this promotion I snagged gets me three years of full-package hosting for free, so I suppose I'm getting what I pay for.

I've been talking with a German friend of mine recently about job searching and the differences between the German system and the system we have here in the USA, if one could call it that.

I went to school for German and writing, not necessarily assuming that I would then later use either one in my employment. In Germany, it would be nearly a guarantee - the academic and professional tracks are much more rigid over there. Here, you can do virtually anything with a bachelor's degree, as long as you show the aptitude for it. In Germany it's not that simple.

There are advantages on both sides. There's flexibility on the one side and focus on the other. It can cause problems, though, when a flexible person is stuck in a focused system, or vice versa.

Posted by steve at July 15, 2004 08:08 PM
Comments

I think you hit it right in the head. It depends a lot of the kind of person you are. However I think the American system used correcly is better. It allows for the flexibility on most schools to take electives that will allow you to create your own track. The problems is that most people do not take full advantage of it and take High School as a joke. High School can be the beginning of a great career if you take full advantage of what is offered.

Higher education is also flexible, but its all up to the individual to take full advantage of that flexibility.

Posted by: logtar at July 19, 2004 12:26 PM

Same in France as in Germany unfortunately. Once you're on certain tracks, there's no way you can change your mind and do something else. Besides, the system is twisted and favours scientific subjects so much that even if you're fantastic at humanities, languages etc., if you're not good at maths the doors of the best institutions (even those that don't teach sciences) will always be closed to you. I much prefer the American and British systems.

Posted by: céline at July 20, 2004 11:26 AM