Degree in International Business

Getting my bachelor's degree wasn't exactly smooth -- it took me six years.

Although I finished high school with 18 credits because of A.P. classes, I spent two years in a community college that wasn't AACSB certified, and that cost me about a year when I transferred to the University of Hawaii system.

Plus, my first semester was at the Univerity of Hawaii in Hilo. This was a waste because, as a transfer student, the only classes available when I registered were classes I didn't need.

I also spent one year working full-time so I could be a Hawaii resident and pay in-state tuition. I saved a bunch of money once I re-enrolled, but taking six years for a four-year degree doesn't always sound impressive to people when I tell this story.

The good news is that nowadays, it would take even longer. I was just checking the requirements for a BBA in IB on the website; they've got a bunch of new requirements on there since I graduated. The biggest one is that you can't just major in IB anymore -- you can only double major along with a second business major (like marketing or finance). That's 15 credits -- an entire semester tacked on right there.

Second, you have to have a third year of language, rather than just the two years required of all UH graduates. Add 8 credits more for that.

Last, you have to have some kind of international experience. While I'm not sure what counts for that, I doubt the three and a half weeks I spent in France during my junior year in high school would have counted.

My guess is that I'd have had to go to Japan for a study abroad program, since I took Japanese for my two year requirement. And what do you know! The one program organized by UH is for an entire year.

So let's see ... a year studying abroad for the 8 credits and the international experience, plus the semester for the double major ... I would have graduated in December 2000 rather than May 1999, and incurred another 10- to $15,000 in student loan debt.

So I guess I'm happy to have graduated when I did. :-)