Firsthand Experiences
Meet Warrant Officer Candidate James Krych
Ohio Army National Guard
Master's of Information Technology
Military Student
Having his own Renaissance
Ohio Army National Guard Warrant Officer Candidate James Krych uses his time wisely. During the two years his unit was called up for Homeland Security active duty, he started, and got most of the way through, his Bachelor's Degree in Information Technology. After graduating from AIU Online with that degree, he went right on for his Master's Degree in IT. And then, before he had even graduated with that degree, he used it to land himself a new, better-paying job.
"Having the time to get my Bachelor's, and then my Master's, has led to a renaissance in my life; there have been some big changes because of it."
James started as a Security Administrator at a prestigious high-tech company in June. He graduated - again from AIU Online - with his Master's Degree in July.
Prior to getting hired as a security administrator, James had completed a technical degree at an electronics school and worked as an electronics technician. He initially tried to secure a position befitting his new, higher, education level at the same company, but was unsuccessful. It took only a few weeks of casting a wider net - mainly looking at internet job postings - for him to secure an interview with the company he now works for.
"It was kind of discouraging for me to be bidding on different jobs at my old company and not get them; I had all these new skills and knowledge, but was still doing the same technician job. When the new job finally came through though, I saw it was worth the wait."
Even though James has a Bachelor's Degree, Master's Degree and numerous technical degrees and certificates; he has never set foot inside a college building. "The only schools I have seen the insides of are the ones I went to for my Coast Guard and Army training. Everything else I've done through correspondence, distance learning, and computer-based training."
James says his family, especially his in-laws, who are teachers, and his own father were pretty skeptical of all his non-traditional schooling. "There was a time when even my dad was telling me I should be going to a community college instead of an online university. Once I got this new job and told everyone what I'm making, they stopped doubting and started believing though."
Because he did have so much previous experience with distance and online learning before starting his Bachelor's and Master's Degrees, James knew all online programs were not created equal. "I almost got caught up in a degree mill, but I knew to check a school out for accreditation. I did with that first school I looked at and it didn't check out." Krych then went to military.com and asked for information on military-friendly schools. "AIU Online was at the top of their list."
AIU Online jumped to the top of James's list when he saw their Master's Degree in IT with the internet security concentration. "A lot of brick and mortar schools limit transfer credits to 15 and, between my military experience and my prior technical classes and computer training, I had way more than that." James was able to start at AIU Online as a junior. He completed his Bachelor's Degree program in just over a year.
But the Bachelor's Degree in IT was really just a stepping-stone. "It was really the Master's in IT with the Internet Security concentration I was interested in." James started his Master's Degree classes a week after graduating with his Bachelor's.
While James is glad he now has these two degrees and the new job and bigger paychecks that came with them, he is the first to admit it wasn't easy. Along the way his National Guard unit was called out a second time to help with Hurricane Rita relief and his wife gave birth to their first son, Brandon. (James does have a seven-year old son, Treyton, as well.)
"While I was getting my Bachelor's Degree during my first period of active duty, lots of the other guys thought I was crazy for committing so much of my time, but I looked at it as a way to keep myself out of trouble and a great chance to use all the military education benefits. Education has always been something I've enjoyed."
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