Does NASA hire people with GEDs?

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RonMaverick

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<p>I will have to get my GED soon and because of the usual (negative) rep for getting one i was wondering am i pretty much scared already.&nbsp; I had to get one because i just was missing too many days in school (open campus) and i have allergies, asthma AND sinus that were really bad at the time and it was horrible and i live in VA. I'm allergic to the grass which they had to cut all the time and it obviously was very unhealthy place to be but was the only school in my area.</p><p>&nbsp; Well anyways i love nasa and i would be VERY proud to one day wear the patch or be an employee through any means.&nbsp; i am ALWAYS following their latests missions and plans, i am a regular member and volunteer to my Science Museum. I still study whatever I have to and i am willing to do whatever is needed to be apart of space exploration.&nbsp; I know generally GEDs are accepted but still will i ever get promoted or really get anywhere within the company with them knowing i have a GED?</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>How would internships work like this?&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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DrRocket

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I will have to get my GED soon and because of the usual (negative) rep for getting one i was wondering am i pretty much scared already.&nbsp; I had to get one because i just was missing too many days in school (open campus) and i have allergies, asthma AND sinus that were really bad at the time and it was horrible and i live in VA. I'm allergic to the grass which they had to cut all the time and it obviously was very unhealthy place to be but was the only school in my area.&nbsp; Well anyways i love nasa and i would be VERY proud to one day wear the patch or be an employee through any means.&nbsp; i am ALWAYS following their latests missions and plans, i am a regular member and volunteer to my Science Museum. I still study whatever I have to and i am willing to do whatever is needed to be apart of space exploration.&nbsp; I know generally GEDs are accepted but still will i ever get promoted or really get anywhere within the company with them knowing i have a GED?&nbsp;How would internships work like this?&nbsp; <br />Posted by RonMaverick</DIV></p><p>With most companies and most people, in order to "get anywhere" it is advisable to get a college degree.&nbsp; If you were to do that, nobody would care about a GED vs a high school diploma.&nbsp; internships are usually for people who are actively pursuing a college degree.</p><p>On the other hand Bill Gates dropped out of Harvard, and did OK after that.<br /></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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derekmcd

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<p>With a degree, likely the only time they will concern themselves with the difference between a GED and HS diploma is for background checks for a security clearance (if required).&nbsp; Unless your reasons for leaving high school are suspicious and raise a red flag, having a degree makes the difference between the two nearly irrelevant.</p><p>Without a degree, though, I doubt you would find a career worthy job at NASA.&nbsp; I'm sure the line is long with people with degrees wanting in.&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div> </div><br /><div><span style="color:#0000ff" class="Apple-style-span">"If something's hard to do, then it's not worth doing." - Homer Simpson</span></div> </div>
 
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doubletruncation

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I will have to get my GED soon and because of the usual (negative) rep for getting one i was wondering am i pretty much scared already.&nbsp; I had to get one because i just was missing too many days in school (open campus) and i have allergies, asthma AND sinus that were really bad at the time and it was horrible and i live in VA. I'm allergic to the grass which they had to cut all the time and it obviously was very unhealthy place to be but was the only school in my area.&nbsp; Well anyways i love nasa and i would be VERY proud to one day wear the patch or be an employee through any means.&nbsp; i am ALWAYS following their latests missions and plans, i am a regular member and volunteer to my Science Museum. I still study whatever I have to and i am willing to do whatever is needed to be apart of space exploration.&nbsp; I know generally GEDs are accepted but still will i ever get promoted or really get anywhere within the company with them knowing i have a GED?&nbsp;How would internships work like this?&nbsp; <br /> Posted by RonMaverick</DIV></p><p>I second DrRocket's advice - get a college degree, then no one will care whatsoever about your GED. In general once you get a job within a company your promotion depends a lot more on how well you perform and what networking you do within the company then on where you went to school or what your degree is in - once you're in no one cares about your school unless they happened to go to the same school as you. Having a GED may affect what schools you get into. The school you go to and what degree you get does have an impact on how likely you are to land a good first job. If you want to see what types of qualifications they're looking for at NASA have a look at&nbsp; http://www.nasajobs.nasa.gov/ there are all levels ofjobs. If you really want to work in the space industry there are many other private companies like Ball, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Northrup Grumman. Once you are in college you should definitely consider doing internships at NASA or other companies during the summer - but don't worry about that until you're in college - right now you should be focused on getting into college if you haven't gotten into one already.</p><p>One program that you might be interested in is&nbsp; http://www.nasajobs.nasa.gov/studentopps/employment/coop_edu_program.htm if paying for college is an issue, another program (aside from financial aid) that might be of interest is: http://www.nasajobs.nasa.gov/studentopps/temporary_stay.htm </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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RonMaverick

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yes i plan to continue to college i was just wondering how bad the GED issue would be.&nbsp; I have nothing bad on my record not even a speeding ticket <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/content/scripts/tinymce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-tongue-out.gif" border="0" alt="Tongue out" title="Tongue out" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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derekmcd

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>yes i plan to continue to college i was just wondering how bad the GED issue would be.&nbsp; I have nothing bad on my record not even a speeding ticket <br /> Posted by RonMaverick</DIV></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Silly analogy, but think of NASA like the NFL.&nbsp; You will find nearly all of the players come from universities/colleges.&nbsp; Some of the better schools recruit the better players from high school (and sometimes elsewhere), but it's what you do when you are there that defines you. Some of the best players have come from small schools.<br /> </p><p>Once you make it to NASA/NFL, its all about performance that dictates where you can take your career.</p><p>I guarantee the NFL could not careless where the university picked them up from, whether it be from high school or their backyard playing catch with their kid.&nbsp; They only care about how well they did while at the university. </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div> </div><br /><div><span style="color:#0000ff" class="Apple-style-span">"If something's hard to do, then it's not worth doing." - Homer Simpson</span></div> </div>
 
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derekmcd

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As an alternative, depending on your success in finding a university, don't rule out the military.&nbsp; There are a lot of fields in the military that can translate into careers at NASA.&nbsp; And, at this point, I'm sure they are accepting HS drop outs, except maybe the Air Force.&nbsp; The Air Force might require a GED.<br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div> </div><br /><div><span style="color:#0000ff" class="Apple-style-span">"If something's hard to do, then it's not worth doing." - Homer Simpson</span></div> </div>
 
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neuvik

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>As an alternative, depending on your success in finding a university, don't rule out the military.&nbsp; There are a lot of fields in the military that can translate into careers at NASA.&nbsp; And, at this point, I'm sure they are accepting HS drop outs, except maybe the Air Force.&nbsp; The Air Force might require a GED. <br /> Posted by derekmcd</DIV></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;Good point. &nbsp;&nbsp; The Air Force provides a lot of opportunities that will benifit you in NASA, or any company of the like. &nbsp;</p><p>http://www.airforce.com/careers/subcatg.php?catg_id=2&sub_catg_id=4 &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;If you scroll down the list theres a myriad of enlisted career paths that are very applicable. &nbsp; And the Air Force provides college funding. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;If the Air Force isn't your path, get some student loans, and work your way up to a University. &nbsp; You will probably have to begin with general Ed in a JC, but no worries. &nbsp; Just stay focused, devote your time to mathematics and the sciences and you should do fine. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; I find a good movie always helps me in those life changing descisions, October Sky a nice one. </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000">I don't think I'm alone when I say, "I hope more planets fall under the ruthless domination of Earth!"</font></strong></p><p><font color="#0000ff">SDC Boards: Power by PLuck - Ph**king Luck</font></p> </div>
 
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RonMaverick

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I'd rather not be on the frontlines.. I never dropped out nor do i ever plan to. I was sent to an alternative program the ery next week where I still do the same amount of work. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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Saiph

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<p>Bah, ignore all that college stuff!&nbsp; Nasa needs janitors just like any other company.&nbsp; :)</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In all seriousness, GED doesn't matter after the college degree NASA essentially requires.&nbsp; And IIRC companies are not legally allowed to distinguish between a GED and High School diploma.&nbsp; They may look at transcript scores and grades (or the GED equivelant) but they can't devalue a GED because it's a GED.&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p align="center"><font color="#c0c0c0"><br /></font></p><p align="center"><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">--------</font></em></font><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">--------</font></em></font><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">----</font></em></font><font color="#666699">SaiphMOD@gmail.com </font><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">-------------------</font></em></font></p><p><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">"This is my Timey Wimey Detector.  Goes "bing" when there's stuff.  It also fries eggs at 30 paces, wether you want it to or not actually.  I've learned to stay away from hens: It's not pretty when they blow" -- </font></em></font><font size="1" color="#999999">The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>
 
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DrRocket

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<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Bah, ignore all that college stuff!&nbsp; Nasa needs janitors just like any other company.&nbsp; :)&nbsp;In all seriousness, GED doesn't matter after the college degree NASA essentially requires.&nbsp; And IIRC companies are not legally allowed to distinguish between a GED and High School diploma.&nbsp; They may look at transcript scores and grades (or the GED equivelant) but they can't devalue a GED because it's a GED.&nbsp; <br />Posted by Saiph</DIV></p><p>I&nbsp; have worked with quite a few scientists and engineers.&nbsp; Hired some, layed off some (reluctantly), fired one, promoted some.&nbsp; I know where most of them received their last college degree.&nbsp; I have no idea where ANY of them graduated from high school, whether they had a regular diploma, a GED or did not graduate at all, and I don't care.&nbsp; <br /></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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Saiph

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<p>I know the source of a high school education isn't important after you get your degree...heck, it usually isn't important for anything other than applying to college.&nbsp;&nbsp; </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p align="center"><font color="#c0c0c0"><br /></font></p><p align="center"><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">--------</font></em></font><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">--------</font></em></font><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">----</font></em></font><font color="#666699">SaiphMOD@gmail.com </font><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">-------------------</font></em></font></p><p><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">"This is my Timey Wimey Detector.  Goes "bing" when there's stuff.  It also fries eggs at 30 paces, wether you want it to or not actually.  I've learned to stay away from hens: It's not pretty when they blow" -- </font></em></font><font size="1" color="#999999">The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>
 
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