Is having degree certificate mounted on the wall tacky? 10

[KENAT]

A fairly light hearted one for you:

They are having layoffs at my place. Apparently one of the deciding factors is who has a degree or not.

I have a Bachelors of Engineering (honors just so you know;-)) but apparently no one except my direct boss knew this and they were planning accordingly. He has made a point of letting senior staff know I have one but…

Just to re-enforce the point how tacky would it be to put it in a frame and mount it in my cube?

My boss and I were joking about it earlier, I’m tempted to do it just for comic effect but then, maybe not.

Opinions?


KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...

 

[NCAASwimmer]

Photocopy it and use a 2.5" x 3.5" frame to set on your desk next to that mug you got from the software vendor.

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

Have it printed on your coffee mug and make sure you are drinking from it whenever people come to visit. You could also print it on the bottom of your shoes ... for when you are laying back in your chair with your feet on the table ... drinking coffee.

 

[KENAT]

You too have inspired me, I'll have it shrunk down to business card size and use it as the background of my business cards.

Or scan it and use it as my email signature!

KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...

 

[ctopher]

Scan it and make it the wallpaper on your monitor.

Chris
SolidWorks 07 4.0/PDMWorks 07
AutoCAD 06
ctopher's home (updated 10-07-07)
ctopher's blog

 

[MikeHalloran]

I have one somewhere, but I've never hung it up, not even at home. Never felt the need... and didn't often have a wall suitable for it, anyway.

Now, I have a bad association. One particular individual of past acquaintance made a point of behaving... like he imagined an engineer behaved. Diploma on the cubicle wall, always wore a tie, always a conservative tie, wingtip shoes, the whole picture. Not a bad guy, either, really.

Just one problem. He couldn't do the math... or the physics, or the kinematics. Okay, I guess that's more than one problem.

I wondered what kind of school would graduate a person so, uh, apparently unschooled. So I looked up the school named on the diploma so prominently displayed. I got a strong impression that it was a diploma mill, or damn close to it.

He was at least smart enough to not get caught doing anything stupid, which he achieved by expending much apparent effort while actually not doing anything at all. This caused me some aggravation, because he was nominally in charge of stuff that I was trying to improve, and while he feigned cooperation, he was in fact just an impediment. This went unrewarded by his boss, who was later revealed as something of a crook. I guess they had, uh, detente.



Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[KENAT]

Another good suggestion Ctopher.

Mike, I hear what you are saying.

KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...

 

[pittsig]

You earned it. Display it.

Perhaps not as common in industry, but it is common in the consulting world to display a framed diploma(s) on the wall. Often the diploma is placed next to a PE license certificate(s) - required by law to be displayed (at least in the states I am licensed in).

Display of one's credentials also provides a visible sense of credibility if one deals with outside customers, the general public, unknowledgeable supervisors, or out of town corporate management. Then one's performance/actions needs to back up that initial impression.

The question of tackiness would be in how it is presented and one's attitude portrayed by the dislpay. One can self-promote without being objectionable or pretentious.

My two cents.

 

[epoisses]

Doesn't HR have this kind of information in their files? Why would they be dependent on people putting or not putting their degrees on the wall?

You might as well write your salary on the wall as well so HR will know the saves would not be significant :-D

 

[PSE]

In places I have worked I have taken my cue from my fellows on whether or not to display certificates etc. I have never displayed my diploma outside of my home (that degree cost a bunch of $), but might consider displaying a copy if it fit in along with what my peers tended to do. Most certificates I have end up stored neatly in a file for retreival if requested.

Kenat, if you are in managements sights in terms of an upcoming layoff, having a paper target is not likely to afford much protection. Thankfully it appears you have a human shield (boss) willing to step up for you (to a point).

Regards,

 

[mechmama]

I don't display mine because then everyone could deduce how old I am : )

 

[ivymike]

I've never hung my diploma on the wall... but last year I got a certificate of appreciation for spending my entire Christmas holiday working double shifts in the office on an "emergency" project, while nearly everyone who had created the "emergency" was out... so I hung that one on the wall as a reminder that my efforts truly are appreciated.

 

[Gymmeh]

Kenat, I feel sorry for you when upper management is making decisions based on a piece of paper.

I was thinking you could scan your diploma
scale it down
then print it on the "iron on t-shirt paper".(I dont know the real name)
And make a couple ties with your diploma on it. Especially in tacky colors so people notice, like pink, purple, or old ties form the 60's

Making your tie stick up like Dilbert’s might even help a little bit also.

 

[SomptingGuy]

As a new graduate many years ago I was lodging in a house in Brighton. My landlady had her Open University degree proudly mounted on her wall (for non Brits, it was basically a degree in watching late-night 70's TV in those days). I kept my "real" one in its envelope well out of site.

 

[JamesBarlow]

I'll start of by saying it can be a bit tacky depending on how it's done.

Having said that I proudly display mine, along with my PE license and all fancy forms that say I sent money to the NSPE and ASME.

I do this for myself and no one else. Back in grade school I was diagnosed with dyslexia. I spend many years being told about all the great people who had it and what they have accomplished. Of course they were mostly athletes and musicians.

Had I listened to them I would have most likely gone to a trade school instead of college. (As an aside my Father was a paperhanger for some 40 years so I have a tremendous respect for people in the trades but it just seemed to much like work to me.)

Hear I am, many years later, in charge of millions of company dollars and still in school working on my masters. I have my degree up to be a reminder of what I have accompished and I always keep an open spot on the wall to display my next accomplishment.

 

[RobWard]

SomptingGuy: actually OU degrees aren't just about watching TV. People have basically to do a degree course whilst doing, say, a full time job, without the back up of being on a campus. I tip my hat to a good many people who've done that.
(Of course, if it was a degree in something pointless like Media Studies or some such drivel, then you are entirely correct and can ignore my first paragraph.)

"I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go past." Douglas Adams

 

[BJC]

I had a boss once that hung his MENSA membership certificate on the wall. He never impressed me with his knowledge of engineering but he was a hell of a proof reader. His specialty was editing things that didn't need it.

 

[KENAT]

epoisses my thoughts exactly, I'm thinking of dropping off a copy of my resume with HR for their file!.

JamesBarlow , yours hits home for me. I was only diagnosed with dyslexia in my final year at university, I got myself tested after I failed subjects I thought I understood and had to take 7 re-sits.

I'm not saying all of it was the dyslexia, I'm pretty sure my drinking was a factor;-), but it suddenly made sense of a lot of school report cards where I easily got As in technical subjects and scraped a C in English and the like!

I'll think I'll hang it in the cube next to the letter stating I have dyslexia;-).

KENAT, probably the least qualified checker you'll ever meet...

 

[rday]

In my office, ALL the engineers have their diplomas displayed. We also hang out the certificates from the various state boards for PE licensure.

You earned it, be proud of it.

 

[swivel63]

put it up. if it's a matter of losing your job, damn being tacky. let them feel insecure and they'll get over it. shoulda went to college if it's that big a deal.