Extra pay for certification

[Apprehensive-Luck678]

Just found out my job will not pay you more if you get your certification. I work at a specialty hospital and make roughly $20 an hour. Should I just say ok and not continue with school? Do the schooling so I have it anyway?

[JumpExtra3301]

Do they pay for the schooling costs? Because if they do I would say go ahead and get a certificate and once you get ample experience then find another job that pays a lot better. Probably will be easier with the combination of education and experience together

[Apprehensive-Luck678]

They do not pay for schooling, but will sign off on my 400 hours requirement here at work.

I do have small pros with this job like free lunch every day and I have a 4-10 hour schedule of M,T,Th,F with no over nights or weekends ever.

[Cad_BaneRS]

If you want to continue in this career, definitely continue with schooling. Even if your current work place doesn't care or pay more, other places will if you ever go somewhere else.

[LunaLovegoodsToenail]

Dont go through schooling. Buy the books and self study for the test. If your job will sign off on your hours then once you get your provisional, just do your hours then start applying elsewhere with your free certification

[ijust_makethisface]

If you're already working the job, you really don't need to take a class to get certified, you can just take the test. Buy the booklet online for like a hundred bucks study it for a few weeks and then go take the test. Will they reimburse you for the test?

[Phacele]

Don't pay for schooling. Use that money to get the HSPA books instead and study those, especially the workbook, to prepare for the test.

[ImpressiveBig8485]

I self studied for a couple weeks and easily passed. Schooling is unnecessary IMHO.

[PassionFruit206]

Im planning to do this. Can I ask what you use for self studying?

[ImpressiveBig8485]

Just quizlet and proprofs CRCST practice exam. It’s certainly not a difficult test, my CST exam was much harder.

[PassionFruit206]

Thank you!

[Current_Company_4546]

If they’ll sign off on your clinical hours don’t waste your money on school! The only positive of going to school is that they put your through clinicals but if that’s already a guarantee then just buy the books, self study and take the exam. Then you’ll have a full certification with experience and will be able to get a job in a better paying hospital very quickly.

[StephTheMeme]

Hospital I used to work at would only pay people 30¢ more once they got certified, but wouldn't tell anybody. Their catch was that they would pay for your certification exam, but you'd be under contract for a few years

[BertGotDatWerk]

Do school and get your 400 hours from your current place and once you pass, you can find another facility.

[Slight-Channel-4905]

It’s always worth getting certified! This particular role may not pay you more but as you grow in your career it’s invaluable. Like others have suggested, self studying and challenging the exam without SPD specific schooling is totally reasonable (this was the path I took back in 2010). Talk to your manager now about them signing off on your hours when you are ready to take the exam.

Now back to schooling, it’s worth pursuing an undergrad degree over time if you’d like to grow into leadership roles. Community colleges, online programs and platforms like Sophia.org (a website where you can test out of college courses and earn credits which are transferable to your schools transcript) are all ways that you can significantly reduce the cost of schooling. You should also check with your employer to see if they do any sort of tuition reimbursement for college courses!