It was our experience when Donovan was looking for a job that in the computer tech field, employers care that you have a BS and could care less about certifications. You already have that, so you're ahead of the game.

However, when we researched other areas of comp employment, like CA or near Bethesda, MD (It was my dream to have Donovan work for the company that made Morrowind there!), an MBA was required.

I think you're in a geographic area that is pretty open to a little less education, because there's not a huge amount of technological companies there and because the cost of living is a little lower than the other places I mentioned. So I'd say if you ever planned on moving to another part of the country, an MBA might be good. To figure that out, maybe you could surf around monster.com and just see what companies are requiring in other areas.

Finally, as a brother, you have to decide if you would ever want to full time pioneer or support a wife doing so. For instance, Donovan decided to finish his degree and be the major "bread winner" because as a couple, it's our goal for me to pioneer. Maybe if he had a higher degree and got paid more, he could pioneer too, but that's a longshot, realistically. The point is, he didn't want to keep getting jobs on just his certifications and his Associates degree because he knew that would never give me the flexibility to work part time. I know you're not seeing anyone, but that's really a personal decision for you to make about how you want the rest of your life to go.

As far as an example for others in the hall, I wouldn't worry too much about your field specifically. We found that after mentioning that Donovan has a full degree, brothers and sisters were a little taken aback, but then when mentioning that he's in the computer industry, they totally understood. So I figure either people think a lot of education is required in that, or they know so little about it that they won't make any assumptions at all.

I had a full scholarship for NJIT for architecture and decided to pass it up, after a lot of prayer. So I'm not going to say that just because the opportunity is there, you should take it, because I certainly passed up a good opportunity. But my motivation might have been different from yours - I knew I could depend on Donovan for financial support, that I would never be able to pioneer as an architect, and that the 60 hours a week that major required would seriously hamper my spiritual interests.

I know that doesn't really lead in one direction or the other, but I'm sure you'll make the right decision!