Kenneth Triplin didn't think he needed another degree. He had worked in IT for 28 years in New York City, holding positions in the U.S. Department of Labor and the Customs Department of the U.S. Treasury. He had an associate's degree in Business Administration, a minor in Computer Studies, and many of the top tech certifications at the time, including Cisco, Microsoft, and IBM.
But none of that mattered when he moved to the Washington, D.C. area to begin a career in the Department of Defense. The same question sunk him in every job interview: “So, how soon will you be completing your bachelor's degree?”
“I couldn't get any real IT work,” Triplin remembers. “My experience had very little bearing. With only an associate's degree, I only had one step up the whole ladder.”
When Triplin did find a job in Washington, it required frequent travel to Germany, South America, and Australia. To pursue a bachelor's degree, he knew he needed an education solution that would go wherever his work took him. And he didn't want a degree to simply land him a job; he wanted new knowledge that would push him beyond his three decades of experience.
With a well-rounded battery of courses—training in project management, Linux and Unix systems, programming, and web design—Capella's BS in Information Technology expanded Triplin's skill set dramatically. And employers immediately took notice.
“With each additional skill on my résumé, I started getting emails from recruiters saying, ‘We'd like to talk to you about an opportunity.’ Capella had brought me to a place where I wasn't worried about job security anymore. And this was even before I finished my degree.”
It wasn't long before Triplin landed his dream job with the Department of Defense's IT department, safeguarding information systems from outside hackers and cyber attacks. He is now in his seventh year in Washington, D.C., advancing in leadership through the management ranks.
And he isn't stopping there. Amazed by how far just a few classes had taken him, Triplin decided to move forward to earn a master's and PhD.
“I would have to say that Capella has really afforded me opportunities that I thought I would never, ever in my lifetime see—the places I've gone, the things I've done.”