Preparation: The Difference Between a Degree and an Education

A friend of mine recently graduated from college with a teaching degree. He has been struggling to find a job in a state with a high demand for teachers. Another friend who graduated some years ago with a teaching degree inquired about his recent interviews. What they soon realized is that he just wasn’t prepared by his college for his eventual interviews. Instead of focusing on how he would help the kids learn, he was sidetracked in classroom logistics – how the layout the room and what to put (or not put) on the classroom walls. We started realizing that his lack of preparation was causing him to lose out on potential job offers.

This made me realize something quite important that I had long since forgotten: there is a difference between obtaining a degree and acquiring an education. My friend understood the fundamentals of how to teach, but he wasn’t educated in the process of preparing for the job. Education requires being taught the skills needed, then exercising them. Instead of focusing on the education, he got focused on getting the degree. He didn’t acquire the education he required to rapidly get a job and jump into his new field, even if his college failed to do so.

As a ministry leader, you must accept that your role means you have obtained a degree from your church. You have been given a leadership role because you have reached some pre-determined level that qualifies you as a leader. The next step, and the one that many leaders fail to realize, is that they must continue to educate yourself. This means continually learning and exercising the skills of a leader. Leadership doesn’t stop with your promotion, it is only beginning of your education.

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