taking the long way around

1994

According to my transcripts, 1994 was the last time I took a course in college. That is a sobering reality of my academic development. I remember the days of waking up early and going to stand in a line all day to make sure you got the courses that you needed. When you called the Bursar’s/Registrar’s office you got an actual person or a busy signal. There were very few transactions that could even be completed over the phone and you were known only by your social security number.

The History:

The concept of “I’d like to go back to school” sounds pretty positive and upbeat. The entire process was everything but! I will spare you all of the details about how long it took me to actually find a school that had a program I was interested in. My ultimate goal was just to finish my Bachelors degree, in ANYTHING. When I first started my college education I majored in Elementary Education. I went to two different schools until eventually my mother just couldn’t afford it any longer (even with the limited amount of financial aid we were given). Anyway, I had to drop out and find a job FAST. My cousin got me a job in her company working full-time but it was in Ohio. I had nothing to lose and the cost of living was much cheaper out there so I left my family in New York and moved out to, what seemed to me, the middle of nowhere. I was able to scrape enough money together to take a few classes at a local University just to keep my mind working. I believe my computer class was focused around LOTUS 123 if that gives you some indication of how long ago that was. Microsoft Office quickly pushed those programs into extinction and I never saw anyone use LOTUS after that class! That was the last time I was exposed to college life, until now.

Why now?

My life is at the height of businesses right now. This is really not a good time for me to be exploring new worlds. If not now, when? I ran out of excuses. I would be foolish not to take advantage of this window of opportunity. So I’m doing it. I don’t know how, but I just have a feeling it will all work out. So where do you start?

Admissions:

Keep in mind we are talking a major University here. They deal with about 500 of me a day (give or take). They could care less about me and my needs unless I have money in my hand. After many emails back and forth to the transfer coordinators I discover that they won’t even talk to me about program information until I have actually applied to the University. How hard could that be, right? Application= $40. Part of that application process is submitting transcripts, seemingly ancient transcripts that they need to dig out of the vault. I start making phone calls only to find out that you have to go online and print the form, mail in your payment ($2-5 dollars for each transcript). As I have mentioned earlier, I had three Universities to contact AND High School. Only ONE of these schools actually let you process your payment online. In the meantime, this University that I am applying to has given me a login to their student services sight where you can monitor your application process and see what has gone through and what as not. SWEET! After many weeks of waiting and phone calls and hoop jumping it all finally went through and I got accepted! It was a true test of determination and that was just the admissions process!

Orientation:

After all of that you have to go through an online orientation where you have to watch videos and take quizzes at the end of each one and achieve a 70% or higher. I can’t make this stuff up people. Online Orientation = $25. So I pay my dues and wait, and wait, and no “modules” are showing up in my online account. Luckily, somewhere down the line of emails and phone calls I found an angel that guided me through the process of this new program in the College of Education. It was designed specifically for adult students trying to finish a degree! SWEET. Each time I would hit a road block I would email her and she would tell me who to call or what to do. I probably would have given up a long time ago if it hadn’t been for her guidance along the way. Anyway, she told me who to call about speeding up the module process and I had them within minutes!

Advisory Appointments:

By now I had already found my program so all that was left to do was meet with an advisor and see which credits transferred. Piece of cake!! No really, it was smooth sailing after that. My advisor was super nice and he even apologized for how crazy the admissions process can get. He let me know exactly where I stood (First semester, Junior thank you very much). He said I only needed one core class that has to deal with Cultural Diversity and the rest are my program courses, 11 in all. He said from this point forward everything that I need can be found online! Including registering for classes, financial aid, yadda yadda yadda. Many of my classes are available in an online forum but I decided to take one in a classroom just to immerse myself in the culture for a while. Later, I decided to add an online class as well.

Exhale:

I made it! I didn’t miss the deadline and I was signed up for classes within a few days.

Starting Over for the 4th time:

Ugh! The first week went pretty well, until the reading assignments started flooding my online inbox. I have discovered that I have some mental inability to absorb what I read. I have been struggling to catch up ever since. Even though I spent my labor day weekend reading text books I am still not caught up. I even thought about dropping a class just to be certain that I make it through one effectively. I figured I’d give myself a semester to get my groovy back then take on more. Buy the time I figured out that I wasn’t going to be able to manage both classes it was too late to “drop” one. I would have had to settle for the dreaded “W” on my record (Withdrawal). So I am going to batten down the hatches and try to make it through to December without losing my mind!

So what...

So WHY am I writing about all of this? Mostly, I like writing about my crazy life. It helps me clear my head. I should be spending this time taking notes and reading a text book but I haven’t had time to write lately and my brain just needs to recharge. I wanted to put this out there for those of you that have asked about how school is going (all 2 of you :) ). Secondly, I am sharing this because I am hoping that if there is someone out there reading this that feels a tinge of motivation to step outside of their comfort zone and try something new, whether it be college, or taking up a hobby, or learning a new skill (especially women, because we are SO FAMOUS for putting everyone else’s needs before our own). Just do it. Schedule it in there as if it where a meeting that you HAD to attend. Sure my life (as well as the lives of my family) would be so much easier if I hadn’t done this but I just keep telling myself that it is going to be so worth it in the end. I won’t have all of this unfinished business hanging over my head. I’ve already learned so much from the people I share my classes with. I’ve been inspired by them and their own personal stories, many of whom are in the same boat that I am in, families, jobs, responsibilities but still find the time to achieve higher learning.

The Guilt:

I will admit that I feel guilty as a mom for leaving my son for school. I know that I will have to choose class over going to his tball game eventually. I know that I will have to choose studying over playing monster trucks. I’ve always put myself in a position to be there for him, always. It’s hard for me to grasp the fact that it’s OK to let part of that go. My husband is more than willing to take the lead now but I have to admit that I don’t like handing over the reins. In truth, the biggest knot in my heart is that my son is really enjoying it!! In fact, tonight is boys night (my son, step-son and husband) and he has already told me that I am not invited. Initially, that makes me sad but in reality it’s a great thing. I could really use the time. It’s always about time.

It’s about time.

“Dream on”