My College Degree

My Dream of a College Degree
Lynn McBride
ENG 121
Janelle Garcia
2/17/2013

Outline

1. Reasons why I returned to school A. Inspiration for my children 1. Education is to be valued 2. Envisioning a successful future B. Importance 1. Becoming all you can be 2. Job Competition C. Extend my knowledge D. Love to learn E. To further my career 2. Motivations A. Better life for my family B. Promotions at my job C. Pride in accomplishment D. Intelligence 3. Obstacles A. Age B. Time C. Family support D. Work Expectations 4. Strategies for my success in achieving my degree A. Studying more on proper reading and writing on a college level B. Managing my responsibilities, family, career and myself C. Increase in family responsibilities D. Placing more focus on leaving on time and learning to say “no” E. Exercising memory

My Dream of a College Degree Life did not happen the way I expected. Graduating high school, going to college, beginning a career, getting married, buying a house, having children, trading the sports car in for a minivan, getting a dog, and living happily ever after, was not in the cards for me. Turning my life around so I could have a chance at a successful future, took conscience effort and a lot of hard work to make happen. A successful life takes a willingness to strive for knowledge and to overcome challenges that impedes our learning. I have returned to college to influence my children and others to value an education, to further my career, and to learn. Above all, I returned to school to improve myself and my life. I hope by my example, my children will come to value and education as I have so they too can have a successful future. Improving my employment opportunities is another reason I returned to school. A degree and college training can make all the difference in getting promoted for the job I am aiming for. The benefits of my degree far outweigh the challenges I am sure to face. My family, job, responsibilities, obligations, and my time are all challenges I must manage. The decision to return to school was a frightening one. It has been twenty-eight years since I graduated high school and I barely made that happen. All through grade school I made great scores. Homework was seldom hard for me and I did great at test time. I have always performed best under pressure. I was popular in school and all my friends were good students like me. During middle school, things started to slowly change. Puberty might have had something to do with bad choices I was making, but I cannot blame all of them on puberty. I don’t know why I made the choices I did or how I chose the friends I wanted to hang around with, all I know is they were not the best influences for me. Peer pressure to fit in with the wrong crowd influenced all of my bad choices. My grades started to slip and truancy started to become a problem. I was in more and more trouble with my parents and school. That is when I started to devalue school, like it did not matter if I had an education or not, using drugs, and smoking marijuana. I was making all bad decisions not realizing the consequences. Sometimes, when you are a teenager, you think you know it all and have all the answers. Well, I thought just that. I was in twelfth grade when I was arrested. My charges were numerous and my parents were furious. I was kicked out of the school system and was not allowed to return to graduate with my school or my classmates. I was devastated. I was so ignorant of the consequences of what I was doing to my life back then that it almost ruined my chance of a great life, family, and career. Through a program called “Second Chance” I was able to make up my credits I needed to graduate with my class. While on house arrest, I made up thirteen credits with a 3.7 GPA in three weeks and two days and graduated with my class. Even though I graduated with great scores, I did not think I was smart enough or rich enough for college. My biggest regret is not trying. Twenty-eight years have passed since then. I have two children, a twenty-three year old daughter and a fifteen year old son, and one three year old granddaughter that I love. I have a fourteen year career in composite manufacturing that I am proud of, and a dream of a college degree that I am trying to make come true. Returning to school has touched every aspect of my life. Changes and sacrifices must be made. My family had to take on more obligations and responsibilities, which no one liked. I also insisted on privacy without distractions while I study on certain days of the week. My focus at work changed. Picking fewer priorities, learning to say “no”, and managing my interruptions better helps me to leave on time. Not being able to work over has become an issue I have to deal with everyday. Maybe, over time, my employer will understand how serious my education is to me and gets used to me leaving on time. Time will tell. My biggest obstacle I must overcome is myself. I have discovered my poor time management and procrastination tendencies are hindering my study time. Assignments and discussions take more time for me than I originally thought it would take me. I always underestimate how long it takes me to accomplish tasks. Thinking I have plenty enough time to do my work, I will tend to put it off. Then, when I do begin, I feel rushed because I really do not have enough time for me to finish. This is an ongoing battle in my head. Then to top it all off, my memory is not what it used to be when I was young. It is going to take a lot more skill in retaining what I read and learn. I would not even know where to begin to look on how to exercise my memory, never mind finding the time. Even with knowing the challenges ahead on me I will not give up my dream of a college degree. I am willing to seek knowledge and overcome my obstacles to pursue my degree. The profound importance of an education drives me to succeed.