TeenHelp - Not sure if going back to school is for me.

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Not sure if going back to school is for me.

So recently I've been struggling with being a stay at home mom. I would love to have a career of my own, but what I would love do to requires a college education. I've considered going back to school, but now I'm doubting that I'll be able to handle it. We are going to be homeschooling Ava in a year or so, and I do have a lot to keep up with here at home. I'm not sure if I'll be able to keep up with my school work. I'm not sure if I'm only telling myself this to talk myself out of it because I'm nervous, or if I'm honestly trying to keep on top of things and I don't want get behind.

Any other parents take on going back to school? I'm also really nervous about going back. I graduated highschool in 2013, so it's been awhile since I've had to deal with going to classes, or doing homework. Not really sure what to expect. I've considered taking some college prep classes that are offered for free at our local community college. I figured it would give me a chance to slowly get back in the swing of things, and help me refresh some things I've not thought of for awhile.

Any advice you guys could give would be awesome, thanks.

Re: Not sure if going back to school is for me.

Hi Ade,

I'm not a mother but when I went to college a couple years ago, there were a lot of moms in my class! They all seemed to be able to keep up with their school work. Something else I can recommend is to look to see what kind of schooling you can do online. That way you can do it while Ava is being home schooled, or taking a nap. That's another option you have :)

Let me know if I can offer any other advice!
Brittany

Re: Not sure if going back to school is for me.

I had my son between my junior and senior year of my bachelors degree program. I took an entire year off after he was born, but after that, went back and finished my last two semesters. I am not going to lie, it was much more difficult going to college as a parent than as a non parent. But it is completely possible if you set your mind to it.

You have a couple of options depending on what your goals are and the schools in your area. I am making an assumption you are in the US, so if you are not, let me know and I will try to find you relevant information. You could start out by getting your associates degree at a community college. This is what I did, I got my AA back in 2009. It takes two years going full time but they tend to have more convenient class times, like the in the evening. And they tend to cater to people who work or who are parents. My community college campus had its own childcare!

You could get your AA and transfer to a university to finish off a four year degree. Be aware though that this may mean repeating some courses. Things like English and math may not "transfer". Which is very frustrating. There are ways around most of that if you are willing to battle with the department.

You could also just jump right into a bachelors degree. This takes about 4-5 years going full time, longer if you go part time. But you won't risk having to potentially repeat courses. If you can find a campus with childcare, even better! However universities tend to be less lenient with their time. They may not care or cater to a parent. Luckily I had amazing professors and if my babysitter backed out the last minute, they let me bring my toddler to class with me.

You can also take online courses. There are some really great, accredited universities out there that have amazing online programs. My master's program is extended learning, which is about 90% online and 10% on campus. This, so far, has seemed to be an easy way to manage both my academics and parent life. I can be home and potty train my kid as well as listen to the professor lecture.

It's definitely not an issue of can you do it, but are you willing to work really hard to achieve your goal. Because you CAN do it, it will just take work and time. And even if you go part time and slowly chip away at the class load, you are still working closer and closer to that degree.

Re: Not sure if going back to school is for me.

Hey Ade!

Not a parent but I did return to school after taking some time off for personal reason. The biggest thing to remember is that school isn't a race. It's okay to only take 3 or 6 credits a semester and work on finding what you feel is a healthy balance between your personal life, including family, and your education.

I would definitely recommend taking it easy when you start since it is a huge transition. Some of my biggest suggestions would be:

Take classes that are interesting to you. In my experience, I have been more motivated to do well in classes I liked.
Use the resources your campus provides. A lot of schools offer free tutoring and academic help, financial help, and even specific resources for parents, non-traditional students, etc.
Online classes. Personally I do not have the motivation to do these but they work really well for some people's learning style.
Find what works best for you. College is not a one-size-fits-all thing, and it's okay to try different things until you find what works best for you. Don't give up if you can't find it right away!

I know this advice was pretty general, but I hope it still helped some! Best of luck to you and your academic endeavors!