Graduate Study Challenges And Strategies For Perso

1074 Words5 Pages
Graduate Study Challenges and Strategies for Personal Success
HCS 504
September Monday 12, 2011

Graduate Study Challenges and Strategies for Personal Success The challenges adults face when deciding to return to school begins with the decision to pursue graduate studies. This decision should not be taken lightly, but only after serious consideration of personal and professional goals. Evaluating the variety of programs, whether traditional classroom versus online classroom, availability of financial aid, employment while in school, time needed to complete assignments are examples of decisions one needs to make before dramatically changing your life (Weston Kramer, 2007). Once the decision was made to return to school, I had to examine my rationale for returning to school. My personal goal of obtaining an advanced degree before retirement age spurred me to start this process. Traditionally, students progress from high school to college, to graduate school, but for the last three decades, more and more adults have entered or reentered college. Enrollment of students aged 40 or older increased 235 % between 1978 and 1993 (Jackson Hardin, 2008). The number of older, nontraditional, adults returning to college gave me the courage to go forward. In my current position, I educate patients and families about disease processes, hospital plans of care, and patient goals. My professional goal is to become a hospital based clinical educator. One mandatory requirement for the position is a master’s degree in nursing; taking that first step of returning to school has made my life plan an attainable goal. I plan to review career decision after completion of four or five courses to be certain this is the path I want to follow. According to the Council on Adult and Experiential Learning (2000), the connection between student goals and the path they have

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