Higher Education

I graduated from college yen years ago with undergraduate degrees in Spanish and journalism. At first I promised I would never see the inside of a classroom again. But a few years later, I craved the challenge and enrichment of higher education.

I contemplated going back to grad school, even part time or online. But what would I study? Try for law school? Pursue a Masters in journalism? I took one online Masters in Media Management class. I learned a lot and felt invigorated, but the detachment of an online environment wasn't satisfying.

Then we moved to college town USA. Madison, Wisconsin: home of the University of Wisconsin. Higher education was at my fingertips. I scoured the grad school catalog, but found most of the programs required extensive prerequisites. Plus, I wanted to go back to work full time. Was it even practical?

Then in May, I took a closer look at UW's MBA program. It offered an evening program for working professionals. The deadline to apply for the fall semester was June 1st, just a few weeks away. What do I have to lose? I thought and plunged ahead.

I signed up for the GMAT, requested references, attended an informational session, compiled my resume, application, and transcript, and wrote the required essays. I showed up for the GMAT testing session utterly unprepared without so much as cracking a book or opening a website. I think I was scared to know what I was getting in to. The math was hard. I took math all the way up to Calculus in high school, then completed Statistics and Economics in college, but I honestly can't remember the simplest algebra.

Somehow, I figured out a fair amount of the math problems, did much better on the verbal, and squeaked out a passable 610. I breathed a sigh of relief over my high college GPA, felt confident in my varied professional experience, and believed I had a decent chance of acceptance.

It was a frantic few weeks, but the urgency made me productive. Then all I had to do was wait. At last, the email arrived in my inbox. I got in.

I was thrilled. I am thrilled. It is an incredible program including an international trip. But it will be a big commitment and a lot of work. I will have a new baby, two other kids, work, and school. But it is an opportunity I can't pass up. A great university is in my backyard, and an opportunity to improve myself and my career is right before me. We got through a stretched-thin two years when T earned his MBA. He was at school all day every Saturday and often at night during the week. Though it was tiring for us both, it honestly went quickly and was entirely worth it. He leaped forward in his career and learned a lot about how the business world works.

So another adventure begins.

--MM