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Education Inspiration: Bill B., 29

After high school, I went straight into the army, intending to raise money for college. I served four years and used my GI Bill to go to a local university when I got out. But, I found that even though the service matured me, I was still restless and unfocused. I only completed two years and dropped out, instead getting a certificate in drafting. I started working as a draftsman at a civil engineering firm. Then, I was laid off. I was devastated, and had a hard time finding another job because much of what I did was being automated. My ex-boss told me he thought that I should go back to school and get my degree in engineering. I finished my undergraduate degree last year and have a really challenging job. Working in "the real world" with out a degree made me appreciate what a gift education is.
Bill B., 29
San Antonio, Texas

I got a laptop for astronomy. Astronomy fulfills the soft science requirement. Three guys in the lecture hall were shooting notes back and forth on wi-fi. If one of us slept in, the other two would copy the blackboard and send it to us on email. The thing is, the prof said it would be open-book exams, including laptop notes. Crazy simple. I am not memorizing the "albedo" of Venus when you can look it up on wi-fi right during the section tests. Then the prof held mid-quarter conferences with us on our papers and told me anyone can barf up numbers. He said my writing showed that I wasn't learning a thing. Not just about astronomy either. He said I couldn't hide out in college my whole life and that I would have to face the real world. He slammed me. After that I got serious and had a whole new look at what I was doing.
Marcus, 24
Virginia Beach, VA

The most incredible thing that happened to me in college was when I got an arts mentor. She chose me, actually. I was in Pergolisi in Santa Cruz reading a book on clay bisques. She came over and sat down without asking. She made me mad when she said the book was passé. I hate people that use that word. We talked for an hour and I ended up laughing a lot. She was a grad student and a teaching assistant over at Porter. We went out clubbing at the Catalyst that weekend. I knew I had found the perfect advisor. That summer we went camping on the beach at Davenport, and she showed me how to sand-fire Raku. It's the perfect media! I used it for my senior project. Ellen owns a gallery in Denver now with another friend of ours from school. I go skiing there, and she comes to the beach here. I don't make a living with art, but I still sand-fire Raku.
Jenna, 28
Santa Cruz, CA, USA

I was married right after high school, had two children, and didn't have time to go to college while the kids were young. When the kids were a bit older and in school, I went back to college to get my degree. Being in classes with so many younger adults was discouraging. I hadn't done homework or thought analytically for 10 years, and the other students seemed to catch on to everything a lot faster than me. My professor saw my anxiety, and agreed to spend some extra time with me during his office hours. By the end of the semester, I was completely on top of my studies. With the professor's help and my dedication to the subject material, I knew I was in good shape for the final. I noticed that although a lot of my younger classmates were quicker than I was, they didn't take their classes as seriously. Many actually asked to study with me for the final!
A. Jones
Providence, Rhode Island, USA

Chemistry has never been a good subject for me, but when I got to college, I decided I really wanted to become an obstetrician and eventually deliver babies. When I realized I was going to have to take the MCAT to get into medical school, and that the test was going to be full of chemistry questions, I freaked out. I was going to have to take organic chemistry, which I heard was ridiculously hard. I went and talked with the organic chemistry professor, and told him I was scared. He understood my fears and suggested I enroll in the organic chemistry summer session. By doing this, I'd be able to completely dedicate myself to the subject and wouldn't have homework from other classes to worry about. When he mentioned that he was going to be teaching the summer session, I was convinced. He was totally right. Organic Chemistry was sooooo hard, but I worked on it like crazy that summer. With the help of that great professor, I got a B, which was absolutely fine with me!
Janice, 22
Boston, MA