Today it's been a week since I graduated from college. It was a long, tough road. I wanted to drop out so many times. (Well I did take a break that turned out to be a six year break) I knew what I wanted to be. I love to write, so the natural course would be Journalism. By becoming a journalist, I could write and get the chance to meet new and interesting people.
High School was pretty damn easy. I knew what I wanted to be, but wasn't sure how to go about doing it. How do you become a writer? Obviously it helps to be able to read and write. I could become a novelist. But what if I don't become successful? It would help to have a backup plan. I could become a Journalist and write novels on the side.
After I finished high school, I knew I wanted to go to college. I wanted to go away for college. I love California, my home state. Moving away would not be cheap. And the burning question: Where would I move to? It would probably be best if I went to school here. College is expensive enough without adding moving expenses.
I started by going to State Center Community College District in Clovis, CA. It would be cheaper to start out at city college. I could concentrate on general education classes. And city college is easier. The classes are smaller, and so is the campus. It's like boot camp for state college. I was living at home at the time and the school was located within walking distance from home.
I began to realize college was way different than high school. In high school, you had to go. Your parents and the government forced you to go. If you were 18, you could choose not to go. (I think) If you don't go to high school, your job prospects are limited. And in high school you didn't have much freedom. Your teachers and counselors chose your classes for you. There were a few elective classes you could choose from.
In college you had so many options. You would choose your major, your field. Then you would choose the classes you wanted to take each semester. You could go during the day or night. You could choose to go during the weekends if you wanted to. You could even take two classes and have a really short school day if you'd like. I'd advise against doing that, it would take you forever to graduate if you do.
My first two years of college were pretty easy. I got the classes I wanted. I made lots of new friends. I got along great with my teachers. I was passing my classes. My future was looking really bright. I was starting to a little stressed but nothing too extreme. I was working part time. I wasn't making enough money, but wasn't flat broke.
Then my mom and sister had to move. I knew that I would have to work more. I realized that I would have to drop out of school for a bit. It would be a short break. I wasn't dropping out of college forever. I would go back after I got back on my feet. There's nothing wrong with taking a break from school. I was working, so it wasn't like I was dropping out of school to be lazy.
That 'short break' turned into six years. I had debt I needed to take care of. I was getting used to the feeling of only having to worry about work. I hated having to worry about school and work. I loved coming home from work and not worrying about homework, projects, term papers or presentations. My family kept asking when I was going back. To be honest, I wasn't sure when I was going back or if I was going back.
Did I even want to go back?
The day finally came when I realized I needed to go back. I was working full time as a cart guy at Sam's Club. I was making a decent amount of money. But I realized I didn't want to do this forever. I knew that if I wanted a family, I would have to provide for them. I would need a job that paid more. In order to do that, I would need a college degree. Having a degree would help improve my life so much.
I talked to a counselor to see what I needed to do. It had been so long since I was in school, I wasn't sure what classed I needed to take. After talking to the counselor, I knew what I had to do. I went back to city college to finish my general education classes. It took less than a year. Now came the next step, state college.
I enrolled in Fresno State College. I went through orientation. I got to know the campus. I even met some fellow students who was going for the same degree I was going for. I was able to register for classes before anyone else. I was scared about going back to college. But by going through orientation, my fears were eased away.
Each semester seemed to fly by. I took some time between breaks to relax. I also began to plan what classes I would take for the next semester. There were time when I thought about dropping out again. But I refused to do so. I had dropped out once, I wasn't about to drop out again. I had come too far. I was so close to finishing. I couldn't wait to be done.
Fresno State was a good school. It did get frustrating that the tuition kept going up. I was able to get some money through financial aid. It wasn't enough to pay my tuition and books. I had to take out student loans. I was finally out of debt. I didn't want to get back into debt. But I was continuing my education. That seemed like a good enough reason to get into debt.
The journalism classes were tough but manageable. I even got a chance to write for the school paper, The Collegian. I covered feature stories, profile stories, Arts\Entertainment and movie reviews. I did this about six months. It was good to get practice in my field. It gave me a chance to practice my interviewing skills.
I'm a pretty shy person and practicing my interviewing skills helped me overcome my shyness.
Another memorable moment was when I participated in the Central Valley War Veterans Memorial Project. This was an assignment for my editing class. It was one of the most stressful yet rewarding assignments I had ever done. It was stressful because the last thing I ever want to do is offend a veteran. I wanted them to tell me their story because they wanted to, not because they felt pressured to. I did everything I could to do a good job. I got a good grade and felt like I accomplished something.
Finally the day came. Friday, May 17th 2013 Graduation Day. Myself along with about 200 other graduates got our degrees. I was so glad to be done. I had finished school once and for all. I'm trying to get a job with my degree. But I finished school. It took me a bit longer than I wanted to. All in all my college experience was a good one.
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