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How A College Education Can Help You Make A Fresh Start In Your Career

Tue, 04/09/2019
How A College Education Can Help You Make A Fresh Start In Your Career

When you reach a point in your work life where you feel ready to try something new or realize that perhaps you’ve outgrown a particular position or that your interests have evolved, it can be so easy to talk yourself out of making a change by saying, “I could never do that” or “I don’t have the right training.” Furthering your education with a college degree can help you make a fresh start in your career. Learning new skills can prepare you to enter a new field or pivot in a direction you might not have considered before.

Taking a big step like going back to school can be intimidating or may seem impossible—maybe you’re juggling a lot between your work and home life. Maybe you’re scared about how you can afford to go back to school. Time is another issue. The good news is that it is possible and it can open up new doors to a bright future.

Michelle Seabrook, who received a BBA in Business Administration from the College of Westchester, recalls having a lot of the same fears many prospective and new students have about going back to school or pursuing a degree later in life. “Like many adult students returning to school, I feared if I would be able to fulfill my student obligations while working a full time job and managing family responsibilities,” she says. “I also feared the curriculum would be too challenging for someone who had been out of school for some time.”

Seabrook decided to pursue her BBA in Business Administration at CW. “In a previous role,” she explains, “I had the opportunity to work with the Chief Learning Officer of an organization that saw my potential and encouraged me to do more by expanding my collegiate consciousness. However, it was not until I was declined a position that I was overqualified for but did not have the college degree requirements, that I decided to pursue my degree.” She says she felt “CW was the perfect fit, as class sizes were small with evening classes available.”

Now working as a Project Manager for a leading Telecommunications company, she is so happy she gave herself the opportunity to go back to school. “My education and experiences have prepared me in that I have been provided with confidence and increased marketability by obtaining new skills that are in demand.  CW provided me with tools that helped me to identify the job I desired and rebrand myself accordingly.”

For anyone interested in continuing their education but feeling daunted by the prospect, Seabrook offers this advice: “Listen to your inner voice.  If the thought has crossed your mind and you are ready to change your trajectory, you have already taken the first step in acknowledging you are ready to do more.  The second step is choosing to change your thought process and behaviors to support your inner voice.”

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The College of Westchester