Dear Couch,
I am now in my 30s and have been trying to finish college for 10 years now. I started out trying
for my associate’s degree in graphic design and was making good strides with the course load. I started at a community college in Louisiana and when my fiancé moved to Michigan to pursue his master’s degree at UM, I moved with him. Hoping
to continue my schooling, I enrolled in a community college
there. Unfortunately, the credits from Louisiana didn’t transfer so I took a couple of classes over again. After my fiancé finished his degree we moved back to the south to be closer to our families in Louisiana.
We chose Dallas because of the vast opportunity there for work and school. I again enrolled in a community college
and once again, none of my credits transferred. So after feeling frustrated and ripped off, I began my college track again. My fiancé and I are now married
and we had our first son in 2006. I had to put school off for that, then 11 months later, I found out that our second son was on the way. Needless to say, I have not gone back to school. I have about 16 classes left or approximately 48 hours left to earn my associate’s. How do you feel about the unjust way that most colleges and universities
conduct themselves when it comes to our lives and our future, I have taken nearly 100 hours of course work and am no where near as close to a degree as I should be. How can I feel that all of my work and frustration has been worth the trouble? Should I try to hammer
out these last 16 classes or just take my time and take a couple of classes a semester so that I can still work and have plenty of time for my family?
Sincerely,
Perpetual Student
Dear Perpetual,
Unfortunately, colleges are not just institutions for higher learning; they’re also businesses
that are out to make a profit. It’s understandable that you feel frustrated, and it might seem that all your hard work has been for nothing. However, that’s simply not the case: I’m sure you’ve learned a lot along the way, and you’re in pursuit of a potentially lucrative degree.
My advice is to assess your situation: are you going to be living in the area long enough to complete a degree? If so, locate a college near you that will analyze your transcripts and give you a firm graduation date. Once you’ve got an end in sight, you’ll be more motivated
to get your classes out of the way and off your mind. Yes, your journey has been a long and frustrating one, but you have to face the fact that there’s nothing you can do to change college policies.
The best thing to do would be to change your perspective and get the degree done. Remember to give yourself credit for your perseverance, even if those colleges
won’t.

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