Whether you’ve always planned to return to (or start) your college studies at some point in your life, or you never really imagined or thought you’d ever pursue an undergrad or master’s-level degree until just recently, time is going to continue on anyway – with or without you (finally) pursuing that lifelong or brand new dream. If you’re still vacillating between starting school this season or putting it off for yet another year, here are some “gut-telling” signals that it’s time to go back to college sooner rather than later.
4. You want to make your family proud of you.
Sure, your kids are proud of you when you don’t embarrass them in front of their friends, and when you don’t post anything on their social media accounts about doing dishes, laundry, or homework; but, you can really make your children proud of you by going back to school. What kid, spouse, parent, or aunt/uncle wouldn’t be proud of you working towards your college degree? Taking this action will not only make them proud, but also inspire them to set and achieve goals themselves. If your kids:
- seem to cringe when you walk into the room when they have their friends over,
- ask you to pick them up from the ballgame or school event “around the corner”, or
- don’t introduce you to their friends or their friends’ parents, you know it’s time to go back to college.
5. Professionally, you want to do more and be more.
Although your current employer (or a potential employer during an interview) may never come right out and tell you that you’re not going to get promoted (or hired) because you don’t have a degree, everyone knows that a college degree will help you to advance in your career. If a potential employer is trying to decide between two equally-experienced candidates vying for the same position and one of them (you) is currently pursuing an undergrad or advanced degree, you are most likely to be the one who is offered the job. When it comes time for a promotion at work, an increase in your salary, or the opportunity to transfer into another department, you’ll have a much better chance of accomplishing that goal if you are pursuing a degree. If you’ve been:
- doing the exact same task at the exact same job for the exact same pay rate for over a year, you know it’s time to go back to college.
6. You’re ready, willing, and able to embrace more responsibility.
Maybe you figured when your kids get older you’ll then pursue your academic goals. Or, perhaps you’ve been putting it off because you wanted to get some big projects done at work or at home. The thing is, there will forever and always be sudden circumstances, opportunities, distractions, and challenges occurring in our lives. If you acknowledge that, expect it, and accept it, then it makes procrastinating getting the things accomplished that are most important to you (like earning that college degree) seem ridiculous and tragic. There is no better time than right now to start. If you wait until the kids move out, you might be finding yourself opening your home to a parent or in-law. If you wait until things slow down at work, you may realize that they never will unless you leave your employer.
If you’ve finally come to realize that:
- everyone is given the same 24 hours in a day, and
- the responsibilities you choose to embrace and act upon within those same 24 hours are completely up to you, you know it’s time to go back to college.
The days, weeks, months, and seasons of this year are going to come and go like they always do; you can either look back at them, wonder where the time went, and wish you would have started college this year, or you can look ahead and know that by this time next year, you will have several college courses completed toward your degree. Either way, you know it’s time to go back to college.
Read three more signals that it’s time to go back: You Know It’s Time to Go Back to College… (Part One).
From 8 Reasons to Go Back to College as an Adult to How to Choose an Online Degree Program to Tips to Balance Work, Family, and Going Back to School, Averett University Graduate & Professional Studies is here to help you succeed in both your professional life and your academic life (which, when combined, will help to make your personal life everything you had hoped and dreamed). You may also like How to Deal With a Bad Boss or 9 Habits of Highly-Organized People.
Next, we’ll cover “Tips to Nail a Job Interview”. Until next time, explore our online degree programs ~ all specifically designed for the busy lifestyles of adults.