{"id":4932,"date":"2016-07-25T13:00:30","date_gmt":"2016-07-25T18:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/?p=4932"},"modified":"2016-12-20T09:49:19","modified_gmt":"2016-12-20T15:49:19","slug":"flexpath-graduate-linda-collar-shares-her-bachelors-degree-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/flexpath-graduate-linda-collar-shares-her-bachelors-degree-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"I Didn’t Go Back…I Found My Way Forward: Linda’s FlexPath Story"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cFlexPath is really the best way for me to get an education.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Linda Collar is a respiratory supervisor in a hospital system in North Carolina. In 2016, she received a Bachelor’s in Health Care Management<\/a> through FlexPath<\/a>, Capella University\u2019s self-paced learning format.<\/p>\n

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Collar started college directly after high school, but it didn\u2019t fit her needs. She turned to community college to get her associate\u2019s degree, and then began working. At the time, an associate\u2019s degree was enough for her career in health care, and the time and financial commitment to continue on to a bachelor\u2019s degree didn\u2019t make sense to her.<\/p>\n

She advanced in her career, but as her field evolved over 30 years, her lack of a bachelor\u2019s degree became a problem. After years away from school, however, she had many concerns about how she could accomplish her goals. FlexPath answered each one.<\/p>\n

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Concern #1: It was too late to go back to school.<\/h4>\n

\u201cI felt like I just didn\u2019t have the motivation to work one or two jobs, go sit in a classroom, and then go home and do the homework. But FlexPath was comfortable for me. I’m older, and I still want to have a life along with school and work and all of that. FlexPath really allowed me to work at my pace.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

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Concern #2: It would take too long.<\/h4>\n

The thought of spending three years in a traditional program was daunting to Collar, and when she started with Capella\u2019s GuidedPath format, she quickly realized it wasn\u2019t going to work for her. But with FlexPath, she accelerated through her learning, and completed her degree in 18 months. She was so encouraged by her undergraduate success that she\u2019s now enrolled in a master\u2019s program, again via FlexPath. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t do my master\u2019s if I couldn\u2019t do it through FlexPath.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

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Concern #3: I\u2019ll have to put my family on hold.<\/h4>\n

\u201cMy father was very sick at one point, and even though I had to go up to Michigan and sit in the ICU waiting room, I was still able to do some of the work but I was also able to concentrate on the things I needed to concentrate on.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI think a lot of people are scared to go back, or they think, \u2018I\u2019ve got to put my family or my work on hold,\u2019 but you really don\u2019t. I tell them it\u2019s something that you can do and you can fit it in.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Concern #4: I won\u2019t be able to handle the work, or I\u2019ll have to spend time on things of no interest to me.<\/h4>\n

\u201cHonestly, at this point in my life, I really just wanted to know what the coursework was, and then do my research and learn. I didn’t want to have to write posts and answer posts. I know for a lot of people that’s the way to go, but I’m not comfortable with that because sometimes it’s all I can do to answer my e-mails.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cFlexPath really fit in my life because I could see what I needed to learn, I could see what the work was that I had to do. I did a lot of writing, and that’s a strength for me. It was much easier to take that strength and barrel through.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n