![\"Lisa](\"http:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2017\/02\/Lisa-Dowdell-2-259x460.jpeg\")
Her daughter\u2019s accomplishments inspired Dowdell to action. \u201cThe evening she graduated, she showed me the Capella website, and I applied right then,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Even though she\u2019s about three years from retirement, Dowdell points to a desire to fulfill her own dreams as a major reason to pursue the degree now. \u201cI\u2019m doing this for me,\u201d she says. \u201cI also want to get a master\u2019s and a doctorate. I fell into IT by accident, but I\u2019ve always loved it. I\u2019m a total geek, always reading, always studying. I can\u2019t see myself leaving IT even after retirement. Advanced degrees, along with my experience, would give me the credibility I need to build a consulting career.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
FlexPath a Good Fit<\/h4>\n
Dowdell started her BS in IT program in Capella\u2019s GuidedPath learning format, but the level of experience she brought with her sometimes made her impatient to move faster. \u201cWhen I learned about FlexPath, that was the ticket. My work experience certainly has gaps. What\u2019s great is that I can take courses to fill these gaps and work as hard as I can, at my pace.\u201d<\/p>\n
Regardless of her previous experience, she\u2019s found a lot to learn through the IT program. \u201cI could sail through courses on web application development because that\u2019s what I\u2019m familiar with,\u201d she says. \u201cBut other courses were much more challenging because I couldn\u2019t draw from my experience. I\u2019ve developed all kinds of skills with my courses. It\u2019s pushed me and caused me to learn so much.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n
Want a sneak peek into Capella? Compare GuidedPath and FlexPath learning formats <\/a>and take a free, non-graded trial course<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n She\u2019s well aware that she entered the IT field at a time when it was rare for women (and especially women of color) to do so, but she didn\u2019t let that deter her. \u201cOver the years, there have been so many times when I\u2019ve been at a workshop or conference, and I\u2019ve been the only woman, or the only black woman, in attendance. People have assumed I\u2019m a graphic designer, and I have to tell them, no, I\u2019m a coder. Females are questioned more; we have to prove ourselves more.\u201d<\/p>\n But she sees improvement and change. \u201cNow there are more women at conferences. And I work with Black Girls Code<\/a> because I want girls to think about this field. I recently took my five-year-old granddaughter to a game development class. I was amazed that as young as five, kids can pick up these concepts and run with them. I hope that more and more women enter this field.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Learn more about Capella\u2019s online <\/em>Bachelor\u2019s in Information Technology degree program<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Lisa Dowdell, a long-time IT application developer, was inspired to finish her own bachelor\u2019s degree by her daughter\u2019s achievements in higher education.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":81,"featured_media":5612,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[325,151],"tags":[67,22],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5611"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/81"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5611"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5611\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5625,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5611\/revisions\/5625"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5612"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5611"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5611"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nOn Being a Woman in IT<\/h4>\n
Important Information<\/a> about the educational debt, earnings, and completion rates of students who attended this program.<\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"