Back to school...maybe...

CheleLyn · Senior Member

Back to school...maybe...

Jilly · Veteran Member

good for you!

i do not know anything about legal studies, but are there any online programs available?

i am working on a bachelor degree in nursing (have an ADN now) through an online program. i haven't had to leave the house for anything, except to buy my books (i will have two brief clinical rotations in the future though).

anyway, it is a LOT of work (i think online classes add a bit more busy work to make up for lack of actual class time) but not impossible and soooo nice to be able to do this from home.

whatever route you choose, get as many classes out of the way before you start the program. even if you haven't made up your mind on where you are going, getting some electives/general classes taken care of will really ease the workload later. i wish i would have done that while i was waiting for the perfect time to go back. i highly recommend the online route.

i wish you the best!! smile

Lizzy · Guru

CheleLyn wrote:

SO despite how things crumbled and the crap i had to deal with when i withdrew from school in september, i'm pretty sure i want to go back to school in the fall. this time i'm reconsidering where i started when i got out of high school...legal assisting (bc i really wanted to be lawyer but didnt think i was smart enough so settle for an assisting program but then got stupid and got married and pregnant and quit).

anyway, i guess i just always wondered if i could have done it. so now, here i am 18 yrs later...with age being more of an obstacle to me than intelligence...and looking into it again. UNFORTUNATELY, the school I want to go to (where i was in the surg tech program) doesnt offer any legal programs at all which leaves me short on options....

1. take the criminal justice program at that school---yeah...no
2. go to a school in another town in the opposite direction whose reputation idt is as good as the one i was in but who does offer a legal assist program
3. go to the university here in town which has a couple down sides for me
     a. $$$$
     b. it's a christian university which isnt an issue although chapel attendance is
         required weekly if i understand the website correctly (i have my own issues
         with it, but that's another issue and i would do what i gotta do if needed)
     c. they don't actually HAVE a legal assist program, so what i would actually be
        studying is pre-law...andthen why even stop there, why not just go all the
        way...but then we come back to age, $$$, and chapel

i just dont know what to do. i know its right in front of me but i cant see the answer. im 37 years old and STILL here i sit trying to figure this out.

anyone want to play parent and just tell me what to do???

Hey Chele,

I just finished a Bachelor's Degree program with a minor in Legal Studies. I also have an Associate's Degree in Legal Studies as well as a Certificate. the reason why I did that (in the order of Certificate first, then AAS, then B.A.) is that I was working as a legal assistant and wanted the certificate to get a better paying job - while continuing in the AAS program. I then took all my credits and transferred them into a 4- year university for a B.S in Legal Studies. (all of the credits I earned I was able to use - I have not take a class that has not transferred for my degree.)

What town are you in and maybe I can help you plan?

daisy · Guru

i'd go for the degree you want in the lesser-reputation and less expensive school. your work will speak for itself. im all about doing higher education for as little money as possible.
plus, if youre going to put the time and money into anything, it should be what you've been thinking about for 18 yrs.
(and i'm going to stop there before i enroll in dental school - LMAO).

CheleLyn · Senior Member

Jilly wrote:

good for you!

i do not know anything about legal studies, but are there any online programs available?

i am working on a bachelor degree in nursing (have an ADN now) through an online program. i haven't had to leave the house for anything, except to buy my books (i will have two brief clinical rotations in the future though).

anyway, it is a LOT of work (i think online classes add a bit more busy work to make up for lack of actual class time) but not impossible and soooo nice to be able to do this from home.

whatever route you choose, get as many classes out of the way before you start the program. even if you haven't made up your mind on where you are going, getting some electives/general classes taken care of will really ease the workload later. i wish i would have done that while i was waiting for the perfect time to go back. i highly recommend the online route.

i wish you the best!!

i took my A&P and Med Term online while i was waiting for the surg tech program to start. they were very easy for me to do online, but i definately missed being able to have actual discussions...plus i was doing my work between 10pm and 3 am....altho with daniel in school now i could theoretically do classes during the day.

i considered the lvn program but i decided i dont think i would be the nurse i would expect myself to be. In fact I was all set and ready to go take the entrance test up until the ft hood shooting and i think it just made me realize that the nursing aspect of medicine isnt where i want to be...i want to be in the OR DOING surgery...not as a tech but more in an observing/research kind of way kwim

CheleLyn · Senior Member

Lizzy wrote:

CheleLyn wrote:

SO despite how things crumbled and the crap i had to deal with when i withdrew from school in september, i'm pretty sure i want to go back to school in the fall. this time i'm reconsidering where i started when i got out of high school...legal assisting (bc i really wanted to be lawyer but didnt think i was smart enough so settle for an assisting program but then got stupid and got married and pregnant and quit).

anyway, i guess i just always wondered if i could have done it. so now, here i am 18 yrs later...with age being more of an obstacle to me than intelligence...and looking into it again. UNFORTUNATELY, the school I want to go to (where i was in the surg tech program) doesnt offer any legal programs at all which leaves me short on options....

1. take the criminal justice program at that school---yeah...no
2. go to a school in another town in the opposite direction whose reputation idt is as good as the one i was in but who does offer a legal assist program
3. go to the university here in town which has a couple down sides for me
     a. $$$$
     b. it's a christian university which isnt an issue although chapel attendance is
         required weekly if i understand the website correctly (i have my own issues
         with it, but that's another issue and i would do what i gotta do if needed)
     c. they don't actually HAVE a legal assist program, so what i would actually be
        studying is pre-law...andthen why even stop there, why not just go all the
        way...but then we come back to age, $$$, and chapel

i just dont know what to do. i know its right in front of me but i cant see the answer. im 37 years old and STILL here i sit trying to figure this out.

anyone want to play parent and just tell me what to do???

Hey Chele,

I just finished a Bachelor's Degree program with a minor in Legal Studies. I also have an Associate's Degree in Legal Studies as well as a Certificate. the reason why I did that (in the order of Certificate first, then AAS, then B.A.) is that I was working as a legal assistant and wanted the certificate to get a better paying job - while continuing in the AAS program. I then took all my credits and transferred them into a 4- year university for a B.S in Legal Studies. (all of the credits I earned I was able to use - I have not take a class that has not transferred for my degree.)

What town are you in and maybe I can help you plan?

I'm in Belton. Baylor is in Waco but thats WAY out of price range and UTexas is in Austin...way too far and way to expensive LOL

CheleLyn · Senior Member

daisy wrote:

i'd go for the degree you want in the lesser-reputation and less expensive school. your work will speak for itself. im all about doing higher education for as little money as possible.
plus, if youre going to put the time and money into anything, it should be what you've been thinking about for 18 yrs.
(and i'm going to stop there before i enroll in dental school - LMAO).

LOL I've gone back and forth beween medicine and law...worked the edical field in various aspects for years, but I've realized I'm more of an acedemic, I really enjoy research and learning.

I do have Phi Theta Kappa to my advantage so whatever school i do go to should feel confident giving me scholarship money---I've proven ihave the ability to learn, my GPA was 4.0 before I withdrew.

I will say, I do wish that when I was a teenager and in foster care that there had been more help in the ways of getting us girls into school. only one other girl and I (out of 5 in the home at the time) even bothered applying to colleges. There was never any push or encouragement...and the pressure we did feel was because we had to come up with something bc we were about to age out of the system. MOst girls ended up pregnant sr year or very soon after just so there would be some kind of help---as crazy as that sounds.....but all that is a WHOLE other story LOL

Lizzy · Guru

CheleLyn wrote:

Lizzy wrote:

CheleLyn wrote:

SO despite how things crumbled and the crap i had to deal with when i withdrew from school in september, i'm pretty sure i want to go back to school in the fall. this time i'm reconsidering where i started when i got out of high school...legal assisting (bc i really wanted to be lawyer but didnt think i was smart enough so settle for an assisting program but then got stupid and got married and pregnant and quit).

anyway, i guess i just always wondered if i could have done it. so now, here i am 18 yrs later...with age being more of an obstacle to me than intelligence...and looking into it again. UNFORTUNATELY, the school I want to go to (where i was in the surg tech program) doesnt offer any legal programs at all which leaves me short on options....

1. take the criminal justice program at that school---yeah...no
2. go to a school in another town in the opposite direction whose reputation idt is as good as the one i was in but who does offer a legal assist program
3. go to the university here in town which has a couple down sides for me
     a. $$$$
     b. it's a christian university which isnt an issue although chapel attendance is
         required weekly if i understand the website correctly (i have my own issues
         with it, but that's another issue and i would do what i gotta do if needed)
     c. they don't actually HAVE a legal assist program, so what i would actually be
        studying is pre-law...andthen why even stop there, why not just go all the
        way...but then we come back to age, $$$, and chapel

i just dont know what to do. i know its right in front of me but i cant see the answer. im 37 years old and STILL here i sit trying to figure this out.

anyone want to play parent and just tell me what to do???

Hey Chele,

I just finished a Bachelor's Degree program with a minor in Legal Studies. I also have an Associate's Degree in Legal Studies as well as a Certificate. the reason why I did that (in the order of Certificate first, then AAS, then B.A.) is that I was working as a legal assistant and wanted the certificate to get a better paying job - while continuing in the AAS program. I then took all my credits and transferred them into a 4- year university for a B.S in Legal Studies. (all of the credits I earned I was able to use - I have not take a class that has not transferred for my degree.)

What town are you in and maybe I can help you plan?

I'm in Belton. Baylor is in Waco but thats WAY out of price range and UTexas is in Austin...way too far and way to expensive LOL

are any of these nearby?

CheleLyn · Senior Member

The closet is Dallas and that's still a couple hours north.

I'm thinking i may have to just suck it up and go to the school i dont want to but has the program. hopefully, after talking to an advisor next month, my school of choice will be able to offer something...even if it takes a little longer to reach the end. :fingerscrossed:

Jilly · Veteran Member

CheleLyn wrote:

Jilly wrote:

good for you!

i do not know anything about legal studies, but are there any online programs available?

i am working on a bachelor degree in nursing (have an ADN now) through an online program. i haven't had to leave the house for anything, except to buy my books (i will have two brief clinical rotations in the future though).

anyway, it is a LOT of work (i think online classes add a bit more busy work to make up for lack of actual class time) but not impossible and soooo nice to be able to do this from home.

whatever route you choose, get as many classes out of the way before you start the program. even if you haven't made up your mind on where you are going, getting some electives/general classes taken care of will really ease the workload later. i wish i would have done that while i was waiting for the perfect time to go back. i highly recommend the online route.

i wish you the best!!

i took my A&P and Med Term online while i was waiting for the surg tech program to start. they were very easy for me to do online, but i definately missed being able to have actual discussions...plus i was doing my work between 10pm and 3 am....altho with daniel in school now i could theoretically do classes during the day.

i considered the lvn program but i decided i dont think i would be the nurse i would expect myself to be. In fact I was all set and ready to go take the entrance test up until the ft hood shooting and i think it just made me realize that the nursing aspect of medicine isnt where i want to be...i want to be in the OR DOING surgery...not as a tech but more in an observing/research kind of way kwim

I totally understand.

Just in case you are considering nursing again someday, the trend is that research is becoming a huge part of nursing. The medical field is changing so rapidly, that 'they' (many nursing organizations, federal groups, state groups, etc.) are pushing hard for changing the way nurses practice to provide better care for patients. They are specifically using nursing research to make these changes (it's called evidence based practice). There are nursing research and also nursing informatics degrees available now. (I think the informatics degree sounds so interesting and something I may look into someday)

I know you are veering away from the field of nursing, but just wanted to throw that in as food for thought, since you were interested in research. smile

From what I have heard, social security funding will be running out shortly and retirement age will not be 65 for much longer. So, whatever field you invest time and money into, IMO, it will be very worth your time, even if it takes you awhile to accomplish.