He finished! After years of part-time college and full time work, Chris Wade, married to our granddaughter Brittany, and father of three sons received his master’s degree in business administration this spring. Years ago, he realized if he wanted to advance and earn more, he needed first a bachelor’s degree and then the MBA. He could have settled for what he had, he chose to take the difficult path.
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Difficult because he has three sons who enjoy sports. He has coached, encouraged, gone to the games, while also making time to study and write papers. Studying with children at home can be a challenge. However, having children awakens the realization that with a college diploma, household income could improve. So years ago Chris had a desk off in another room where he studied while the rest of the household watched television.
For at least one year, he skipped some holiday celebrations to relieve the stress. It pays in time, but boy is it hard meanwhile for students and families.
I say that having seen others such as my brothers, sisters, husband, children, in-laws and myself become non-traditional students with children at home. It only lasts for a season, but what a long hard season it is!I spent many years with Hubby dashing in from work and grabbing supper before driving half an hour away to attend class. I kept the home fires burning while he studied. He learned more about how to study than he ever figured out in high school.
Like Chris, Hubby would come home, open his calculus book and begin puzzling out the solutions. While kids played with Legos, he fiddled with plastic sticks and cubes building model molecules for chemistry. The whole family attended the college concerts he had to attend for his one hour credit in fine arts.Chris’s three sons participate in sports. He worked with his teenager on wrestling and football. His twin sons had soccer games that he attended as well as church and family get-togethers.Hubby’s classwork competed with hours spent remodeling our old house. He took off one year to finish the basement and put in a new heating system and basement. In time each of the men realized the rewards.
For my brother, a degree meant the end of climbing poles to repair electrical lines. Instead of being supervised, he began supervising.Hubby, a lab employee, began talking with recruiters from plants that needed a lab supervisor. That led to our moving from northern Indiana to southern Arkansas.Chris already has two interviews for better positions in an industry that require a degree. It matters to companies, that piece of paper.Hubby worked in polymer technology, testing the production of the seals and grommets used in industry. The chemistry and calculus helped, but so did the no credit correspondence course in polymers. He received a degree in general studies.
One interviewer before offering him the job asked, “you do have a degree?”
He joked, “in basket weaving.” Not really but his degree in general studies (with a lot of chemistry and math) sufficed along with all of his years in the lab.
Diplomas come printed on a piece of heavy paper. It takes a few minutes to print and years of study to qualify to have one’s name printed on one. Sure it would be great to finish before the family comes. However sometimes it takes having a few children and a tight budget to realize “I want to earn more in this field.”
So to Chris and all the other non-traditional students, dads and moms who finished this year, congratulations. You earned it!