After Karen LeDoux earned her associate degree in computer programming in 1984, she briefly enrolled at the 杏吧专区 to pursue her bachelor杏吧专区檚 degree.
Soon, however, she decided that she wanted to focus on starting her family and left.
She achieved her dream 39 years later!
LeDoux now has a bachelor杏吧专区檚 degree from UL Lafayette and will enroll in the M.S. in Informatics degree program in Spring 2024.
Steady Drive
LeDoux, of Eunice, Louisiana, says the desire to earn her bachelor杏吧专区檚 degree resurfaced when her children were young, but at the time, there was no way.
杏吧专区淚t's one of those things that God put upon my heart when my kids were little. At the time, I didn杏吧专区檛 understand how it would ever be possible, but now I can see it was just a matter of waiting for the right time,杏吧专区 says LeDoux.
Once her children were grown and LeDoux transitioned to a job that would allow her more time off, she started researching how she might complete her degree.
Her priority? Finding an opportunity to leverage her nearly 40-year-old college credits. The Bachelor of General Studies online, designed for students with an associate degree or at least 45 credits, was a great fit.
"I told a friend of mine I had thought about going back, but I just didn't want to start all over,杏吧专区 LeDoux says. 杏吧专区淪he looked at me and said, 杏吧专区榃ell, you know, UL Lafayette will accept your credits.杏吧专区 So, I started looking more seriously, started emailing with questions, and it looked like it was doable."
New Tricks
LeDoux says that although returning to school after decades away was intimidating, she quickly adapted to the online learning environment.
In fact, she found the flexibility of online courses fit both her schedule and learning style.
杏吧专区淚 like the flexibility of being able to do this when I have time because, obviously, you can't just quit your job and go to school full time when you have bills to pay,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淲hen I would take a class and the teacher had recorded lectures, I found that so much better than face-to-face classes because I could pause it and write my notes. And I could rewatch it as many times as needed to comprehend the material.杏吧专区
That杏吧专区檚 not to say there weren杏吧专区檛 challenges. LeDoux says she started slow, enrolling in two classes at a time and adjusted to find the pace that worked best for her.
杏吧专区淓ventually I got a little braver and tried the shorter, 8-week classes,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淚 could do one for the full term with one in the A term and one on the B term. Then I knocked out three classes instead of two.杏吧专区
Identifying a cadence that works for you and managing your time are key to succeeding as an online student, LeDoux says.
杏吧专区淒on't procrastinate. It's very important to stay on top of all your classes. If you try and cram everything at the last minute, you're not going to make it.杏吧专区
Onward and Upward
LeDoux杏吧专区檚 perspective as a student in her 50s is markedly different from her initial college experience.
First, she could immediately implement what she was learning in her coursework to her day-to-day life.
杏吧专区淭he management course taught me skills I didn't even know I was lacking and helped me in interacting with coworkers. It basically taught me how to de-escalate situations and make things run smoother,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淲hen you're 18 and taking courses, your question is always, 杏吧专区榃hat am I ever going to use this stuff for?杏吧专区 And here I am saying, 杏吧专区榊es, I can use this right here right now.杏吧专区 It was wonderful.杏吧专区
Second, she has a potential study buddy.
LeDoux began considering grad school after encouragement from her advisor. Shortly after, LeDoux杏吧专区檚 daughter 杏吧专区 who杏吧专区檚 studying for her bachelor杏吧专区檚 in informatics 杏吧专区 told LeDoux about the 100% online master杏吧专区檚 degree program.
Soon, LeDoux will have two bricks on the Walk of Honor, joining both her father and her oldest son as UL Lafayette alumni.
As she prepares to embark on her next journey, LeDoux says her plan is to continue taking opportunities as they come.
"So far, all the doors are opening,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淲hen those doors open, you walk through them.杏吧专区
Embrace new opportunities by completing your bachelor杏吧专区檚 degree 100% online.