Fresh out of high school, Lafayette native Courtney Johnson packed her bags and moved 1,000 miles north to Iowa to pursue her undergraduate degree in psychology.
She spent a couple years there, even landing a spot on the Dean杏吧专区檚 List one semester.
But with time, she became homesick. So, she packed her bags and moved back to Lafayette, enrolling at UL Lafayette 杏吧专区 the university she grew up around 杏吧专区 as an on-campus psychology student.
She spent several more semesters as an on-campus student, first in psychology and then in sociology, while working part time, but when the COVID-19 pandemic started, Johnson decided to put school on pause.
In 2023, determined to finish the degree she started, she re-enrolled in UL Lafayette杏吧专区檚 Bachelor of General Studies online program.
杏吧专区淏oth of my parents attended UL Lafayette, but unfortunately, they did not finish,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淔inishing was a huge goal for me. Being an older sister to younger kids, I want to always put my best foot forward. I want to lead by example so my siblings can look up to me and say, 杏吧专区楾hank you, sister.杏吧专区櫺影勺ㄇ鴿
Now, less than two years later, Johnson has achieved that goal.
Finishing Online
Having the ability to finish her degree online was huge for Johnson.
Currently working for an inventory management company, she travels to stores and retail pharmacies throughout the United States, sometimes waking up as early as 2 a.m. to start her workday.
杏吧专区淢y job has taken me all over 杏吧专区 Michigan, Ohio, New Orleans,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淚 was traveling so much, and I needed to be an online student. It was nice to be in another state and still be able to complete my assignments.杏吧专区
Despite her difficult work schedule, Johnson managed to balance it all 杏吧专区 work, family, and school 杏吧专区 with self-discipline and transparency with her loved ones.
杏吧专区淚 did have to talk to my loved ones just to let them know that I was going to be taking a step back from my 30, 40, or even 60-hour work weeks,杏吧专区 she recalls. 杏吧专区淪chool was part of my job.杏吧专区
Part of treating school like her job meant blocking out days specifically for schoolwork. On days Johnson had off work, she spent her time working on assignments.
杏吧专区淎nd, of course, I had some late nights and all-nighters here and there, too,杏吧专区 Johnson says.
Finding Support
Luckily, Johnson had an entire village supporting her through her journey.
She cites loved ones like her mother, siblings, and boyfriend as her biggest supporters.
杏吧专区淭hey pushed me. They wanted me to do well,杏吧专区 Johnson recalls. 杏吧专区淢y friends encouraged me, too. My friend Gabrielle even made me a custom planner so I could keep track of things.杏吧专区
This support didn杏吧专区檛 just come from Johnson杏吧专区檚 personal network.
At the 杏吧专区, she found several supportive staff members who pushed her and helped her on her journey.
This included the Online Student Support Team, who provided her with support from the time she inquired about her program to the time she graduated.
杏吧专区淎shley on the Online Student Support Team was great,杏吧专区 Johnson says. 杏吧专区淪he was very helpful. She gave me some ideas of classes I could take that she took when she was an online student. She called me every semester to check in and make sure my classes were going smoothly.杏吧专区
This also included her advisor in the 杏吧专区 College, who met with her each semester to help her plan her courseload for the next semester and keep her on track to graduate.
杏吧专区淢y advisor, Dwan, was great, too,杏吧专区 Johnson says. 杏吧专区淚 was very transparent with her that I wanted to graduate and that I didn杏吧专区檛 want to keep pushing myself back. She understood what I wanted and encouraged me and helped me to get to that.杏吧专区
杏吧专区淚 found that as an online student, I got so much support, and I felt much less intimidated about asking questions than I did before.杏吧专区
Looking Ahead
Now that Johnson杏吧专区檚 reached her goal and earned her bachelor杏吧专区檚 degree, she杏吧专区檚 ready to pursue her next goal: returning to the classroom as a teacher. She杏吧专区檚 currently in the early stages of researching alternative teacher certification programs.
杏吧专区淚 want to work in education and work with kids,杏吧专区 Johnson says. 杏吧专区淚 worked at a daycare once, and I杏吧专区檝e done substitute teaching. Being around kids and helping educate them is something I think I would enjoy.杏吧专区
Her advice to peers? Be proud of your degree and field of study.
杏吧专区淧eople think that general studies is a degree for people who don杏吧专区檛 know what they want to do,杏吧专区 she says. 杏吧专区淭hat杏吧专区檚 not the case. They just don杏吧专区檛 know right at that moment what they want to do. As you take classes in different areas and as you learn, you start to see what you like and what you want to go for.杏吧专区
杏吧专区淭he general studies degree is so versatile. If you杏吧专区檙e entering this program, just go for it, because it doesn杏吧专区檛 mean that you杏吧专区檙e undecisive. It just means you杏吧专区檙e exploring and learning new things along the way.杏吧专区
Finish what you started and explore new opportunities with our Bachelor of General Studies online program.
