My name is Cynthia and if you've made it here, you probably already know that. What you might not know is that I am in my final term as a graduate student at Washington State University. As a mother in my 30s, I represent a demographic referred to as nontraditional college students.
I began pursuing my bachelor’s degree at WSU in 2017, having earned an associate’s degree from Portland Community College many years prior. Years of single-parenting had afforded me the opportunity to sharpen my skill of effectively managing scarce resources. The decision to major in Economics seemed only natural, and I had plans to attend law school. A first day of school photo was tradition in our home, and I was no exception.
I gained my academic footing and spent most of 2018 developing routines to incorporate my school work into our lives. While my attendance at WSU's Global Campus did not require me to physically attend classes, I quickly learned that studying for me required leaving the house. Many hours were spent consuming coffee during my undergraduate years.
In 2019, as our family moved across the state, I accepted the Soroptimist International Live Your Dream Award, completed a marketing internship, and sat for the Law School Admission Test (LSAT).
Though challenging, our family not only survived the pandemic, we thrived – seizing the opportunity to launch our first business!
Oh, and I graduated with my BS in Economic Sciences!
I began studying strategic communication within the Murrow College of Communication at WSU shortly after graduating with my undergraduate degree. Our new business venture provided the perfect subject on which I could focus a large portion of my graduate work. Our website and social media content were a few of the products to emerge from my graduate coursework.
Without a doubt, 2022 has been my most favorite year thus far! Following another major move (this time cross-country), our family has settled into the Midwest and I am just months away from graduating with an MA in Strategic Communication. My journey over the past 5 years has been a winding one, and my biggest takeaway has been that the only wrong way to climb the mountain, is to continue standing still.
Credits:
Created with images by Eno1 - "Adventure Time. A young woman dressed for a hike with a backpack, a yellow jacket and a baseball cap stands in front of a mountain of books. She is going on a trip. Collected works of science fiction " • Nejron Photo - "Woman hiker on a top of a mountain"