The feeling of accomplishment is sweet. The unsettled feeling of something ending is a little bittersweet. And after two years of assignments and papers and textbooks and academic readings, I’m finding my new freedom a little unreal.
A classmate and I were joking that the final course of the 60 credits (shown here) in the two-year online degree program in Professional Communications at Royal Roads needed to be “re-entry to real life without school” or maybe “decompression chamber”!
Overall, it has been quite an experience.
Here’s what I won’t miss about it:
- The never-ending parade of assignments and readings, especially when courses overlapped.
- Sitting in the family room almost every evening with my laptop open, surrounded by textbooks or multiple lengthy academic papers.
- The juggling act to make sure I looked after my clients and my business as well as school.
- No time to read for fun.
- APA style.
- Feeling out of my comfort zone.
- Losing three weeks of prime summer (August) for the on-campus residency each year.
- The screech of peacocks during the residencies. Who knew such a beautiful bird could sound so horrible?
Here’s what I will miss:
Regular contact with the smart, funny, talented people who formed such a tight bond as classmates on this journey. I hope we will stay in touch with each other.