About me and my job

My Background
I began college as a joint enrollment student at Gordon College in Barnesville, Georgia my senior year of high school. This seemed like the smartest choice; instead of studying like crazy in advanced high school classes, I took it easy in a community college, with no dress code! I could wear a hat indoors and leave after I turned in the test! At 17, these were very important differences between college and high school. Also, I was almost guaranteed an A and credit for the class, as opposed to a B and a possible pass on an advanced placement exam.

What the joint enrollment program really did for me was make me choose a senior university and major sooner than I would have had I spent my senior year in high school. This is not necessary a negative thing; I had a very wide range of interests, so the core curriculum appealed to me. I enjoyed literature, drama, social sciences, history, art history, and pretty much everything except math, in which I only took one course my entire undergraduate career. After I finished my sophomore (really freshman) year, it was time to start junior level classes and study mostly one subject.

I spent hours reading the catalogs of senior universities online. This is how I found the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia's policies on inter-system transfer credit. So I stopped trying to place the courses I had completed at Gordon into the core curriculum of other schools when I realized my core would be complete no matter where I transferred within the system. A wave of relief washed over me.

I chose the University of Georgia and found the perfect major for my various interests, Comparative Literature. With this course of study, I examined the music, art, theatre, history, and customs of many different cultures through literature. Two years later, in August 2007, I was a happy graduate with that one burning question that plagues many liberal arts majors, "What do I want to do now?"

How I found this job
Since I graduated a year early, I wasn't exactly ready to leave the world of academia, so I thought it would be a good idea to apply for staff jobs at colleges. Most of these positions require a bachelor's degree, and many of them aren't major specific.

I applied to several positions at different local schools such as admissions counselor, financial aid associate, and transfer evaluator. I used my story of my experience as a transfer student in my interview. I also had to explain how my major prepared me for this type of work. There is a lot of research involved in finding course descriptions to determine equivalency, and I shared how much research my major required. I was offered the position after a second interview.

My favorite part of the job is working with students and sharing my knowledge with them. I love to hear, "You have been so helpful," and, "Thanks, I didn't know that."