Bachelor in Business - Shasta College (Winner)
Editors Note: This student story essay from was selected as the first place winner in BrainTrack's Business Schools Scholarship for fall 2009. At the time of submittal this winner, Coral Dickerson, was studying for a Bachelor in Business at Shasta College in Redding, California.
Wishes Had Known | Program Likes/Dislikes | Choosing BusinessWhat do you wish you had known about selecting and entering your business school that would be helpful to others going into business?
Like I said in my other response, I didn’t even really know I was going to major in Business until that first class. All the advice I can offer someone is that even if you really don’t know what you want to do with your schooling, just try new things and maybe your major will find you like mine did me.
When I first started school people would ask me what my major was, and it made me feel stupid to say, “Gee, I don’t know yet”. Over the past few semesters I have come to realize that there are so many people in the same boat and that made me feel good; like I wasn’t the only one that didn’t have a clue. Never give up on your dream, and everything has a way of working itself out.
What have you enjoyed most and least during your business degree program so far?
Ok, so let’s start with what I have enjoyed the most. There is so much, but I will try and highlight what I feel is most important. First I have enjoyed discovering that I do indeed have the aptitude and the strength to succeed at whatever I set my mind to. For a very long time I did not believe in myself, and would find myself giving up before even trying. My classes have shown me that I can indeed succeed and do well. I have also enjoyed the content of my classes. Last semester I took Business Law and was fascinated. I learned so much about California law.
Another thing I have enjoyed is finding out that others see how hard I am working and see my potential, even when I didn’t see it myself. I have has some of my professors write really nice letters of recommendation for me, and to me that is big. One of the biggest things I have enjoyed is just in the knowing that when all this is over I will have a Bachelor’s Degree. I will be the first in my family to get a degree and that in itself is its own reward.
What have I enjoyed the least? I guess for me its finding balance. My first few semesters in college I only went to school, so I found that I had plenty of time to complete my homework. Now that I am juggling 14 units, working, and being a single mom, I have had a rough road in finding balance. As every day passes I am getting better at setting priorities, but it’s still a struggle. Other than that there really isn’t much I don’t enjoy when it comes to college. I love to learn, I love the social atmosphere, and I love that I have attainable goals now.
What led you to choose business as a career path?
I once read a quote that said, “The past should be a springboard, not a hammock”. That quote really hit home to me because for many years I used the pain and suffering of my past as an excuse to live my life on the wrong side of the law, and the wreckage of my life has spread far and wide. I am extremely grateful that I now have a chance to go to college and be the person that I once thought I could never be.
Up until almost four years ago, I struggled with an addiction to methamphetamine for twenty-three years. I was in and out of jail, and eventually ended up in a state correctional facility, twice. I spent a big part of my life making really bad choices, and for a long time I didn’t really care whether I lived or died. When I was young and in school I never took the initiative to apply myself, and spent all those years making my teacher’s lives as miserable as I felt inside. I never applied myself, and never thought for a minute I had what it took to succeed in my education.
I have been taking college classes on and off for the past eighteen years, but up until the past year or so, I am not sure that I was taking them for the right reasons. What it did show me was that I do indeed have and aptitude for learning, and I whetted my appetite for more education. I take my education very seriously, and at this point failure is not an option. Since really applying myself this past year I have managed to get very good grades, and it has given me the confidence that I never had before.
Why did I choose Business as my major? Well the funny thing is, I feel that my major chose me. When I made the decision to go back to college, I applied late so there were not that many classes available to chose from, so I took Intro to Business, and fell in love. It seems that I have a head for business, and love all aspects of it. I am now in my third semester of taking business classes, and by next fall I should be attending a University to continue on to get my Bachelor’s Degree in Business.
I want to thank you in advance for taking the time to consider me for this scholarship. This scholarship will give me the much needed funds necessary to get back on my feet, and help me with the financial costs that go hand in hand with going to college.
I would like to say that for many years I never had the faith in myself to try and achieve any sort of personal goals and I most definitely had no goals where education was concerned. Now I have a second chance at life and I am willing to do whatever it takes to break the cycle of addiction that has been my life up to this point. I want to be the best mother, daughter, sister and friend that I can possibly be.