Girls weekend is almost here. I am so excited but also increasingly nervous. I am already missing my girls because I've been away from them so much with school. It's a really busy week then I'm gone all weekend and then I come home to two exams that I will have to cram for right up until Monday and Tuesday nights classes. After that I should have a little breather (very little) and hopefully we can spend Veteran's Day together as a family doing something fun. The guilt is making this all much more difficult than I think it normally would be but I am looking forward to a vacation SO much. It's long overdue and I don't plan to wait so long for the next girls weekend.
I have been going back and forth and back and forth about my college plans. I went from Rad. Tech. to nursing (but knew I really didn't want to do that), back to Rad. Tech. and then on to Physical Therapy Assistant and now I'm right in between Rad. Tech. and PTA again. I had an informational meeting at WCC today about the PTA program and it sounds really great. The downsides are the pay which is less than Rad. Tech. and the fact that it's difficult to find a job in the area in that line of work (which I just found out today at the meeting). It's also a very competitive program and there are always more students applying than actually get in. What I love about the program is that they are offering an online/hybrid class that starts in spring (perfect since I will be finishing my last prerequisites in winter) that goes 9 consecutive quarters and then I would be done. I would probably be done with this program before I ever even start the rad. tech. program. I'm not sure I'm disciplined enough to do the online program. I can always think of a million other things to be doing at home other than school stuff. Although, with Eric off work I could probably get plenty of financial aid to assist in paying for this program and if I wait for the rad. tech. program I'll miss out on that benefit. The problem with rad. tech. is also the difficulty of finding work locally. I have an email in to BTC asking specific questions about job placement locally so hopefully she can give me some information on that. The deadline for the PTA program is less than two weeks away and I am supposed to also have 50 hours of experience in a PT setting either paid or volunteer. Obviously I won't be able to complete that in that amount of time and that would not get me on the top of the list for the program. I have realized what a desirable place to live B'ham is through all of this. Everyone wants to stay here after they complete their programs and the pay here is lower in a lot of health care professions. The presenter today said you get $5.00 more an hour on average just crossing the Whatcom County border into Skagit. She said a PTA could make under $15.00 here and she saw an ad in Everett for a PTA with no experience needed (aside from the degree) starting at $25.00. That is quite a difference.
Although the PTA program sounds really fun to me and I think I would really enjoy it I am leaning back to Rad. Tech. I'm not sure I'm ready to make this commitment to being away from my kids so much like I would if I did the PTA program in the spring. My plan all along was to complete my prerequisites and then wait until they are both in school to begin my program. I am missing them so much now that I don't think I'd be happy with the decision even though so much of it sounds great. I can always change my mind later even if I choose to not start this spring.
Hopefully the right decision will fall into place for me. Now I must go study the spinal cord and brain. Tomorrow at class we get to dissect a sheep brain, should be interesting.
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