What Motivates You to Get Your Degree?
To some, going to college may feel like the next logical step in life. To others, it’s a distant desire or dream. Wherever you fall on the spectrum, different reasons motivate us to want to further our education. Whether you’re a recent high school graduate or you’re returning to school after 10 or 20 years have passed, it’s important to identify what motivates you. Finding that motivation will help you to stay focused, especially if you’re just starting out, or if the path to pursing your degree seems long.
Originally, my motivators included making my family proud and being able to attain the status, income and job options that come with having a higher-level degree. As I matured and continued my education, something more personal came into play. My older brother is an artist by trade, but he is also an extremely self-sufficient business owner. As his business grows and expands, so do the opportunities around him. Motivated by a desire to help him with that business, I returned to school and am currently pursuing a BAS in Organizational Management with a specialization in Business at Eastern Florida State College. My plan is to help my brother fine-tune his practices and procedures by bringing concepts to the table that he might not necessarily want to delve into.
So why Eastern Florida? If you had asked me 10 years ago what factors I was using to make my college decision, the answer would have been very different. Now, I can narrow it down to two things: the cost of tuition and the convenience.
EFSC has not raised its already affordable tuition rates in the past eight years, which made it really easy for me to re-enroll, and the convenience of taking classes here is unbeatable. Part of my job as a full-time college and career specialist includes traveling to and from different high schools and adult education centers in Brevard County. This severely affects my ability to take classes during the day, but that’s not an issue at EFSC because many of the classes required for my degree are offered online or in the evenings. Personally, I prefer to take classes in the evenings because I’m usually already on campus and I like that method of instruction, but it’s also worth mentioning that the College has over 250 different online course options in case I’m unable to take an evening class I want (or in case COVID-19 continues to prevent in-person classes from being held at all).
Of course, being able to make more money is also a common motivator when it comes to attending college. According to a 2019 report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median weekly income for a worker with a high school diploma was $730. For individuals with a Bachelor’s degree, that figure increased to $1,198, while those with a Master’s degree typically made $1,434 a week. In other words, the higher the level of education you attain, the higher the average weekly earnings — so why not take advantage of that?
Feeling inspired? I’ve given you insight into what helped motivate me to enroll and finish my degree, so now it’s your turn. Take the time to check out some of the different programs we offer, and discover firsthand why pursuing your education at Eastern Florida is an excellent choice!
Source: Torpey, Elka. “Education Pays.” Career Outlook. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, February 2019.
- To the Graduating Seniors of 2021 - June 30, 2021
- Your Final Semester in High School: What’s Next? - March 24, 2021
- What Should I Do Next? - July 23, 2020
