after such a great intro by cfchica i *had* to make an intro post :)

i'm glad she had the idea for this community because, contrary to popular belief, the hardest part about being a nontraditional student is NOT parenthood. bleh.

i'm 31 and currently wrapping up my MS degree... i have to do my thesis but because of CFS/fibro and a new part-time job (after being lucky enough to only be going to school full time) i'm having a really hard time working on it. my degree is in technology studies and i want to teach science to non-scientists.

i started college as a nontraditional student, too. right before my 21st birthday i started tech school (NH Technical Institute, which i think is called something else now), originally as an x-ray tech major. i was also a CNA and an EMT and i found x-ray to be really boring compared to what i was currently doing for work. i ended up changing majors a couple times before settling on forensic science and chemistry (double major) at the university of new haven. i graduated in 2003.

i tried a phd program in chemistry in nebraska before realising it was a bad fit. i worked for big bad pharma for a couple years, and then worked with explosives (every chemist's dream!) before deciding i wanted my MS degree.

the hardest part of college to me is dealing with the spoiled rich kids... no offense to anyone who is lucky enough to be handed tuition, but i worked for every dime of my school expenses (and loans), and there just isn't shit out there for aid for someone who is non-traditional in college. every semester was a fight to the death for the aid to keep me in school. i'm a whiz with FAFSA and government loans, so if you ever need any help navigating the system, i'm happy to help out my fellow cf buddies.

i'm glad you're all here! welcome, and i look forward to future posts!