Im 26, mother of 2. I want to go to school.....?

Question

Im 26, in NE OH. I have two small kids (4/1). I currently work as a secretary part time. Before kids, I worked at a grocery store as the Head Bookkeeper for 5 yrs. I got my GED from High School and also took a few computer classes here in OH, I moved from FL.
Im thinking about going back to school....But Im not sure for what? Im not too familiar with schooling here. I like my secretary job, I like office jobs like the bookkeeper I was. But Im also interested in finding out about medical billing and such, I dont know much about it so I dont know for sure yet....How often would school be? Cost? Would there be grants or anything to help me pay for it?

Answer 1

why not try online courses? they are reliable. you take them when the kids are asleep. you can pick the duration and so on.
go online. there are tonnes of them =)

Answer 2

You can always find financial help for school. You have to talk to the financial aid people at the school at which you apply, and check for scholarship help online. Because I was a little older and had a child when I went to college, I got a lot of financial help because you aren't being supported by parents any longer. There are often schools that will train in areas such as medical billing, nurse practitioner, etc, with programs that last for a year or less. There are also many programs that consist of only weekend classes, one or two nights a week, etc. Call local colleges for this information. Good luck! You can do it.

Answer 3

To start off, I would recommend starting at a community college. I live in the NYC area and many community colleges here offer programs for adults and even have child care programs on premises. Since you like your secretary job and bookkeeper type jobs, I would recommend taking non-degree classes - one off classes that help you build practical skills. For example, in today's workplace everyone needs to know Word and Excel, and many times PowerPoint. You can take a class that meets once a week or twice a week for Microsoft Excel - they usually run for 10-12 weeks minimum but then you learn skills you can really use in the workplace. These classes are usually a lot cheaper than credits that count toward a degree. I'm not sure if there will be any grants, but most community colleges offer a payment plan.

Answer 4

There is a ton of assistance out there to make furthering your education easier.
As far as cost it all depends on the institution and the length of the program. A lot of schools now offer Night and Weekend classes for people who have kids and full time jobs.
I would reccomend maybe Office Management, if you like working an office setting. With your bookkeeping expereince you should be able to find something great and challenging.
Good Luck!

Answer 5

Start at a community college first--it sounds like much of what you've done can be turned into immediate credit by testing out of the classes, and once you have a two-year degree, any university will let you start as a junior. That's the fastest, cheapest way to do it.

All colleges have a financial aid office to help with problems just like yours--talk with them.

Accounting is probably the most applicable degree, and then you can become a CPA or auditor or company accountant making a great income. Or get a degree in business management. Best of luck.

Answer 6

when my son was diagnosed with autism I was just into my first year of a two-year college program for my BA. I had a full-time job and I was only getting 4-5 hrs of sleep during the week that first year. A burned out dad was going to be of no use to my son so I discontinued. There was little help from family since they lived so far away. That was 6 years ago, he still has autism, but I am going back to school in July to start that whole process over. I have no regrets because I knew I could go back to school when he was ready. If you have resources to help you with your son, you should take advantage of them to become a doctor. But if you decide to quit when you think it is too hard, think about the wasted time you didn't spend with him.

Answer 7

OK I can't answer you question but I can say go for it. I did the same when I was 27 and my kids were 3 and 8 months. It was amazingly hard work, I did law, and to be honest I never really used the degree, I develop properties now, but I never regretted it. It was great fun and knowing I had the brains and the perseverance to do it has given me so much confidence.

Good luck

Answer 8

YES! There are Pell grants in which you do not have to pay back! I am currently going to college and I am in the same situation as you. Go to your local comunity college and ask based on your income, what can you recieve. They have counselors and tests you can take to see what you would be successful at and they can direct you twords your goal. They also have a bunch of vocational courses in one paticular area in which you just study in that area and graduate a bit sooner. Good Luck!

Answer 9

There are lost of grants and scholarships for you to go to school.
University of Phoenix has alot of online classes for degrees. You can enroll while applying for funding. There next classes start Jan 22, 2007. You might still have time to get in.
Here is a website to apply for some scholarships.

Answer 10

An on-line course in medical coding and billing might be the thing for you. With people living longer and more likely to get sick there is a demand for that type of work.
If I remember correctly a course like that was less than $1,000.
Good luck.

Answer 11

Have you ever thought about being a medical transcriptionist....I have a friend that works from home doing this....she makes pretty good money...You don't elaborate if you are a single mom of two...but this would be a good way to be at home....Obviously you might need to have someone come in for a few hours daily to help...but you might want to think about something like this.