Academic Encouragement by Ashley

Academic Encouragement by Ashley - October 2019 Scholarship Essay

The person who has inspired me academically would be my friend Keshia. She went back to school after having 2 children, and obtained a paralegal degree. She showed me that even though you might have to work a full time job, and be a mother, you can also achieve your goals.
I received my first degree 4 years ago. I went to school for my Associates of Applied Science for Paramedic. I knew that I didn’t want to do that for the rest of my life, but haven’t really known what to do. I also wasn’t sure about going back to school after being out for 4 years. I don’t have children yet, but I wasn’t sure about working full time and going to school.
I went back and forth with what I wanted to do. I knew that I wanted to stay in the medical field, as I have been working in the NICU at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital for just over 4 years. I knew I didn’t want to do a nursing degree, since I had already tried that and determined that it just wasn’t for me. I knew that I loved the diagnostic side of medicine, so I decided to look into fields that dealt with nuclear medicine. I found out that University of Cincinnati has a program called Advanced Medical Imaging, where you can choose to focus on Nuclear Medicine.
I was nervous about making the decision, but remembered that Keshia got her degree while working and being a mother. If she could do it while having to care for 2 other humans at home, then I could do it while having to work full time. I am glad that I had someone like her to show you can do anything that you set your mind to.