Thought Example #2
Has this thought entered your mind?
"I'm older and concerned about how successful I can be in the younger collegiate environment."
Hover on the card to view info.
Background
Linda is married, 34 years old and an E-5 in the Navy.
She is transitioning out of the Navy with a likely service-connected disability.
She’d really like to use her GI Bill to get a degree but as a mother and wife, feels like she’s too old to do this.
Moreover, she’s not sure how this will logistically work since she has small children, her husband works and she’s not sure how she can make this happen.
How am I going to do this? I have kids and require daycare.
Likely outcomes
Linda will decide to not pursue her degree.
Linda will box herself into fewer options.
What does this do to our family life; what more onus is put on her spouse to carry the load?
Potential regret can set in.
Linda's internal thinking
“I’m too old for this.” —After spending 10 years in the Navy and becoming an E-5, she doesn’t want to do what she feels is a step back and be with a much younger crowd again—she’s done enough with this younger demographic and it does not seem appealing at all.
“I don’t think I can make this work logistically.” —Since Linda is married with kids, there’s a lot going on with this family. Add in the very real complication of transition and coordinating what her husband is going to do (as well) and the situation feels overwhelming.
What Linda can do to overcome this mindset
Colleges have changed a lot over the years to accommodate more complex situations like Linda’s
.First and foremost, if Linda understands how getting a degree can help her gain the credential to earn that higher paying job and set her, and her family, up for success, there are many different ways she can enter college and use her GI Bill to earn that degree in a manner which she and her family can support that decision and flourish.