Guide to Online Education > Online Education In-Depth > Meet Real Online Students > Terry, A.S. in Marketing
“You say, ‘I'll do it after dinner' then ‘I'll do it after “Prison Break”' then you watch “24.” At 11 o'clock you say, ‘wow, I should have done my homework when I got home.'”
Name: Terry C.
Age: 42
Marital Status: Married
Children: Two, ages 11 and 17
Current Location: Oklahoma
Advice to Online Students: "Leave the TV off and just do your work."
School: Penn Foster College
Target: Associate of Science in Marketing, 2008
He has solid advice for distance education students. “Leave the TV off and just do your work.”
He offers perspective for those who may be struggling with the balancing act of work, family, school and life.
“You have to approach it as if it were a project for a job,” he says of elevating the priority of homework. “You are paying for the privilege of doing all this work. The longer you take, the more you pay.” He laments that he was required to pay a $75 extension fee for the semester.
Though Penn Foster College is a good value at about $800 per semester, he is considering revising his education plans. While his initial goal was to earn an associate's degree, he may ratchet up to a bachelor's degree.
Terry recently discovered that his five-year stint in the U.S. Navy, training and working as a journalist, yielded a substantial amount of credits that could be applied to a bachelor's degree. He wants to finish his courses with Penn Foster quickly. Then he may opt to transfer those credits to another online degree program.
The isolation of his self-paced program plays a role in the decision.
“It would be nice to be able to log onto a message board somewhere and chat with people who are taking the exact same course as you are,” he says almost wistfully. “I miss classroom interaction.”
Overall, he has been pleased with his decision to return to school. “I enjoy it,” he says. “I'll probably be a lifelong learner.”
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