by learn-lead -

bird by bird: how to thrive, not merely survive, in the new academic year

black and white birds on a wire
Photo by Ridham Nagralawala on Unsplash
by Kelly Jenkins Lin

Author and speaker, Anne Lamott, tells the story of her ten-year-old brother who was trying to write a report on birds. Despite having nearly 3 months to work on it, he had put it off until the night before it was due. Close to tears, he sat at the family’s kitchen table surrounded by books and pencils and clean paper, overwhelmed by the enormity of the task. Then Lamott’s father sat down beside her brother, put his arm around his shoulders and said, “Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird” (Lamott, 1994).

For many adults, returning to school can feel like trying to write a report the night before it is due. On the threshold of a new academic year, surrounded by stacks of books and pencils and clean paper they feel overwhelmed by the enormity of what lies ahead and wonder how they will ever make it through. Below are five steps that will not only help students to survive, but to thrive, in the new academic year.

by learn-lead -

Credit Where Credit is Due

Put Prior Learning Assessment to work for you

by Kelly Jenkins Lin

Rich Rago
Rich Rago, BSPM 13; MSFM 15

 This is the second in a two-part post about PLA. To read part I, click here: Part I

When Richard Rago decided to pursue a college degree, he had 10 years of work experience but no formal classroom education. He worried that might put him at a disadvantage until one of his professors pointed out that, thanks to his many years in the field, Rago knew more than most of his classmates. The professor then suggested Rago try to get credit for his on-the-job learning. He did and with the credit he earned Rago was able to opt out of 3 classes, or the equivalent of one semester. “It was definitely worth it,” he says.

by learn-lead -

You Deserve Some Credit

Rich Rago
Rich Rago, BSPM 13; MSFM 15

Earn credit for what you know, no matter where you learned it.

by Kelly Jenkins Lin

Richard Rago had been working in construction and project management for 10 years before he decided to return to school.

“I was passed over for a promotion,” he explains, “not because I didn’t have experience but because I didn’t have a degree. That was the push I needed.” At first, his goal was to earn an associates degree from Wentworth but, in 2009, with encouragement from faculty in the College of Professional and Continuing Education, he enrolled in the Bachelor of Science in Project Management.

That was when Rago discovered how valuable his job experience was. 

by learn-lead -

How Far Will You Go?

Man sitting at a desk in a classroom
Joe Masello, BSPM 2015

Joe Masello had a dream.

“My goal was to earn an associates degree,” he says, “but then I found out about the Project Management program at Wentworth and immediately transferred.” A graduate of Wentworth’s Master Electrician program, Joe knew he could count on a degree from Wentworth to help him achieve his dreams.

But he didn’t realize just how far it would take him.