Xavier27

I am 43 years old. I have always wanted to study theology since I graduated from high school, but preferred to give a secular direction to what I thought was my calling. I have a B.A. in Education and an M.Ed. in Guidance & Counseling. I don't know if I'm experiencing some kind of middle-age crisis, but I'm dissatisfied with the way I have been living my life. So one night I was having a couple of glasses of wine alone at home, and the idea about applying to theology school came to my mind. I researched a little bit about some schools and found one with reasonable admission requirements and generous financial aid. I don't belong to any church and loved the fact that I didn't need a letter from a pastor. The school is also affiliated to a secular university and accredited by the ATS. After seeing the academic offering, I decided to apply for a Master's in Theology. I was really drunk.

It took me five weeks to write two required essays and gather the required documents like transcripts and recommendations. I am actually a community organizer and my recommendations were strong. I abstained from drinking while I was completing everything, and submitted the application by the priority admission deadline. Well... to my surprise, I was admitted with a tuition scholarship and the chance to be considered for a merit scholarship. I was in shock! The additional requirement for merit scholarship was challenging, but I did my best. I was awarded a merit scholarship with a stipend. WOW... I couldn't believe it!! I was asking myself if it was because I am a great candidate or it was just because the school was too easy. 

I have to admit that I am really excited and proud of myself. The curriculum content is so interesting, but the fact that I was drunk when I decided to apply makes me doubt my decision.

I am 43 years old. I have always wanted to study theology since I graduated from high school, but preferred to give a secular direction to what I thought was my calling. I have a B.A. in Education and an M.Ed. in Guidance & Counseling. I don't know if I'm experiencing some kind of middle-age crisis, but I'm dissatisfied with the way I have been living my life. So one night I was having a couple of glasses of wine alone at home, and the idea about applying to theology school came to my mind. I researched a little bit about some schools and found one with reasonable admission requirements and generous financial aid. I don't belong to any church and loved the fact that I didn't need a letter from a pastor. The school is also affiliated to a secular university and accredited by the ATS. After seeing the academic offering, I decided to apply for a Master's in Theology. I was really drunk.

It took me five weeks to write two required essays and gather the required documents like transcripts and recommendations. I am actually a community organizer and my recommendations were strong. I abstained from drinking while I was completing everything, and submitted the application by the priority admission deadline. Well... to my surprise, I was admitted with a tuition scholarship and the chance to be considered for a merit scholarship. I was in shock! The additional requirement for merit scholarship was challenging, but I did my best. I was awarded a merit scholarship with a stipend. WOW... I couldn't believe it!! I was asking myself if it was because I am a great candidate or it was just because the school was too easy. 

I have to admit that I am really excited and proud of myself. The curriculum content is so interesting, but the fact that I was drunk when I decided to apply makes me doubt my decision.

UPDATE: I came to receive a reply from my flaky recommender 23 days after the deadline, and it was by Facebook messenger. The message reads: "Please apologize for not completing the recommendation. If you still need it, this is my email address....." I explained that I found another person and the file is complete. She explained that she is not working anymore for the employer to which I sent her the recommendation link by email, and ended giving me some encouraging words. Actions speak louder than nice words after 23 days. Since the beginning, she could have just given me the alternate email address that she gave me now. The only explanation that comes to my mind is that she was suddenly fired. Water under the bridge.

Now I feel relief. The recommender that I found last-minute submitted her letter today 6 days after the application deadline. It hasn’t been so bad considering that I got an extension of 12 days to submit that recommendation. The rest of the file was complete on time.