Preparing to return to school

[ellie811]

I finished undergrad 5 years ago and have been working full-time in the social work field since then. I must admit, I am a little bit nervous about transitioning back to being a student. I'm excited about field placement because I know how to do that...but...I'm used to writing clinical notes and psychosocial assessments, not papers with citations! I have good work ethic, I can stay focused and work a 10 hour day. But it's still going to be a big transition stepping back into a student role...I'm going to miss having my own office and control over my schedule and fulfillment from my work.

Any other "non-traditional" students out there? What ar you doing to prepare to return to the classroom?

[arcoventry]

Hi Ellie!

I am a non-traditional student in the sense that I have been in the work-force for 5 years also since graduation. I am also coming from a non social work field. I currently work as a network design engineer, doing IT sales and implementations for financial companies. I have been planning my transition to clinical social work for a long time, but now that the time has come for me to make the leap I am terrified. I have been saving as much money as humanly possible, both at my full time job, and also at the job waiting tables I picked up nights and weekends. I also have been trying to read more to get used to information retention and concentrating for long periods of time. I also will miss having my own office, and of course that paycheck...but I don't get fulfillment from my current work so I am looking forward and trying to remember what made me decide to make this crazy leap of faith in the first place - a chance at building a career I get more than just a paycheck from!!!