My Decision to Switch to CSU-Global

Amidst a pile of work for classes I didn’t enjoy and didn’t understand, I was thinking what a lot of adult learners think: Is this worth it? I was a part-time student at a traditional four year institution, working toward a finance degree. I’ve worked in banking for 17 years, so finance seemed like an appropriate path for me to take, but I hated it. As I struggled through every class, balancing a demanding work schedule, family obligations and piles of work, I was on the brink of giving up. Every online class I took had a different format, schedule, and very little guidance or engagement from my professors.

The tipping point was when I met with an advisor to talk about my last year of school. I had never had a dedicated advisor at this institution, so I had to explain my scenario from the beginning each time we met. I was having trouble finding online classes I needed to complete my degree program and was promptly informed, “Well, this isn’t an online school, so there’s nothing we can do about your schedule.” Going to a physical class four nights a week after putting in 10 hour days at work just wasn’t an option. I barely had time to do all of my work when I was doing things online, let alone in-person.

Then I thought, “Why am I putting all of this time and energy into something I hate?” I had spent enough time going through the core classes to realize this was not the career path I wanted to take. After a lot of introspection, I met again with an advisor at the four-year school to find out what it would look like if I changed my degree path to marketing. Again, I was met with roadblocks and not provided any guidance or support.

I barely had time to do all of my work when I was doing things online, let alone in-person.

So, that’s when I took to the internet to see what my options were. I had tons of questions: Will any school allow me to really complete my degree online? Am I too far into my finance program to switch degrees? Will I be wasting a lot of credits that I had already earned? And so on.

And, that’s when I came across CSU Global. I live in Colorado, and CSU is a very well-known and respected institution locally, so I thought it was worth exploring. I requested information online and was quickly contacted by my CSU Global Advisor. However, I was still hesitant. I thought to myself, “this is probably going to be such a pain to transfer schools,” and “maybe it’s just time to throw in the towel.”

But something about those initial conversations with my CSU Global Advisor made me decide to give it a chance. So, I submitted the paperwork, requested transcripts, we talked about my goals, and before I knew it, I was a student at CSU Global. I remember actually asking my advisor at one point, “is that really all I had to do?”

So, I submitted the paperwork, requested transcripts, we talked about my goals, and before I knew it, I was a student at CSU Global.

Flash forward less than a month, and my first eight-week semester was underway. Not only had 90 credits transferred, the only classes I needed to complete my degree were the ten core marketing classes. I have chosen to take two classes at a time and push forward, and I am less than six months away from achieving a degree in marketing.

I have had great success at CSU Global so far, and I’m loving it. First, my professors are actually engaged. For the first time in a long time, I am actually learning. Second, the structure is so great – while the content of every class is different, the online format and the schedules are the same for every class. This makes completing school around my schedule a lot easier. Finally, I am so engaged in my classes that I am finding myself working harder and harder to achieve success, instead of dreading another night of homework.

The decision to switch schools, especially late in the game, can be a hard one, but CSU Global made it a refreshingly easy experience. In a matter of months, I went from giving up on years of coursework in a degree program I hated, to being months away from a degree in a field I am passionate about. Now that’s putting students first, and creating a return on investment for working adults.