Online Degree Completion: From Waitress to Upper Management

When I dropped out of college in 2010, it seemed impossible to have a stable, solid career. It just felt so far out of reach. A lot of people around me knew exactly what they wanted to do and were wholeheartedly pursuing that, and I felt lost. I didn't know what I wanted to do, and I could not find the same level of passion that they had.

I started school at Bob Jones University in 2006, and I was not sure which path I wanted to choose for my career. So I changed majors a couple of times, and then in 2010, I decided that I needed to drop out and give myself time to figure out what I wanted to do. I was working a few different jobs in local stores in retail, and I also worked as a waitress around that time. 

A friend of mine recommended that I take a job at a local credit union because she thought I would enjoy it. So I did, and I worked there for a couple of years. During that time, I did get married and I had a child. Then a few years later I ended up getting divorced. During the past few years, I worked my way up in the credit union into a management position.

Juggling Being a Single Working Mom with Going Back to School

Being in the management position and being a single mom really made me realize that I needed to go back and finish my degree. So I took a few classes at Greenville Tech at first. I got an Associate of Arts there, but they didn't offer any bachelor’s degrees. I looked at the University of South Carolina originally because they had a hybrid program for bachelor’s where you could do some in-person coursework and some online.

I really wasn't willing to give up time with my son in order to finish my degree. It was important to me to find something that was completely online. That's when I found SCOPE.

Grace Simonelli

But it seemed really overwhelming having to figure out childcare and attending classes. A lot of them were in the evenings, and I really wasn't willing to give up time with my son in order to finish my degree. It was important to me to find something that was completely online. That's when I started looking at Bob Jones, and I discovered they had the option for online degree completion through SCOPE.

Completing My Degree with Personal Advice and Support

I called and the process was very simple. I felt very comfortable talking to them and explaining my situation. My advisor was really great and worked with me. She was always available. She gave me a lot of input on which direction I needed to go. When I did my capstone project to finish the course and the degree, they provided a lot of support with that too.

It did require a lot of hands-on work, and it was a lot more than I had previously done in my other classes. I was worried about it being too much to handle, but they were very supportive. They found options that would fit into my schedule while being a mom and working full time.

Gaining the Confidence to Advance My Career 

Completing the degree really gave me confidence that I can do this. Within a year of getting the degree, I was promoted at my job. Getting my degree really unlocked the potential for me to go anywhere. 

Grace Simonelli

The flexibility of online degree completion really gave me confidence. Within a year of getting the degree, I was promoted to my current management position. I truly believe it helped me advance my career path in the field where I wanted to work.

Going back and getting my Professional Studies degree online really unlocked my potential to go anywhere, to continue to grow within the company, and perhaps advance to a higher level of management. I didn't have the confidence that I would be able to move beyond the branch manager level, but now I feel like I have the potential to go anywhere.