Career Development Blog

Getting back into the habit of going to school can be challenging for any adult especially when it involves fitting time for class into an already hectic schedule filled with family and work responsibilities. Time and convenience are often a barrier to entry for those considering going back to school. Instructor Melodie Wilson sat down with one of her former students, Tomas, to talk to him about what it was like to attend training while experiencing homelessness and any tips he had for anyone trying to figure out how to go back to school as an adult.

We live in a time that everything is rushed, from the time we wake up, and head to work, to preparing a meal with our families. With the fast pace of life, it seems there is not enough time in the day to plan anything extra for a vacation or self-care. Many of us have instead mastered the art of multitasking.  This seems like a fantastic skill if you can truly concentrate on both tasks simultaneously. Usually, it means spreading our focus too thin into two tasks, neither of which receiving our full attention. We can be more productive AND create more time for ourselves and our personal lives by implementing effective time management techniques.

Many students struggle to retain information, focus and fully understand material while learning remotely. Studying successfully in an online environment is even more challenging when you're learning a new topic in a language other than your native tongue. Ms. Melodie teaches in English while many of her students' first languages are Tagalog or Spanish. Bill Kohler, a former Business Writing instructor who taught students of many different linguistic backgrounds, shared some helpful strategies online learners can use to absorb what they're learning and overcome communication barriers in online classes.

Starting a new career can be intimidating. You may doubt your ability to learn a new skill or that there will be companies and people out there who are willing to give you a chance. This process can be even more daunting when you have a disability, such as hearing loss. One of Ms. Melodie's students Danielle found herself in that situation when she started her training program with New Horizons. She along with Ms. Melodie's colleague Patricia shared some helpful tips for students who may be navigating job training and getting a job with hearing loss. 

It is important for adults to learn computers and computer applications because these skills are really used in the workforce. Many students always ask me, "Am I really going to use this?" But people really do use these computer application lessons on the job. It is especially a delight as an instructor to have someone in my class who has done it the hard way before. Because once you've done it the hard way and you realize that there's a better way, it's like, 'Yes, I would save hours if I had done it this way.' One of those students is Shanon Pascual who came on the podcast to share her experience learning computer applications after working in the government space. But she wasn't really excited about the programs in the beginning.