Guiding my own professional direction

Focus, determination and a whole lot of organization can take you to far even if you never leave your small home town of about 800. So is the story of Clinton, BC resident and OL graduate Laura Moskaluk, who progressed from working as a cashier at Save On Foods to working as an Insurance Representative and graduating with a diploma in Management Studies just a few years later. “Before I enrolled (in TRU-OL) I hadn’t gone to school or had any other education since high school… since 2003,” Moskaluk said explaining that once enrolled in a program with TRU-OL she dedicated most of her time to school and her familial responsibilities as well as her job as an Insurance representative. “After that I was taking courses for Insurance to get my licenses along with my regular TRU-OL courses.”

Despite shaky nerves at jumping back into the education scene in January 2006, three years since her last classroom experience, Moskaluk found herself adapting to the open learning form of education.

“It was hard engaging in an open style of learning at first because you have to create your own schedule and prioritize tasks,” Moskaluk said. “After I had been doing it for a while it got easier… I took lower level courses at first to get used to the process and… as I progressed I took higher level courses. Doing it this way, made me feel more prepared for the harder classes.”

Through trial and error, she was able to determine not only how to restructure her OL education to work for her, but also how to better adjust her own schedule and develop ways to balance her work and personal time with her school activities.

“I definitely think it is more efficient to do course work through this kind of distance learning,” Moskaluk said. “You set your own schedule, do things as fast or as slow as you want and in most cases you don’t have to worry about deadlines.”

The flexibility inherent in an open learning style of education allowed Moskaluk to hold a part-time job as she could complete her coursework at any time of the day and set her own deadlines.

“I liked the online courses the best, they are fast and efficient,” Moskaluk said. “It was easy to contact my Faculy member plus I got to interact with other students on the discussion board and email them.”

TRU-OL’s open and online form of education fit into Moskaluk’s lifestyle and allowed her to complete her diploma in just two and a half years, a faster pace than other forms of post-secondary education may have allowed. Now, after graduating with a diploma in Management Studies, she has great expectations for herself and her future. TRU-OL may even see Moskaluk again in the near future as she plans to continue to evolve her education and perhaps extend her goals to a Bachelor’s degree.