Decisions, decisions, and more decisions

Oh boy, did we have some big decisions to make, and not a lot of time to spend thinking about them. I woke up Thursday with so much on my mind. The only thing I could think about that day was Nebraska.

Here are a list of questions that we had to think about:

1. Should I apply? Even if I applied there was no guarantee that I was going to get in.

2. Do we want to quit our jobs? Joel had just gotten a new job three months ago. I had been at my job for one year. I loved my job! Joel was still getting everything figured out, but liked it up to that point.

3. What about our kids? They would be starting at a new school. We had just moved one year ago, and they had to start a new school last year. Did we want to do that to them again?

4. What about our families? All of our families live in Utah, and more preciously, within 50 miles of us. We could go see them anytime we wanted. Did we want to give that up?

5. Do we want to move to Nebraska? This would entail moving 5 people 1,000 miles. We would need to find a new house and new jobs. We would be in a sense starting completely over. If that isn't enough to scare you, then I don't know what would.

6. Should I not apply, and just hope I get into another school somewhere else? Every time I had this question I would then ask myself another question in return, and it was this, "If you aren't willing to move to Nebraska, then why would you be willing to move to insert any other state here?"

7. What if I don't apply, and I am giving up the best option for me?

8. How much does it cost? I had an idea how much PA schools cost because I had done a lot of research. Compared to other schools it was below average for the Master's degree portion.

I know that I had a ton more questions racing through my mind, and I knew that I had to make my decision quickly.

My favorite hobby when I just want to relax is to go camping. It gets me away from home, away from my phone/internet, and forces me to relax. Just my luck, I had a camping trip coming up the next day with my dad's side of my family. Talk about perfect timing!

The phone call that could change it all

As my phone was ringing I was trying to lock my kids out of my room, so that I could talk uninterrupted on the phone. I was about to answer the phone and talk with the advisor of a Physician Assistant program. This NEVER happens!

I talked on the phone with Shaun about their PA program, what classes and I had taken, and what classes I would still need. He told me all about the school, and gave me tons of information about Nebraska.

Seriously, he spent an hour and a half talking to me on the phone. I was AMAZED! I felt like I actually mattered. I wasn't just a number. I felt like he actually wanted me to be a student in their program. I was on cloud nine. All that I had worked towards was actually beginning to pay off.

During our conversation he told me that classes were going to start on August 20. This phone called took place on July 16. From there if I decided I wanted to pursue their school I would need to send an application to them. Since classes were so soon they would expedite my application. I hung up the phone and was in shock. I had so much information to digest. I had some HUGE decisions to make, and my head was spinning.

Chatting online with Nebraska

I mentioned in my last post about chatting online with various PA programs online. There was one school in particular that I had some serious hesitation about. They had sent me an email a day or two earlier and said that they wanted to chat with me. I got online and chatted with schools in the morning session. I didn't feel comfortable chatting with the other school because it was a Catholic school. I knew that Catholic wasn't my chosen religion, so  I pondered all day if I should chat with them or not. Ultimately I decided to chat with them. I got back online for the evening session, and about 30 minutes before it closed I click on the chat room for College of Saint Mary.

I was able to chat with the advisor named Chuck. My very first question to him was, "Do you have to be Catholic to attend the school?" He said that it was a Catholic school, but students from all religions attended the school. My second question was, "Do you have to take religious classes?" He let me know that I would have to take two religious classes, but they had several classes to chose from, not just from the Catholic religion.

At this point I let down my guard and started getting serious. He asked about other classes that I had taken, and what my plans were. I told him that I had already graduated with one bachelor degree, but that I needed to take a few more classes to become a stronger candidate. He asked me to email him my unofficial transcripts, and told me that he would be in touch with me. At that point our 30 minutes were up, and I quickly found all my transcripts and sent them to him via email.

If you really know me, you would know that I am OCD about checking my emails. I seriously check them several times a day, at least 10 times, and even more when I am waiting for a reply. I sent my transcripts to Chuck, and checked my emails an hour later hoping there was a reply. Surprisingly, there was a reply that he had forwarded my transcripts to Shaun, the academic advisor, and told me that I would be hearing from Shaun the next day.

I then checked my email a few minutes later, and to my surprise I had an email from Shaun. His email said that he wanted to call and talk to me that night. I sent my phone number back in an email, and told him that I was available then or that he could call the next day if it was too late. At this point it was like 10:30pm in Utah, and I wasn't sure what time it was in Nebraska, but knew that it was a later time there. After sending my phone number I received a phone call within 5 minutes.