FULL CONVERSATION TRANSCRIPT

Hashtag Directory: #background #highschool #dreamjob #collegesearch #collegeselection #transition #payingforcollege #uncomfortableexperience #communitycollege #transfer #people #places #studentorgs #advice  #gettinghelp #campusjob #careerplans  #academics #studentsupport

00:00 Harlan introduces the panel.

00:50 Jared talks about returning to school after spending 15 years as an accountant. He is retraining to be a nurse. He got inspired to do it after going through his girlfriend’s health crisis and long stay in the hospital. He wants to be able to give back and help people. He’s a little nervous about this new undertaking and all that he has ahead of him to learn. #background #dreamjob

3:47 Harlan asks Kiara what advice she has for new nursing students, now that she has graduated. She went straight from high school to nursing. She says, take notes, review them, voice record yourself and review them, you’ll probably fail exams but that doesn’t mean you are a failure. She graduated with honors.  #advice

6:50 Sophia talks about having moved on from ICC and Bradley University and going on to Northern Illinois University. She wants to be a community college professor. She was impacted by her experience at ICC. She talks about the people who most impacted her at ICC. She was also an SI leader. She names various professors who were influential in guiding her along the way to her dream of finding out she wanted to be a teacher. #transfer #dreamjob

9:08 Henry talks about what a homeschool co-op is. He was happy with his experience as a homeschooled kid, as he was able to get out of school earlier and also work through high school and get a little head start on life.  #background #highschool

10:48 Sophia talks about the transition from homeschool to ICC. She says it was pretty easy but the biggest difference was exposure to new people from different backgrounds that can broaden your perspective. She took a class with someone who was 85. She discovered she actually had a lot in common with her. #transition

13:08 Raena talks about her dream to help high schoolers get involved. #dreamjob

14:15 Jared talks about his dream job in nursing and where he would like to work. He wants to try and work in neurology or rehabilitation. #dreamjob

15:50 Kiara talks about her dream to work in women’s health once she goes through her boards. She walks through the process of what goes on beyond graduating from an associates degree program in nursing. Most hospitals want you to obtain your bachelor’s within 5 years. Hospitals will help pay for your education if you work there. Kiara wants to go on to become a nurse practitioner. #dreamjob #careerplans

18:18 Kiara talks about how she decided she wanted to be a nurse and why she’s drawn to it. She experienced her dad having a seizure and he had to undergo neurosurgery. The care he received was remarkable and helped guide him through to a great recovery. She recalls the way the nurses really care for the families. 

21:55 Henry talks about his dream and what he wants to do. He wasn’t sure at first what he wanted to do. He understood he really liked learning how things work. He was a tinkerer and found his calling for engineering. But he soon realized that he wasn't interested in the math element. He wanted to be more hands on actually manually working with the equipment. He talks about going to ICC when he was 15, he maintained good grades but just didn’t enjoy the math part. He lives on a farm, he wasn’t interested in it when he was younger, but now as he gets older he enjoys the family aspect of the farm. He is getting his schooling paid for by an agricultural dealership and will be working for them for a while after graduating. He considered the benefits of going for a more advanced degree but his brother already has that training, so he felt it was more useful to get the technical training so he can team up with his brother.  #dreamjob #payingforcollege

29:30 Raena talks about being very involved in all her clubs. She was involved in a lot of things in high school. She was invited by friends to join. When she first started at ICC she didn’t expect to join anything, she didn’t know things were going on until she looked online. For new students she recommends one of her greek organizations, which is a business organization. She isn’t a business major herself, but it’s good for leadership. She talks about Jennifer who helped her get into the organization and was very informative.
Harlan talks about being apprehensive or shy about jumping in and joining activities. Raena talks about a service trip where she got to get out of her comfort zone. #people #places #studentorgs

36:50 Kiara talks about failing a class. She isn’t afraid to say it. You have to accept those uncomfortable moments and learn from it. She was the top of her class in high school. 

She sought out her professors and scheduled a test review. She reviewed questions she missed and learned why she missed them. She talks about her classmates who were a source of support. She didn’t take advantage of the tutoring center, but mentions there are nursing tutors. #academics #studentsupport #gettinghelp

38:58 Kiara talks about her decision to go to ICC versus a four year university. The combination of low cost with an accelerated program made it the most appealing to go to ICC. She will be able to have more experience in the field as she continues her education.
She talks about being focused on chasing her dreams in college and not really looking at it for the social aspect as many people do. She feels she did miss out in some ways but overall she was able to achieve her goals. #collegesearch #collegeselection 

41:32 Sophia talks about offering help as an SI, she would help students struggling in their classes. You hold exam prep and office hours. She encourages others with a desire to teach, to get involved and become an SI leader. She saw an ad on a bulletin board. You’re eligible to teach anything you have a B or higher in. #academics #studentsupport

44:10 Sophia talks about her relationship with Jeri in academic support. She was her psychology professor. There were times Sophia ran into situations that were difficult to deal with as a teacher, whether it be inappropriate behavior from a student, or a student needing help in their personal life. Jeri was very helpful in navigating those situations.  #people #places

45:30 Sophia talks about the influence of ballet in her life. She trained in a preprofessional program and even worked as a ballet instructor. That experience teaching ballet helped prepare her for her work as an SI instructor and led her on the path to wanting to become a community college professor. Harlan asks about the difficulty of letting go of the dream of dancing professionally. She said it was difficult, but she was able to lean into other passions to fill that gap when she had to stop. #transition #dreamjob

48:40 Raena talks about her choice to go to ICC. Her mom went to ICC and it was sort of planned out that she would go. It wasn’t her first choice, but after COVID hit it turned out to be the best choice. It was also a good financial decision. #collegeselection

49:52 Raena talks about getting involved in SGA. She talks about the different positions. #studentorgs

51:15 Jared talks about going back to school after years away. He says ICC wasn’t his first choice but he had a brother that went before. ICC was the best plan overall because of the nursing program options. It was a little daunting to think that his classmates would be half his age. Being able to do some online classes made it flexible and easier. His professors are great. He has some barriers when it comes to asking for help. He came from a job where he was always the one with the answers. So to start over and know nothing was difficult. #collegeselection #transition

52:41 Henry talks about his decision to attend ICC. Financially it was a great choice and it was close. He talked to other graduates of ICC like his brother and friends. He found the program itself was good and the instructors were knowledgeable. He found out that the program was recognized by manufacturers as being one of the best in the country. He talks about the Skills USA competition, which allows you to show your skills back to back against others. He hopes to win next year. #collegeselection

56:41 Kiara talks about finding money to pay for college. When she was a senior she asked a lot of her teachers about scholarships that other graduates had gotten. She was able to pay for her nursing books with the scholarships she had. She was also able to pay for her schooling with the honors program at ICC, which covered her. She says there are lots of options to pay. One tip she has is to get online books as they can be much easier to navigate when studying. Jared agrees and says the ease of online books makes studying so much easier. #payingforcollege

 

1:00:48 Sophia talks about paying for colleges. She worked out a deal with her parents where they agreed to pay for 2 years of ICC schooling. She lived at home and used a scholarship to pay for books. She mentions the presidential scholarship which helped cut tuition in half when she transferred to Bradley university. Kiara is interested in doing something similar. She is now working as a TA which helps her pay for school as well. She is essentially going to grad school for free. Becoming an SI was how it all started. #payingforcollege #campusjob

1:04:28 Sophia talks about making friends when she transferred to Bradley. Unfortunately the pandemic caused her to be at home during most of her time at Bradley. But she was able to form connections. She says you have to give yourself time to meet people. By the end of her time there she was able to meet people and feel at home. She found a lot of her friends through her professors. Through classes she made connections. #people #places #transfer

1:06:24 Henry talks about his financial decision in going to ICC. He says there are some dealer specific scholarships available for his program. Henry was able to get one and he will work at that dealership when he graduates. He also shows one of his books and explains that with the copy you also get an online version so you can search things on the computer.
Henry talks about how you go into an internship toward the end of your program and how you have to interview and how you are sort of guided to find the right fit.  #payingforcollege

1:11:35 Raena talks about where students can get help. She mentions the academic counselors are a good place to start. #academics #studentsupport

1:13:00 Sophia says students can visit the academic support center to get help if they are struggling in class. She says people tend to struggle to ask for help because they think they are dumb or not ready for college. #academics #studentsupport

1:14:30 Kiara talks about struggling to reach out to help at first. She also mentions the academic support center as well. Working in the library was great for her. A lot of the books are the same that you use in class. #gettinghelp

1:17:45 Harlan asks the group for tips or tricks they might have for new ICC students. He says taking a single class in something is a great idea to see if you have interest. Kiara says she has a tip for nursing students. Don’t be afraid to ask your professor where the questions are being pulled from for the exams and what you should focus on. Jared talks about speaking with his advisor for his program which made scheduling his classes so much easier. #advice

1:24:15 Everyone answers the question of what they would tell themselves in high school. #advice