Aaaannnd, Back to Being a Night Owl

I’ve done a few Coursera courses and edX courses, got a few certifications in Python, R, entry level data science “stuff”, and so on. So, why back to college?

Well, we all know that master’s degrees have a certain cachet to them, and I am serious about wanting to switch into a data science career. Yeah, yeah, I’m a middle-aged woman, shouldn’t I be thinking about retiring in the next decade or so? Sure! I do think about it. But ultimately, I’m not ready to step away from tech work. I’m just ready to retire from my beloved QA world. I’ve been in QA for a couple of decades, and it’s well past time for a new challenge.

Plus, I’m always in learning mode. My mom was right – I was born to be a professional student! So what if I already have a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology and a Master of Business Administration with a specialization in IT Management? I want more! 😀

So, why Western Governors University (again)? Simply put, my life is always chaotic. Between family, friends, work and theater, my schedule is often unpredictable to some degree. I found that WGU’s model works for me. With 6-month terms and the ability to accelerate through courses when I have time, or take a short break when things are crazy, school may add to my workload, but almost never impact my schedule beyond filling it up. WGU is fully regionally accredited by the same agency that accredits University of Washington and Brigham Young University, among other prestigious schools. Is it a top tier school? No, of course not. But it’s a solid player in the same space as most state schools, and that’s good enough.

It looks like I’ll probably start in August. My goal is to finish the 11 courses that comprise the Master of Science in Data Analytics (MSDA) in two terms. My stretch goal is to get ‘er done in one term. Let’s see how it goes, shall we?