When my little brother graduated from college back in 2003, he was the first in our family to walk down that aisle in a cap and gown. I remember thinking at the time: it should have been me. I was five years older than him, after all. It COULD have been me! With a university like WGU, though, THIS still could be me:

See, my biggest regret in life so far- really my only regret- is not finishing college. I went away to school when I graduated high school. I was young and irresponsible though. I failed out and moved back home. I went to community college and did fantastic, but then I got married young and moved away before finishing. I got divorced, moved back home and started school again! Got married again, moved overseas and stopped. Moved home, started again. You see the pattern here, right?

You would think in all that starting, I would have finally finished. I’ll tell you something funny: I have more credits than the average college graduate! I just don’t have them all in one subject. If they had a major for “career college student” I’d probably have a PhD by now!

My most recent stint in college was as a nursing student. Jacob was about two at the time, and I ended up leaving the program for a couple of reasons. While the main reason was my instructor (not a good fit, and that’s being polite), the fact that I just couldn’t handle the program while being a single mom played a big role too. The demands were incredible: miss one clinical and you’re out of the program. That’s a lot of pressure when you’re the only one there for your child. Kids get sick. Moms get sick. Life happens.

WGU Understands that Life Happens

My lack of a college degree really boils down to time. I just never felt like I had enough time to finish because life took me in so many other directions. Western Governors University- WGU- removes that obstacle.

See, at WGU, you’re in charge of your own schedule. You learn at YOUR pace. No one is standing over your shoulder telling you to hurry up, no one is slowing you down. For me, online classes were always better. There were weeks that I could do a month’s worth of assignments in one day. Then there were weeks that I needed a little extra time.

WGU also breaks through the cost barrier that holds many of us back. Their courses are about half the cost of other universities. Think about it: an online university doesn’t have nearly as much overhead and that massive campus down the street from my house. WGU doesn’t want to waste anyone’s money. They just want to provide a stellar place for you to advance your learning and make your higher education dreams come true.

WGU is a fully-accredited school specializing in nursing, business, information technology and education. It was founded by the governors of 19 states. It’s the ONLY college to be founded by governors, actually. Pretty cool, right?

Thinking about going back? See how WGU can help make it happen! Use the code below to waive your application fee.

Did you graduate from college? How do you think WGU would help you?

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Western Governors University. The opinions and text are all mine.