AIU Online CareerPointers The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you're willing to work. --Oprah Winfrey
HOMEADMISSIONS & FINANCIAL AIDDEGREE PROGRAMSVIRTUAL CAMPUSCONTACT USCLICK TO TALK September + October 2006, Issue 36
Meet AIU Online Alumni Return Home
Meet Monique Johnson: I Got My Degree for My Kids
Monique JohnsonLike many minority working moms, Monique Johnson was struggling. Daycare costs were astronomical, her marriage was falling apart, and she couldn't find a job that brought in enough money while letting her spend time with her girls. Not knowing what else to do, Monique headed back to school.

"I was sitting around one night and realized I had to do something different. I didn't know what, but I knew I needed to figure it out right then. My mom suggested I go back to school. I asked her when I would have the time to do that. 'I have no time,' I said. She pointed out that the way things were going with my marriage, I could easily end up being stuck and I didn't want to be stuck. I saw education was the way to make sure I wouldn't get stuck."

Monique went to a local campus a few days later and took some brochures home. "I held onto them for 30 days - wondering how I would ever be able to fit a brick and mortar school into my schedule - before I learned about AIU Online. Once I saw I could get my degree online and on my own schedule, I got up one morning and just enrolled."

It wasn't an easy road though. "When I got the first week's assignments, I almost passed out. They wanted me to do six whole papers. And these weren't just a paragraph or two, but full-fledged papers, the whole nine yards. Of course I reconsidered my decision to go back to school. 'This could be a huge mistake,' I thought, but I decided to stick it through."

Monique ended up doing more than sticking through though. Despite the continued collapse of her marriage, losing a baby and a job, and having to work nights, she graduated with her Master's of Business Administration degree with a concentration in Healthcare Management with a 4.0 grade point average.

"I wanted to quit so many times, but a small voice inside of me said, 'Monique, keep walking forward.' At times I felt everything but the kitchen sink was being thrown at me. I felt something was even trying to prevent me from doing this. But I refused to quit. I felt this was my way out of a bad situation and I wasn't going to throw my only ticket out away. My kids needed me to do this. That was my mantra."

Now out of school, Monique can look back and see all the hardship was worth it. She is now a college professor and department head and founder of her own healthcare management and IT consulting firm. Her salary has more than doubled and she has been able to buy a home for her family (she has since added one more daughter, now 11 months, to her brood as well). Most importantly, her new jobs are conducive to her life as a mom. "I get to see my family."

"Getting my degree was the best thing I could have done for myself and my kids. Education is an investment you make in yourself that no one can take away from you. If you invest in yourself, you can give so much more to others."

While Monique is now very qualified to give advice, while getting her MBA she happily took advice from anyone who would help her. "The biggest influence was actually one of my AIU Online instructors. He was teaching my Financial Management class and one night he talked to me on the phone for 90 minutes. At first it was just about school stuff, but then he ended up giving me advice on how to grow, how to not give up, to keep trying. He gave me more information in 90 minutes than I've gotten from most people in five years! I wrote down everything he had to say and I followed it. He was totally awesome. I had lots of people telling me stuff, but he gave me insight no one else had before. After I hung up with him, I knew I could finish my degree and get the kind of jobs I wanted."

Monique's fellow students inspired her as well. "Even though I couldn't see them, we still had a connection. I was going through my own personal struggles, but so were so many of my classmates. They were struggling to stay in school and stay focused and balance their family, jobs and class. We were all in it together."

Because Monique has the advantage of having attended both a traditional college - she got her Bachelor's of Health Services degree in from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton - and an online school, she knows online universities offer advantages above and beyond being able to do your degree on your own schedule.

"Classes at AIU Online were every bit as challenging - even more so actually - than at a traditional school. Outside of classes, because there wasn't anyone around checking to make sure I was doing my homework or motivating me or telling me what I had to do, I grew by leaps and bounds and learned more about myself than I ever would have at a traditional school. AIU Online was really like learning times two."

"Between the degree itself and what I learned about myself, I've been able to create a life that lets me take care of my family and still be there for them at the same time."

Alumni Quote Getting my degree was the best thing I could have done for myself and my kids. Education is an investment you make in yourself that no one can take away from you. If you invest in yourself, you can give so much more to others.
—Monique Johnson
Classes Begin November 12, 2006. Apply Today!

Grant Programs
Learn more about the Education Partners program for businesses and organizations.


Something to Think About
Top 10 Mistakes to Avoid When Re-Entering the Job Market

Read More

Visit AIU Online
Copyright 2006 AIU Online. All Rights Reserved.
American InterContinental University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission and a member of the North Central Association. Additional information is available at 312-263-0456 or www.ncahigherlearningcommission.org. Not all credits eligible to transfer. See the University's catalog regarding AIU's transfer credit policy.
5550 Prairie Stone Parkway • Suite 400 • Hoffman Estates, IL • 60192