I'm no scholar...

[HotelMinion]

But I do like learning. After one dead end job after another, I spied with my little eye a school. Now, I've been to school. Elementary school: hated it. Middle school: Awful. High school: Someone help! College: Boring! University: *brain explodes and DIES*

Yeah, I didn't like any of them. But I'm so tired of looking for jobs that end in disappointment. So I when I saw a technical school, I was skeptic. Technical school is one that I haven't done. IDK if I should go for it though. Tuition, books, materials, everything is about 20K. I'm not a total idiot, I know that's a lot to invest. What if I just total stink at it? What if the teachers are horrid? That'll be my money. I'm a mouse, so I'm not the type to tell a teacher "you STINK!" and throw up a big ol fuss. So I looked at the pros and cons of it:

Pro:
School is less than 5 miles away
School seems nice (but they all do, don't they?)
School has a lot of books to offer ( I learn best by reading)
I wanted to go when in high school...


Now the cons:
20 K is a lot of money! WTH. There's financial aid, but who knows if can get it. :\
Things may go bad, teachers may mumble ( had too much mumblers in college and university, wtf?)
Every student seems young like in the early 20s, late teens. Can't really connect with young folks.
No support. (Everyone I know thinks that it'll be a mistake, they think that I should get a degree in accounting instead. Numbers make me break out in a rash!)
Program is for outgoing Talky Tinas (which I'm NOT)
I know nothing about the program (even thought they said they accept beginners, yeah right)

It's a lot more cons. Maybe I should just forget about it. Plus I'll have to cancel my vacation to Europe! I was really looking forward to it. So, should I listen to 95% of me that's screaming NO and say no or risk it????

[mjr]

Is the program something you could learn online or through books, without the classes? You might want to start there, first, and see if it's something that you think you'd like. "Technical Schools" sometimes hand you the equivalent of an Associates degree. Sometimes it's just a "you completed this curriculum" diploma. And a lot of technical schools have credits that won't transfer.

Ultimately, the decision is yours, but if this is something you can learn by buying books and saving yourself $20K in debt, you might want to consider that first. Especially if you can get a copy of the curriculum with the books used on it.

[csquared]

Can you stick your toe in the water and try a couple of classes?

[HotelMinion]

Is the program something you could learn online or through books, without the classes? You might want to start there, first, and see if it's something that you think you'd like. "Technical Schools" sometimes hand you the equivalent of an Associates degree. Sometimes it's just a "you completed this curriculum" diploma. And a lot of technical schools have credits that won't transfer.

Ultimately, the decision is yours, but if this is something you can learn by buying books and saving yourself $20K in debt, you might want to consider that first. Especially if you can get a copy of the curriculum with the books used on it.

I do learn best by reading, but this particular trade is very hands on, so I suspect just reading won't cut it, you'll have to practice. I've seen job postings for it often, and they all say that you need to have a certificate by a state approved institution. I could lie, but I know that it's going to obvious that I can't do it.

Can you stick your toe in the water and try a couple of classes?

I could, but I'll have to buy the materials and they are $3K. Each class is about $50. I suppose if I really hate it I could quit, and only pay $3500, (which I estimate will be enough for me to decide) but that's really iffy.

Another con I've just thought of is what if the mythical Dream Job (one that's near and fair and doesn't make me ill from stress) pops up and I can't get it because of school??? It's highly doubtful but there's always that little hope in me that it may happen. WHAT IF????

After sleeping on it, (and having a nightmare) I decided that if I couldn't find my high school diploma, that I wouldn't do it. (Having a copy of it is one of the requirements to apply.) I recall that I threw it away in a fit of anger years ago, and so it's really doubtful I'll find it. But they gave me a wallet size version of it, and last I saw it was in my old car that I'm not using anymore so there's a good chance that the new owner threw it out. I searched my Drawer of Junk, and....found it! I could blow it up and turn that in...

Well shit. Looks like I'm going back to school! Send help!

EDIT: Whoops I forgot about my financial aid. Let's see if it goes thru. They say I might get approved for 12K, but who knows??