University of phoenix

University of Phoenix Past, Present, and Future Paper GEN480 Lynn Shepherd September 13, 2010 Past, Present, and Future Paper Before I began my program here at University of Phoenix my learning and personal growth was not a major factor. In May 2002, I was faced with a life or death situation. I was attending a private college in New Jersey. I went in for an annually check-up and was informed that I was pregnant. That day changed my life drastically. I was working two jobs and going to school part-time, so I always have been hard-working and a dedicated individual. Learning that I was about to have a child immediately made me become unfocused. In December 2002, I was about to give birth when I broke my lower left tibia and fibula. I was rushed to the hospital when I had an emergency surgery to bring my baby boy to life. My leg was still broken when I gave birth. My baby was healthy. This was happy and sad news all at once. I had to then prepare for orthopedic surgery. My body was rejecting the screws that were put in place for proper healing. Five surgeries later in a span of two years I realized I missed most of my only son’s life. I was could not walk and carry him. I was placed on non-weight bearing orders from my doctor for two years. After my surgeries, I wanted to continue my learning. This time the odds are greater. My son will benefit from me going back to school. I began my studies at Axia College. Starting my educational journey at Axia was the best adult decision I have made for myself and family. At this point in my life, I was collecting disability to support my family. Although disability helped, it was not nearly close to what I was making at a regular employment. My career goal is to work at Prudential Insurance Company in the billing department. I am faced with a major dent in my resume. I have been disabled for the past 10 years and I understand employers may think that I am not experienced enough to work at their establishment. When I began my studies at University of Phoenix my written skills were subpar. I have never experienced completing tasks in a group setting. I have learned to trust other members of my group and I have also learned discipline. I have excelled in time management because I could make appointments and conduct tasks in a timely manner. Through my hard work and determination I inspired a few people along the way. My husband has seen how far I have come and all of the barriers I had beat to earn my degree. My husband currently attends Axia College to pursue his Associates of Arts in Information Technology. I obtained my Associates of Arts in Accounting and I am currently in the Bachelors of Science in Management degree. The courses that had the greatest impact on my potential employer are courses such as ACC220 Survey of Accounting, MGT350 Critical Thinking: Strategies in Decision Making, ACC225 Financial Accounting, PHL323 Ethics in Management, etc. ACC220 has taught me about the accounting cycle and accounting principles. I grasped the information that was taught resulting in my “ A”. I was excited because I had no knowledge or experience in accounting and with hard work and dedication I earned an “ A”! My final project was to create a business plan. I have never created a business plan before. I had fun making my business plan and I called my business Internet Café. A business plan is extremely useful because I recently started my own travel business. A business plan highlights and maps the direction my business will go. In MGT350, I did outstanding when learning the concepts of management. I earned an “ A”, however; it has affected my life positively by helping me identify and solve organizational problems. I have learned how to strategically solve workplace and personally dilemmas as they arise. I believe MGT350 impacted my outlook by teaching me how to think critically and make good decisions. In COMM215 Essentials of College Writing, I have learned that I was not as good a writer as I thought. I earned my first “ C+”. I believe if I had taken this course later in my program I would have did better in it. I did awful on my final, which was a grammar quiz. After taken this course, I realized Accounting was the field for me! Before I started my program at University of Phoenix I had trouble with proper grammar. I believe I have grown in this area because University of Phoenix offers excellent resource materials and services, such as the library and the lab. I have learned that professionally or personally I have to be proficient in writing. Businesses have to know that they trust that I can put an important document together error free. Another course that impacted my life was MTH208/209. Both of these math courses were not hard however, MTH208 was a refresher algebra course. My high school focused on accounting so I was proficient in this area. I absolutely love math! Both of these courses focus on college algebra. By taking MTH 208/209 I realized how much I have forgotten since high school. This course impacted my decision to progress and earn my master’s in business in accounting. Math is relates to anything an individual does such as scheduling appointments, jotting down milling information, and keeping track of hours worked on a time sheet. My personal, professional, and educational goals will vary for the next five years. After obtaining my bachelors of science in management, I am going to take some time to self-reflect. I will reflect on what I have learned over the past four years at University of Phoenix. After I have taken the time to build my motivation, I will pursue my masters of business administration in accounting. My more focal goal is to become a certified public accountant. Accounting is based on a team environment. The skills or competencies I will continue to develop are:  People skills  Sales skills  Communication skills  Computer skills  Analytical skills I am aware that I will have to work a 40 to70-hour work week. I have minimal accounting experience in which includes practicing and handling my small business funds and documents. If I wanted to start working for a firm I would have to start out as a junior member. Starting as a junior member allows me enough time to learn about my duties and responsibilities. As a junior member my tasks are focused in a team environment. The highest position I can achieve in a corporation is the chief financial officer also known as the CFO. The main skill that will ensure as the chief financial officer is being able to relate to people. I must admit I have some time to work in this area because I am mostly a shy and withdrawn person. Today’s firms are employing newer electronic systems for preparing and submitting financial statements. I have gained experience working with the Peachtree accounting software called Peachtree complete. I use the Peachtree accounting software with my small business. What Peachtree does is keep track of vendors and receipts. I also can keep track of payroll hours worked at my organization. I will join an organization called Pi Sigma Epsilon (PSE). Pi Sigma Epsilon is the only national, co-ed, professional fraternal organization in marketing, sales, and management (PSE, n. d.). Even though this organization is a fraternity, it is the only co-ed fraternity for business students. Pi Sigma Epsilon gears their networking around business majors who attend or have attend University of Phoenix. Pi Sigma Epsilon partners with Geico, Enterprise, and Kodak giving their members a competitive advantage in the job market. I am eager to pay a small fee to become a lifetime member. I believe that joining Pi Sigma Epsilon will help my networking skills and launch opportunities that can help me and my family. In all, lifelong learning does not stop. Albert Einstein stated, “ Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking” (ThinkExist, n. d.). Even after I graduate school I will continue journalizing and contemplating my ideas and thoughts onto paper.