[Lazarus16]

Hi everyone! I'm a 26 years old adult going back to school to become a computer engineer. I want to get a master's degree but I'm so far from my goal. I quit school so many years ago, I can't even remember algebra and don't have the level of mathematics needed for the program I aim. I took a test to find out what my level was nowadays and in elementary school mathematics, I got 46%... I'm thinking of giving up because frankly, it seems hopeless, isn't it? Not at all. So many people give up on going back to school because their situation looks like climbing on top of mount Everest, it seems impossible but it really is NOT!

I started taking distance courses 3 weeks ago and guess what, I got 100% in the elementary school test! It was so easy, all it took was dedication, comitting to 1 hour of maths every day and the efforts paid off! I still have about 5 years of maths to re-learn but I can do it, it's just a matter of self-confidence and organisation. The first book was supposed to take 36 hours to finish and it took me 10, it was easy! It will take me maybe 1-2 years to get the level of mathematics I need, 6 to get my master's degree but I'm confident I will make it. To me, it's not a matter of if but rather, when.

That's why there is a ray of hope for all adult students alike! Don't let anyone discourage you from going back to school because of any reason. I had ALL the reasons of the world against me and yet, I'm succeeding with multiple 100%. You have dreams? Do all it takes to accomplish them, nothing is impossible, mind over matter! If you're constant, always giving your 100% and give yourself the environment to succeed, you will get results, it's undeniable.

Good success to all students alike, success is not an abstract matter from outer space, it's inside of you.

[DesigningWoman]

Heck, yeah!

I started back in school at 36. I was tired of my career. It was going nowhere monetarily and was unsatisfying.
So I chucked it. I got a close to campus apartment with undergrad roommates. (Generation gap there.) I found an on campus job for Uni.
First day knees were knocking a bit. I had to take a Teaching Math class. I have a serious issue with reversing numbers so there was stress there. A girl behind me started crying when we got first quiz back. She and I had same failing grade. I recovered though. I made an A in that class, which I am quite proud of. I hadn't taken anything involving math for about fifteen years.
I am now in my second semester back. I have had issues with my bipolar. The biggest was I didn't know I had bipolar. But despite that, I am still trucking along at 2/3 time. I will be complete with this semester in less than a month.

I had friends laugh when I said I was going back to school to change careers. But I am actually enjoying myself. In a group of undergrads I feel like a wise woman with all of my life and real world experiences.

So good for you and me and everyone who is out there trying!

[Lazarus16]

Originally Posted by DesigningWoman

Heck, yeah!

I started back in school at 36. I was tired of my career. It was going nowhere monetarily and was unsatisfying.
So I chucked it. I got a close to campus apartment with undergrad roommates. (Generation gap there.) I found an on campus job for Uni.
First day knees were knocking a bit. I had to take a Teaching Math class. I have a serious issue with reversing numbers so there was stress there. A girl behind me started crying when we got first quiz back. She and I had same failing grade. I recovered though. I made an A in that class, which I am quite proud of. I hadn't taken anything involving math for about fifteen years.
I am now in my second semester back. I have had issues with my bipolar. The biggest was I didn't know I had bipolar. But despite that, I am still trucking along at 2/3 time. I will be complete with this semester in less than a month.

I had friends laugh when I said I was going back to school to change careers. But I am actually enjoying myself. In a group of undergrads I feel like a wise woman with all of my life and real world experiences.

So good for you and me and everyone who is out there trying!

DesigningWoman, you are absolutely right and I like the way you think. You're confident and to me, it makes no doubt you will succeed. Starting to climb the impossible mountain facing us, is often the most difficult part of a new project and you and I, succeeded where many failed. I'm not worried about us, I know we will make it.

Congratulations for the A and I wish you the best for your second semester! I hope you get another A, you deserve it. Poor girl standing behind you, do you know if she made it?

[dolphingirilie]

Kudos to you! I went back at age 39, it was a challenge being in the general population, and the fear like you have had of the math courses. You go this! One class at a time. I graduated with my BA, and now working toward masters It's a challenge, but a good feeling of accomplishment, especially doing it with any LD, or any depression, anxiety ect. You got his!

[DesigningWoman]

Yeah, she passed. She is one of the young students that thinks taking an overload of classes every semester is the way to go. If it works for her great, she will graduate quicker than me. Every time I see her she looks stressed or about to fall asleep.
As for me, I am probably 15 years older. I have bipolar 2 and a part time job with regular scheduled work hours. Plus, I want a little social life. Graduating early is attractive but in the end I can only do what I can do.

[qwerty68]

Very good post!

Definitely don't give up! I started school at 29 and I had to take a bunch of remedial math courses and I completed my BS and MS in Computer Science, both with honors, and I struggled to get through high school with a very impressive 1.8 GPA.

My seizure disorder and mental issues made it even longer than having to take all those extra math courses so I could finally take the first required Calculus course - calc isn't really that hard, except for a few small sections here and there. The big issue with math that I have noticed is that a lot of people are intimidated with it and they shouldn't be, it is logic! Logic makes sense, most of the time. English intimidates me because it makes no sense.

As an aside, it was interesting that the further I got past calc, the fewer numbers that were used. I took one math class that rarely, if ever, used actual numbers. That was an eye-opening and mind-blowing course. Especially when proving that one infinite set is larger than another infinite set. Crazy stuff but interesting and very fun.

I was lucky that my first math class had the best professor I ever had. He not only taught math in a clear manner, he taught us how to approach problems and be college students as well. He was tough, if you were 1 minute late you were not allowed in and after five absences he dropped you from the class but it trained me to never be late and it stuck through all my years of school. 40 started the course and 6 finished.

All it really takes is the interest, desire and time to put in the effort. I am proof it can be done.

[DesigningWoman]

I struggled in elementary math with my number cognition issues. Once I finally got to algebra loved it. The more letters and symbols the better for me.
I agree that math can and does intimidate many. I find science though much harder. Especially concepts that can't be viewed or are illogical. (Looking at you quantum physics) I find chemistry very difficult as well. The only class I ever dropped due to failing was college chemistry. I can't remember what a mole was but I didn't like trying to figure them at all.

[Lazarus16]

Originally Posted by dolphingirilie

Kudos to you! I went back at age 39, it was a challenge being in the general population, and the fear like you have had of the math courses. You go this! One class at a time. I graduated with my BA, and now working toward masters It's a challenge, but a good feeling of accomplishment, especially doing it with any LD, or any depression, anxiety ect. You got his!

Thanks Dolphingirilie! It's like in life, one day at a time, each day is a beautiful day, there are no problems, just solutions, staying down to earth and living our life to the maximum!

Congratulations for your BA, I wish you the best success with your masters degree, you can do it, you know you can.

I agree with the sense of accomplishement. Some people grew up in rich families and spend their adult life, not working much but always partying and treating women as sex objects but do they feel accomplished? What is it that they accomplished exactly? They partied and fu**** hundreads of girls because dad was a billionnaire, okay but I don't see anything to be proud of. Daddy did everything, not the other way around. Because personally, I think our goal in life, is to make this world better and help the human race accomplish great things! These spoiled kids live in a imaginary world and the saddest is that they don't even realise it.

Btw, is that your dog? He's really cute!

[Lazarus16]

Originally Posted by DesigningWoman

Yeah, she passed. She is one of the young students that thinks taking an overload of classes every semester is the way to go. If it works for her great, she will graduate quicker than me. Every time I see her she looks stressed or about to fall asleep.
As for me, I am probably 15 years older. I have bipolar 2 and a part time job with regular scheduled work hours. Plus, I want a little social life. Graduating early is attractive but in the end I can only do what I can do.

Great, so good for her! Oh yeah, we are like that when we're young. We tend to try to do too much, we think we're invincible and everything has to happen fast. I believe as we age, we realise it's not worth it to act this way and learn to enjoy life. We do things at our own ryhthm. That's right, you can only do what you can do. Better to enjoy life slowly than not enjoying it and not seeing it pass.

[Lazarus16]

Originally Posted by qwerty68

Very good post!

Definitely don't give up! I started school at 29 and I had to take a bunch of remedial math courses and I completed my BS and MS in Computer Science, both with honors, and I struggled to get through high school with a very impressive 1.8 GPA.

My seizure disorder and mental issues made it even longer than having to take all those extra math courses so I could finally take the first required Calculus course - calc isn't really that hard, except for a few small sections here and there. The big issue with math that I have noticed is that a lot of people are intimidated with it and they shouldn't be, it is logic! Logic makes sense, most of the time. English intimidates me because it makes no sense.

As an aside, it was interesting that the further I got past calc, the fewer numbers that were used. I took one math class that rarely, if ever, used actual numbers. That was an eye-opening and mind-blowing course. Especially when proving that one infinite set is larger than another infinite set. Crazy stuff but interesting and very fun.

I was lucky that my first math class had the best professor I ever had. He not only taught math in a clear manner, he taught us how to approach problems and be college students as well. He was tough, if you were 1 minute late you were not allowed in and after five absences he dropped you from the class but it trained me to never be late and it stuck through all my years of school. 40 started the course and 6 finished.

All it really takes is the interest, desire and time to put in the effort. I am proof it can be done.

Thanks Qwerty68!

My goodness, your story is so inspiring and I don't know if you're a woman but even if you're a man, I'd hug you! loll Congratulations for your masters in computer science, you're a true inspiration and I will never forget you! 1.8 GPA IS impressive, at least, to me. Mine was 1.3! LOL

I like your thinking. It is true math intimidate people and IS logic. I used to be so scared of it because I really disliked the laws of mathematics. With the negative numbers and the laws of multiplication like the one ''-2 x -6 = 12'', I refused to accept multiplying two negative numbers gave a positive answer, because to me, it made no sense. I'd argue with my teacher that it gave ''-12, not 12''. I thought it was illogical and you can imagine I struggled with math for a long time. I was not open-minded. I loved math, always like maths but when I'd get to a problem that seemed, to me, illogical, I'd quit. Nowadays, I tell myself ''it is what it is, do what the laws say'' and I get 100%. When you open your mind and accept them for what they are, they're actually much more logical and math become very easy. And fun. I just LOVE mathematics. And science. And physic. I guess I'm into deep stuff, I like to understand complicated things because it makes me feel intelligent. LOL

It sure sounds like it. I haven't gotten to algebra yet but I remember it's a lot of fun. 2 more books before I get to it, in my distance learning. Over here in Canada, each grade is separated into multiple sections and I'm on the first one of grade 7. 30 more to go and I'll be able to go for my bachelor! It's gonna take a long time, maybe 3 years but I'm willing to do all it takes to accomplish my dream and live my passion!

He really seemed like a good teacher! Strict but fair. And you were amongst the chosen 6. You can be really proud of yourself!

That's right, thanks for the great post as well, Qwerty68!

[qwerty68]

Thanks for that! I needed it after a rough week.

It sounds like you are learning math perfectly. Besides being logic, math is like climbing stairs. What you learn today builds into tomorrow, etc.

I have been trying to help a friend learn math because he wants to go into mechanical engineering and he keeps trying to learn trig before he has a solid grasp of algebra and predictably stumbles. He can get through the first few chapters fairly easily but triangles disappear pretty quickly and turns into circles and waves and he gets lost because he doesn't have the background yet. I tell him that, but it falls on deaf ears. He seems to think I have some magic incantation that will make him understand it without putting in the prerequisite work.

Keep up the great work, it is doubly impressive that you are doing this using distance courses. I doubt I could have done that when I first started out. I needed the sweet security blanket of being able to march into the professors office.

A lot of the axioms used have to be taken on faith and some can't really be proven, at least not in the system that they exist in. Another fun math thing - Godel's Incompleteness Theorem. I really love math, I wanted to double major in it but my health prevented it. I completed a minor in it which is enough for 90% of my major, a lot of people miss the fact that computer science and programming are applied mathematics, but you really don't need a full math major for most of it unless you really want to dive deep into the theoretical pool.

I do self-study now and again to learn new things. I finished Godel Escher and Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid last summer. It was the second toughest math based book I have read and I am not sure I understood half of it. I will probably need to read it about 10 more times and it is a long read.

I am not sure if I ever had to write a formal proof about why a negative times a negative is a positive or even if one exists. The closest to a proof I have seen that if it wasn't so, lots of things would break and that would send mathematicians into a tizzy-fit, and trust me you don't want that.

I agree, algebra was the most fun part for me, I took three algebra courses, not counting linear algebra which isn't as much fun, IMO. Later courses suck some of the fun by rigorously defining things like what is a function. The vertical line test worked just fine and dandy for me but they had to ruin the party.

[Talthybius]

Originally Posted by Lazarus16

Thanks Qwerty68!
With the negative numbers and the laws of multiplication like the one ''-2 x -6 = 12'', I refused to accept multiplying two negative numbers gave a positive answer, because to me, it made no sense. I'd argue with my teacher that it gave ''-12, not 12''. I thought it was illogical and you can imagine I struggled with math for a long time. I was not open-minded. I loved math, always like maths but when I'd get to a problem that seemed, to me, illogical, I'd quit.

All you needed was a good teacher. If you scale up the number number -2 six times, surely it is still negative. In other words, if you put six parts of -2 together, they don't suddenly turn positive.

I was able to enter a top university in my country at age 31, after having failed in the education track as a child and teenager. I am doing top 10% or so.
You can read about some of it here, though it is focused on relations and overall mental health:

http://forums.psychcentral.com/relat...n-romance.html

Only thing I run into academically is that my memory may be worse, that I am not as flexible doing practical work (though I may never have been) and that I sometimes argue too much with supervisors that are younger than me.

[Lazarus16]

Originally Posted by qwerty68

Thanks for that! I needed it after a rough week.

It sounds like you are learning math perfectly. Besides being logic, math is like climbing stairs. What you learn today builds into tomorrow, etc.

I have been trying to help a friend learn math because he wants to go into mechanical engineering and he keeps trying to learn trig before he has a solid grasp of algebra and predictably stumbles. He can get through the first few chapters fairly easily but triangles disappear pretty quickly and turns into circles and waves and he gets lost because he doesn't have the background yet. I tell him that, but it falls on deaf ears. He seems to think I have some magic incantation that will make him understand it without putting in the prerequisite work.

Keep up the great work, it is doubly impressive that you are doing this using distance courses. I doubt I could have done that when I first started out. I needed the sweet security blanket of being able to march into the professors office.

A lot of the axioms used have to be taken on faith and some can't really be proven, at least not in the system that they exist in. Another fun math thing - Godel's Incompleteness Theorem. I really love math, I wanted to double major in it but my health prevented it. I completed a minor in it which is enough for 90% of my major, a lot of people miss the fact that computer science and programming are applied mathematics, but you really don't need a full math major for most of it unless you really want to dive deep into the theoretical pool.

I do self-study now and again to learn new things. I finished Godel Escher and Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid last summer. It was the second toughest math based book I have read and I am not sure I understood half of it. I will probably need to read it about 10 more times and it is a long read.

I am not sure if I ever had to write a formal proof about why a negative times a negative is a positive or even if one exists. The closest to a proof I have seen that if it wasn't so, lots of things would break and that would send mathematicians into a tizzy-fit, and trust me you don't want that.

I agree, algebra was the most fun part for me, I took three algebra courses, not counting linear algebra which isn't as much fun, IMO. Later courses suck some of the fun by rigorously defining things like what is a function. The vertical line test worked just fine and dandy for me but they had to ruin the party.

My pleasure.

Exactly. It's logic.

Oh yeah, that's a common mistake a ton of people do. They burn steps to reach their goals faster but fail to realise this way of thinking, is highly risky and very often compromise the whole project. As a consequence, most people will not even reach their goals. Quite ironic, when you think about it...

Thank you. It takes a lot of discipline but it's very rewarding.

I'll see when I get there. lol I don't have any time limit so I guess I'll continue as far as possible but I haven't projected myself that far, yet. I'm starting with the distance courses then I'll do my bachelor and the master is my ultimate goal but I haven't looked at it in details. It won't before 3-6 years so I have time to think about it.

I'll trust you on that. lol

Oh well, we can't always get what we want, I suppose... I'll remember to be careful, that linear algebra isn't as much fun!

[Lazarus16]

Originally Posted by Talthybius

All you needed was a good teacher. If you scale up the number number -2 six times, surely it is still negative. In other words, if you put six parts of -2 together, they don't suddenly turn positive.

I was able to enter a top university in my country at age 31, after having failed in the education track as a child and teenager. I am doing top 10% or so.
You can read about some of it here, though it is focused on relations and overall mental health:

http://forums.psychcentral.com/relat...n-romance.html

Only thing I run into academically is that my memory may be worse, that I am not as flexible doing practical work (though I may never have been) and that I sometimes argue too much with supervisors that are younger than me.

LOLL, that's pretty blunt but that's true. And I agree, it's pure logic.

Woww, that's amazing, congratulations!! I'll check that link you gave me, thanks!

Oh well, it's all part of getting old. lol I'm not as fast as I used to be in some situations, like, I used to be able to finish minesweeper easy games in 9 seconds, at age 12 and now, 14 years later, I can't do better than 35 seconds. Some things using the brain, I lost some speed. I also run a little slower and I lost flexibility , I'm much less hyperactive but I improved dramatically in other ways. I'm so much smarter, more mentally stable, more wise and I'm wayyy stronger after over 2 years of gym in the body. I don't mind losing something, as long as I can replace it with something equivalent.

Originally Posted by Lazarus16

Hi everyone! I'm a 26 years old adult going back to school to become a computer engineer. I want to get a master's degree but I'm so far from my goal. I quit school so many years ago, I can't even remember algebra and don't have the level of mathematics needed for the program I aim. I took a test to find out what my level was nowadays and in elementary school mathematics, I got 46%... I'm thinking of giving up because frankly, it seems hopeless, isn't it? Not at all. So many people give up on going back to school because their situation looks like climbing on top of mount Everest, it seems impossible but it really is NOT!

I started taking distance courses 3 weeks ago and guess what, I got 100% in the elementary school test! It was so easy, all it took was dedication, comitting to 1 hour of maths every day and the efforts paid off! I still have about 5 years of maths to re-learn but I can do it, it's just a matter of self-confidence and organisation. The first book was supposed to take 36 hours to finish and it took me 10, it was easy! It will take me maybe 1-2 years to get the level of mathematics I need, 6 to get my master's degree but I'm confident I will make it. To me, it's not a matter of if but rather, when.

That's why there is a ray of hope for all adult students alike! Don't let anyone discourage you from going back to school because of any reason. I had ALL the reasons of the world against me and yet, I'm succeeding with multiple 100%. You have dreams? Do all it takes to accomplish them, nothing is impossible, mind over matter! If you're constant, always giving your 100% and give yourself the environment to succeed, you will get results, it's undeniable.

Good success to all students alike, success is not an abstract matter from outer space, it's inside of you.

thanks for this post- very encouraging!

[Lazarus16]

Originally Posted by shattered sanity

thanks for this post- very encouraging!

My pleasure, Shattered Sanity! One video, that encouraged me to continue so many times before during my life, when life was so tough I could barely stand up, is this one :

People may hate Arnold for cheating on his wife, Maria Shriver, they may dislike him because he's not an actor as good as Michael Douglas or De Niro, he has a YUGE accent but what he says in this video and a majority of his life story, has the potential to change anybody's life!

Because I believe we are ALL winners, we're just not all AWARE of it. Life circumstances, divorces, intimidation, those are all reasons that take us away from the road of success but when doing the things Arnold say in this video, when following his 6 rules of success, we are brought back on the road of success, we embrace our true winner nature and make success happens! That's the way it is and there are so many examples to prove it, ''no pain, no gain''.

[DesigningWoman]

There are definitely people who have similar back stories who come to very different conclusions about their abilities and self-worth and self-determination. Their lives will turn out quite different.