I need some help here ladies! I need some outside perspectives. I'll give you a brief background so you know where I'm at. I'm 26 years old, turning 27 in about a month. I graduated in 2006 with a Bachelor's of Sciences degree in Animal Sciences. I started working at a small vet clinic shortly after as a veterinary assistant and found I liked the work and atmosphere. After DH graduated from college we moved and I got another vet assistant job at a larger vet hospital. After a few more moves b/c of DH's job I just got another job about 2 weeks ago at an even larger veterinary hospital but as a receptionist. After a girl leaves they'll move me back to the back as a vet assistant. OK, so that's present time. I've been toying with wanting to go back to school to get my vet tech degree. It'd make me more employable (should we move again or I want to work somewhere else), I could make more money, and I'd get to do more of what I want to do- more hands on, more medical work, more knowledge, help more.

DH and I went to a local college nearby today to look at their vet tech program. We sat and talked to an advisor, went over the program and what not. It's a 2 year associate degree. Some of my B.S. credits could transfer in and I could opt out of some of the Gen Ed classes so I wouldn't have to pay to take classes I've already taken and shorten the time of the program for me. Their are really two routes I could take- M-TH 9-12 classes or M,T,TH 6p-10p classes. You only take one class at a time but it only lasts a month. So VERY different than what I'm used to with taking 3-4 classes at a time for a quarter (10 weeks).

Ok, so I'm on the fence for a few reasons. DH and I just got married last year and FINALLY are both working at the same time now, so we're finally getting on our feet, it's been crazy! We're renting now and want to buy a house soon, hopefully later this year. If I go back to school, I would have to most likely drop to part time at work the way they schedule us. Definitely not a good thing to tell your boss when you just started last week!!! So, that would mean LESS money coming in, and MORE going out. Not ideal when we're trying to get back on our feet and saving for a house.

Another reason, I'm not feeling "baby fever" terribly bad right now, but when DH and I got married we said we wanted at least a year to ourselves and get settled and such before we started a family. Well, I have always wanted to start my family before 30 and we'd like to have 2 children. well, since I'm turning 27 this year my goal is fast approaching. I know we've all talked about not setting a time limit and don't make a timeline, but I have several reasons for feeling this way. I'm already a bit worried about infertility- I've been on the pill since I was 14 to keep and regulate my period. I went off the pill for a few months a few years ago just to see if my body could do what it's supposed to and I never got my period. So I got back on the pill. When I went to my GYN this past fall she mentioned that I might have problems with infertility (which only made me feel worse about it) and that when DH and I are going to start trying I should come in and get some bloodwork done to see if there is anything wrong and if we should have to try another avenue for results. So time isn't really on my side, I read that at 27 your fertility starts declining, so I'm getting past my best fertile years if I understand correctly. And I know that many women have perfectly fine, healthy babies and don't have trouble getting pregnant at or beyond 30, but with the infertility worry and the fact that I'd like to be a younger mother, going back to school will shove that another year or two back so I'll be 29 or 30 before we can even think about trying. And even then, I will have just graduated from school and hopefully starting a new job, and it wouldn't be good work ethic to tell my boss I need maternity leave right after I start! They probably wouldn't think very highly of me! haha

Another reason is, I JUST started this new FT job and I can't imagine it'd be very well received if I told them they need to back me down to PT so I can attend classes. I'm in my "introductory period" where they make sure you're a good fit and all and dropping that bomb on them may cause them to rethink keeping me on. I CAN'T be unemployed again. It's frustrating and we REALLY need the income. I could do the night classes, but that would make me go from 7 am to 10 pm of work and class, and while I could do that, it would be SO hard to never have a home life with DH. Not a very strong reason I suppose, but the fact that they would most likely have me close on the other nights would mean I would rarely see DH since he works in sports and has a crazy and sometimes late schedule as well. I know I need to do what I have to, but that just makes deciding to go back hard to get REALLY excited about. If I did the morning classes, they would definitely have to drop me to part time and hopefully would work with me so I could possibly work 1-close. But I doubt they would really appreciate their new employee asking for such a schedule so soon. And at the end of the program I have 3 months of externship which is basically ALL day (so like Full time job schedule for school) and I wouldn't be able to work where I'm at now. I'd have to pick a little PT evening job probably unless DH got a GREAT promotion and I wouldn't have to work at all! haha

I want to better myself, I want to be more employable, bring in more income, do more in my job, help animals more and feel better about myself.... but I'm quite overwhelmed with the whole prospect. I really kick myself for not getting my vet tech degree years ago when I was in school. They just started a program where I went that you could get your Bachelor's AND your Vet Tech at the same time, but they didn't start the program until I was a senior and by that time graduation was in sight and I couldn't imagine spending one more second in school!! Hind sight is SUCH a witch!! They really aren't kidding when they say how hard it is to go back to school later in life, and it's not even THAT much later yet! I know it would be SO much easier now instead of if we have kids within a year or so then try to go back. But I just hate thinking that something else is saying "you can't start your family yet!" instead of DH and I determining when we should.

So anyway, these are the thoughts I'm bouncing around in my head. I haven't told friends or family I'm thinking about this because I don't want to feel I've let people down if I decide not to do it. DH is in TOTAL support of me doing it and wants me to for me. He's a year and a half younger and obviously not a woman so he's not quite as concerned about the starting a family thing as I am. And again, I don't want to this minute, but I figured we might start trying this year.

What are your opionions? Advice? Kick in the pants? haha Any other Vet Techs out there? What are your thoughts to the Penn Foster Online Vet Tech Program? Legitamate? I looked at it, it's AAHA approved, but I didnt' know what other techs felt about it vs traditional in-classroom schooling.

Thanks for listening and reading this very long vent/post if you've made it this far! haha I appreciate any advice!

                                    "Come What May...."

I think you should definitely go back to school!

I am a vet tech and I absolutely love it. I know being an assistant is a fufilling job but I can honestly tell you, after being an assistant at first too, that being a tech is SO much more rewarding (financially too!)

I know you have plans to start a family in a few years but I still think this is manageable. If you do the course and then get a job and start trying to get pregnant it can still work. You will just take a maternity leave soon after graduating, nothing wrong with that.

Think about it this way, in a few years you will still be 29, do you want to be 29 and an assistant or 29 and a technician?

I realize you're concerned about losing time with DH OR having your hours cut. How about talking to your boss.

You're not going to school to become a fashion designer or an HR Manager. You're planning on going to school to study something in their line of business. It is actually good FOR them. Because you've not been there long, you're not going to be asking them if they can fund some of your education. You're preparing to be a better employee to them. You are in a great place due to that.

That being said, you also could alternate possibly... one month do the night classes, the next month do the day classes -- your employer might even know when their really busy time is and ask if you can do...for example...June at night. If you're willing to be flexible that way, that will help out.

But before you hit the paic button because you think it will hurt you at your job, talk to them and find out what their opinion is. They might be rather supportive.

Regarding the baby.

Babies happen...when they happen. You don't know how long it will take you to conceive. Even if you conceive TODAY... you could still be 8 months along in your program before your baby is born. So tell your OBGYN you want to start trying. Don't go the more aggressive method until you're finished with your degree, but what's the harm in trying the natural way. There is no reason you can't get a start on that program while TTC. You'll be closer to completion when you do have your baby, which means less time away from the baby to complete the degree.

Do it! You've worked in the field enough to know you love it, so you're not wasting your time in a field you don't love. There is no reason not to advance yourself further.

Misty

Thank you ladies! For all your responses! I'm appreciating all the different views and different ideas of how to go about it. I'm just bad about worrying about getting it all timed out right. I hate to think that I should've done it differently and it would've worked out better. But that's life right?

When I talked to the college yesterday I told them I wouldn't be starting anytime soon, the earliest would be July (he pointed out that month, b/c I think that's when I would fall in best with classes if I opted out of some of the Gen Eds) so that would give me more time with my employer and feel out how they feel about things. And give DH and I more time to get settled more and see where we might be heading family/house wise. So, I just need to make myself take a deep breath, gather more information and stop worrying so much! haha

Yesterday was just SO overwhelming with all the info and feeling like I need to get this done quickly. I still would really like to have school done before we have a baby, but I wouldn't be opposed to start TTC while in school. I just know the last 3 months of the program are REALLY intense and I'd hate to be 6 months pregnant trying to work with horses and injured animals. I wouldn't want to injure my baby or myself. So again, that's the planning in me! haha DH balances us out well, I do all the worrying, he's the level head that reassures me that things will happen when they are supposed to.

If it weren't for the fact that I JUST started this job, I would feel more inclined to start school sooner, but like PP's have said, it's very important to work, and we can't afford one of us to not have a job again.

But thank you ladies, I really do appreciate you taking your time and giving me your feedback, it's always nice to have outside perspectives!

                                    "Come What May...."

I say go for it! Suck it up and take the night classes. It'll suck not being able to see your DH, but it won't last THAT long. You said the program was 2 years, but some of your BS courses would transfer so it would end up being shorter, right?? Is there ANY way you could take more than 1 course at a time??

Think about the bigger picture. FH is really good about reminding me of this when I start second-guessing my decisions. He always says "big picture. what do you see in the long run?" If you want that big picture to become a reality, go back to school.

Nothing worth having comes easy or without sacrifice!

Good luck:*)

_{We're getting married on "Loving Day!"...June 12, 2010...He asked if I'd be with him forever and of course my answer was yes}

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