What If You Never Finished Your Bachelor’s Degree…and You Feel a Little Embarrassed?

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If you didn't finish your bachelor's degree in four years, you aren't alone. According to recent data from Complete College America, a not-for-profit group in Indianapolis, only 19 percent of full-time students complete a bachelor's degree in four years. In fact, according to a Harvard Graduate School of Education study, just 56 percent of students who enter four-year degree programs graduate within six years.

Some people drop out, work for a while, and go back to school. Others stay in school and keep taking out loans without making much progress. If you're feeling embarrassed about not completing your bachelor's degree, it's time to come up with a game plan. You deserve to get across the finish line. Now is a great time to get a degree online that will give you leadership skills that can help your career progress.

Why You Should Finish

When you don't finish a degree in four years, you might feel discouraged about taking on more debt. Unfortunately, if you've already racked up student loan debt, without finishing your degree you'll have a tougher time paying everything back.

People who finish their bachelor's degrees earn an average of $17,500 more per year than people who don't have a degree. Even if you take a couple of additional years to finish your bachelor's, the potential difference in income that you'll earn will pay for your investment in just a few years. Then, you'll have the rest of your life to reap the income benefits.

Some people struggle to finish because they have a hard time settling on a major. Don't worry so much about choosing the perfect career. Get a bachelor's degree in liberal studies and start looking for work that you'll enjoy. Don't deny yourself the earning potential you'll get from your degree by stalling out until you find the perfect major. Your job experience will guide you toward specializing in something else later.

Traditional Classroom vs. Online Learning

If you've already found a good job, getting your bachelor's degree online is a smart option, especially if you find a program like liberal studies that stresses professional skills. To succeed in online classwork, you'll need self-discipline and initiative. Self-discipline will help you keep up with your assignments and finish your work on time. Initiative will ensure that you ask your professors important questions instead of holding back, giving up, and falling through the cracks. You can schedule your classwork around your work schedule, which helps you keep up your income while you finish school.

Online learning works well for most people, but it's not for everyone. If you have a great college in your community, and you need the accountability of seeing professors and classmates face to face, enroll in a traditional class. Sometimes, the best solution is a local college that offers both traditional and online classes. If you don't have that option, don't worry. Employers value online degrees just as much as traditional degrees in today's job market as long as you attend a respected and accredited school.

Balancing Work, School, and Life

Many women lose momentum toward their degrees, drop out of school, have children, and then decide to go back. Others face the challenge of working while dealing with aging parents or other personal obstacles. Too often, women think they'll return to school when life gets easier or when they have more time on their hands. In too many of these cases, "someday" never comes. It's best to just get started today.

If you have children, make sure to reach out to your family for support. Your parents or siblings might be willing to offer some extra child care assistance, which will help your kids continue to feel secure while you're taking extra time for yourself. If you're not sure that you can handle a full class load while you're working, take just one or two classes the first semester. Increase your workload if you prove to yourself that you can handle it, or keep it lighter if that helps you stay sane.

You know that finishing your degree could mean not just a big income boost but also a big boost to your happiness. Feeling more financially secure and more satisfied will put you in a better mindset to deal with life's challenges. Also, if you get a degree in an area like liberal studies, you'll have transferable skills and knowledge you can take to any job, not matter what life throws at you.

Don't Wait. Act.

Don't let the fear of doing your classwork imperfectly stop you from taking action to finish your degree. You owe it to yourself to get started. Show yourself - and the world - what you can do.

Author

Abbi Gabasa is the Managing Editor of MsCareerGirl.com and owner of UpraisedLiving.com. Having the background of a Marketing and Public Relations Manager with years of professional experience in various industries has given her an insightful perspective on careers, lifestyles, relationships, and attitudes which she humorously applies in helping people through her writing. Abbi is a training life coach, and an advocate of children's charities, women empowerment, optimistic thinking, and slow Sundays. A self-confessed Jane of all trades, she hopes to help girls all over the world find their calling and pursue their passions.