If alum Barbara Josma had started her new job any closer to earning her Master of Public Health, she practically would have accepted the offer while still wearing a cap and gown.

In fact, within weeks of completing graduate school, Barbara began her new role as an infection preventionist and staff developer at a rehabilitation and healthcare center in Florida.

Zyna Caron, BA in Health and Human Services

One of Zyna Caron’s guiding principles is to be able to help those who are less fortunate. Indeed, it’s been a goal of hers long before she decided to complete her degree.  

“There’s a need out there in the universe,” she says.

She knows first-hand. Dealt with what she calls a “challenging childhood,” Zyna became a homeless teenager at age 14, and she lived on the streets on her own for several years.

There’s one undeniable trait that all successful the University of Arizona Global Campus students share: they are goal-setters. When your courses are online, you’re required to make your own schedule and set a level of expectation that you can reasonably meet while trying to balance all of the priorities in your life. That’s why you see so many smiling faces at Global Campus bi-annual commencement ceremonies. These are students who have set goals, overcome obstacles, and are now fulfilling the promise they’ve made to earn a degree. 

Your doctoral degree is not only the highest level of education you can achieve, it also represents the highest level of commitment you can make to your education. With your doctorate, you are in elite company, but like any degree program, it’s going to take time and self-discipline to accomplish your goals.

If you’re eyeing the path to the ultimate degree, here are four things to consider.

Editor’s Note: This month we continue our series highlighting faculty favorites based on feedback from the University of Arizona Global Campus students and alumni. 

A longtime teacher and advocate for early childhood education (ECE), Dr. Tisha Shipley’s interest in education blossomed in grade school thanks to an influential teacher named Mrs. Wiersig

When Dr. Frank Guevara began his undergraduate studies at Stanford University, he had his sights set on becoming a medical doctor. 

The day he walked into the Bing Nursery School, a laboratory school in the Department of Psychology at Stanford, however, his life changed forever. 

The Dean’s List. It’s an accomplishment every determined UAGC student hopes to attain. Released twice a year for the spring and fall, it recognizes undergraduate students who earn a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.50 or higher and who have completed 12 or more credits – including at least one course since the time the previous Dean’s List was published.