Online Business Student and Mother Wins $1,000 College Scholarship for Women

Linda Haro, 48, is an honors student at Southern Oregon University and a winner of the GetEducated.com Free Online Scholarship for Core4Women Members. She pursues her online bachelor’s in business administration, with hopes of becoming an administrative assistant to help future college students achieve their goals.

Haro lives in the remote town of Sheridan, Oregon, setting her at a distance from any on-campus universities. Commuting to class every day was not an option with gas prices on the rise, so she searched for an alternative to achieve her degree. In addition, Haro supports her 24-year-old son through college, which has become a great expense with the high cost of tuition and books.

“The only financial resources I have hardly cover the basic necessities of every day living expenses of food, housing, and utilities,” explains Haro. “For me, the funds needed to earn an education far exceed those of any luxuries. With that, I have chosen to study completely online because these classes are the most affordable.”

Haro determined the first step to finding the right online program was to speak with the director of the business school at Southern Oregon University. Since her enrollment, Haro says the director “works hard to provide her assistance and guidance to assure my success.” It is the personal level of commitment to students that Haro values the most.

“The teachers really motivate us and use the best students as examples for the rest of the class,” she says. Haro believes learning the material through one-on-one interaction is more effective than sitting through a lecture or reading the textbook from cover to cover.

Haro also notes the use of technology, such as Skype, to increase connectivity with her professors. Her son is taking Information Technology courses, so he helped her become an expert at online video conferencing through Skype. With a vision to become an administrative assistant at a university and potentially work toward a director position, Haro understands the importance of technology in today’s state-of-the-art educational environment.

Once finished with her degree, Haro would like to stay in Oregon to work with both residential and online students pursuing college education. She currently chooses online courses that broaden her understanding of student services. She says, “At the same time, I plan to obtain the internship experience necessary to enhance my managerial skills and gain the knowledge of university policies.”

Haro concludes, “While education is an investment in my future as an administrative assistant, it is also an investment in me as a person. Education builds my self confidence and gives me a sense of pride that comes with every accomplishment.”

GetEducated.com offers annual scholarships for moms and members of Core4Women, a free social networking forum where women can share and discover online learning. (Editor’s Note: The Core4Women program is temporarily closed for the remainder of 2013. For another great scholarship opportunity open to distance learning students, please see the Get Educated Online College Scholarship.)

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