Tales of career change plentiful

Felicia Roton enjoys working as a waitress and appreciates the flexible schedule that lets her be there for her two daughters. Her fluctuating income makes it hard to budget, though, and physically it’s not a job she wants to do forever.

So she went back to school, and is only a few months away from an accounting degree from Peirce.

It’s been a challenge — she juggles family, work, classes, an internship and her role as secretary of the school’s chapter of the Delta Mu Delta honor society. “But my goal is to better myself,” Roton says. “There’s a major purpose to all the insanity.”

She’s already started interviewing for post-graduation jobs. “The career office is amazing; they’ve given me help with things like my résumé and my interview wardrobe. They’ve also given me the confidence to put myself out there,” she says.

Why study at Pierce

Melissa Morris has had a great career working for nonprofits, helping people on a one-on-one basis.“But I realized I kept running into the same barriers, year after year, regardless of what organization I was working for,” she says. “I want to help people in a bigger, more meaningful way.”

She’s changing her career focus by tackling a paralegal program at Peirce. “I may want to go to law school eventually; but in the meantime, having paralegal certification will let me start working in the field while I figure out what area of law I want to pursue,” she says.

Morris chose Peirce because the program is ABA-certified. She also likes the emphasis on networking — in and out of the classroom.