Second time around

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ALGONQUIN – When Vicki Dwyer graduated from nursing school recently, she was the oldest in her class. At 48, she was not the typical college student, but she also was not the only graduating nurse in her 40s.

"There were some other students who are a few years younger than me," Dwyer said. "Some in their 30s, a few in their late 40s."

Angie Gardeck, 42, of Algonquin graduated from design school a year ago after working in accounting and then spending 10 years as a stay-at-home mom, she said. Now she owns an interior design business called New Perspective Design Inc.

"I had the opportunity both financially and time-wise to pursue something different," she said. "[My kids] were all in middle school at the time. They didn't need as much help, so it was time for me."

Dwyer and Gardeck are two of a growing number of adults who are returning to school to start second careers because they have more time or want to try something new.

Helen Jost, the adult recruitment coordinator at McHenry County College, said she has seen an increase in the number of older students pursuing second careers in the past two years, and especially in the past six months.

"Career changing is very common," Jost said. " ... We're living longer, and people can enjoy a career for a while and can be very good at it, and then their life changes and they'd like to do something else. I've seen people who have run businesses, and then they want to do something for their soul."

Jost said she has met nurses who wanted to teach, and an engineer who now is a dentist.

But recently, the largest group of career changers are those individuals who have lost their jobs and now are changing professions to something more recession-proof, in the medical or computer field, for example, she said.

Dwyer is entering the medical field because it is what she really wants to do. She originally earned a legal assistance degree after high school and worked at a law firm because she needed to do something to earn money, she said. When she had children, she became a stay-at-home mom. But when her second child had medical problems, she became interested in health care. In January 2007, she enrolled as a nursing student at Elgin Community College.

"I have the life experience of communication, of being a parent, being a caregiver to my children. I know how it feels to have a sick child. I know that stress. I can go into an emergency-room situation and know where they're coming from," Dwyer said.

And, unlike her freshly graduated 18-year-old self, she knows exactly what she wants.

Dwyer was able to earn enough scholarship money to pay 100 percent of her tuition.

Students in their 30s, 40s and 50s often don't realize that they might be eligible for scholarships and other financial aid, Jost said. Just like 18-year-old college freshmen, older adults can apply for government grants and loans by filling out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA.

Dwyer will start a nursing job in the Emergency Department at St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates in February, and she couldn't be happier.

"It's exciting for me not to say, 'Our kids are going to college, and I'm going to settle down with my husband and retire in a few years,' " she said.

How to change careers

The McHenry County Workforce Center provides job resources and workshops for adults seeking jobs. Stop by 500 Russel Court in Woodstock, call 815-338-7100, or visit www.ides.state.il.us/ietc/mchenry.

Adults thinking about going back to school or pursuing a different career can call Helen Jost, adult recruitment coordinator at McHenry County College, at 815-455-8914 to begin planning their education.