Around 2003, I considered going back to school for an MBA program. I reviewed a variety of programs including compressed executive programs with accelerated schedules. But gone were the days that I wanted to burn-out just for a piece of paper and it was not all about a achieving a goal. I wanted to obtain a Master’s level degree, but whatever course I was to take would have to provide a meaningful learning experience ─ one that I would enjoy!

So I re-focused in 2005 and I started on the path to attain my Masters of Distance Education degree through Athabasca University (AU). Though excited about new prospects, I was nonetheless nervous and anxious. I began to reflect back on my previous educational experiences which had presented some significant challenges. Some of the questions that arose were:

• Was I prepared to enter this new learning environment?

• Did I have the necessary skills to achieve goals (i.e. a passing grade)?

• Could I obtain a sense of fulfillment from this program (i.e. self-improvement)?

• Did I have the adequate self-regulation mechanisms (i.e. motivation)?

• Would I be able to “stay on course” even when challenged by other priorities in life (i.e. persistence)?

So how did my educational experience help to inform these issues and what did I discover? My final paper attempts to summarize major themes of learning and discovery that I experienced over the past five years ... My AU Learning Experience - A Bountiful Harvest