Rina Young came to American National University looking for the next step in her career and found exactly what she needed. Recently laid off from her sales position at an insurance company, she wanted a change of careers but needed further education to help her in that transition. With 16 years of experience in insurance processing medical claims, she knew she was interested in expanding into the medical office field and enrolled in the medical billing and coding diploma program at the $$South Bend campus.
The short one-year program added to Rina’s working experience and opened doors to her new career. Now she works at a local physical therapy practice in South Bend as their patient services manager and absolutely loves her job. “I definitely enjoy working with the patients,” Rina states as she explains what she likes most about her position.
Rina describes her tasks as ranging from patient interaction to administrative details. She says that the classes she took at National gave her the edge she needed to be successful in her current position – from her medical terminology courses to her computer application courses.
[img]As an adult student returning to school after years of being in the workforce, Rina states that at first she wondered, “Can I do this?” But she quickly found that the small class sizes at National and “homey feel” of the campus helped her find her footing and graduated with excellent grades. “All the students knew each other,” Rina says about the campus, “You got to know everyone by name; the staff… you knew who they were and they knew you.”
Not only was Rina able to get the training she needed and graduate in a short amount of time, through federal aid from the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and American National University’s matching Workforce Development Grant – she was able to graduate from her program with very little debt.
As a mom, Rina shares that going back to school and getting her degree helped to put into practice the advice that she gives her daughter who is currently in high school and considering her higher education options. After pursuing her degree, successfully graduating, and beginning a new career in her forties, Rina tells her children and her fellow students to go after their dreams. “The sky is the limit,” she says with confidence, “I feel that way about my own life.”
