Q&A: Fireside Chat with Guild Student & Coach

In 2018, hundreds of companies are investing money toward upskilling employees to support and encourage economic mobility. Coined “the new normal student” by former U.S. Under Secretary of Education Ted Mitchell, today’s college students are diverse in age, have families, and are working. In fact, roughly 80 percent of adult students are working while learning. Many spend 40 or more hours per week at their job, juggling more than one job to support their families, making it challenging to balance work and school.

We recently sat down with Adelina Morales, Chipotle General Manager and Brandman University student, and her Guild coach, Amanda Van Pelt, to learn about how they work together to balance a full-time job with a full schedule of classes.

Guild Education: How has Guild made the process of returning to school easy?

Adelina: Guild made it extremely easy for me to go back to school. With the help of an advisor, I was able to explore my options and onboard fairly quickly.

Guild Education: Can you describe a challenge you’ve faced since starting the program?

Adelina: The biggest challenge I’ve faced since starting this program is time management. Managing my time to efficiently balance work, school, and family requires dedication and compromise.

Amanda: Time management is a common challenge. Most of our students aren’t working a typical 9-to-5 shift and their work days/hours are always changing. This makes it difficult to plan or create schedules that allow for any consistency in studying. Even on your own, working and going to school is a difficult task, but when you factor in dependents, you have a truly challenging game of schedule Tetris. Given how unpredictable our students’ lives and schedules can be, I always encourage them to complete their schoolwork early to avoid procrastinating. If they can get ahead early, then last minute events like getting called into work early seem more manageable. I also encourage them to treat school like work. For example, helping them create a weekly calendar the moment they receive their work schedule and pencil in homework time. It can feel tedious at first but these schedules are like a jigsaw puzzle and having a plan for how to tackle it can reduce stress immensely.

Guild Education: What keeps you motivated?

Adelina: I owe a lot of my motivation and inspiration to my coach, Amanda. She is always there to answer my questions and guide me in the right direction. For example, when I started taking a heavier course-load, I was having trouble balancing work with so many classes. I was close to quitting my job so that I could go back to school, but soon realized that with the right support, I could do both. Amanda gave me the encouragement I needed, and provided the confidence I needed to make the right decision.

Amanda: I really see my job as helping my students stay grounded in the reasons they started and making sure they have clear goals. If I can bring them back to that vision of why they are in school and the future that they imagine for themselves, then it’s a lot easier to persevere. It was really hard for Adelina to work 50+ hours a week, take care of her family, and find time for her school work. In our conversations, we talk about the future and what she wants to do with her degree in Child Psychology, and I can hear her voice light up over the phone. I think it’s nice to be reminded of why you are putting in the long hours and the sleepless nights.

Guild Education: How long have you been attending Brandman University?

Adelina: I’ve been attending Brandman for exactly one year and it feels great to have reached this milestone. A few years ago, I left my education for my career. The idea of returning to school seemed far out of reach, but Chipotle’s partnership with Guild has re-opened this opportunity for me. One year later, I am even more empowered to continue on the path of education.

Amanda: Adelina is so driven. She is an incredible role model to her younger brothers, her crew members at Chipotle, and to anyone who is thinking about going back to school. She doesn’t do anything halfheartedly and gives her everything to both school and work. She’s currently taking three classes each term and working full-time at Chipotle.  Earning this degree means a lot to her and she has been willing to make tough sacrifices in pursuit of her goals. She makes no excuses for herself and never complains. Obstacles? She finds a way through them. She’s truly inspirational to me. I can’t wait to see the amazing things she will accomplish.

Guild Education: What’s the next step in your career that your education will help you achieve?

Adelina: My educational goal has always been to pursue a degree in children’s counseling. Returning to school has put me back on track to achieving this dream. Additionally, Amanda has given me the option to start looking for volunteer opportunities, where I can get hands-on experience to complement my Child Psychology major.

Managing a busy work schedule with school can be challenging, but with Guild’s support & Brandman’s programs, Adelina is on track to graduate from college and advance both her education and career.