Life Purpose

[sroberts16]

My current goal is to become a counselor. I have my Bachelor of Science in Psychology at Western Oregon University. Most of my undergraduate degree was paid for by my local scholarship committee from my hometown. I might not have any money anymore to go to college again to attain my master's degree. I am looking to go to graduate school and become a Clinical Mental Health Counselor. I was accepted to Bushnell University's (BU) Clinical Mental Health Counseling (CMHC) program, a lovely program and university. I grew up in Oregon most of my life and am now staying with my parents living 3.5 hours from BU; my rent is free currently. However, I have three learning disabilities. I usually take twice as long as my peers to complete tests and complex assignments, which sometimes affects my ability to land a job because I have a slow learning speed.

I am looking to maybe attend BU next year in the summer. But I don't have any money; it costs about 44,000 dollars for a master's degree. Unfortunately, all of the credible Clinical Mental Health Counseling Master Programs in America cost over 40,000 dollars and don't offer many scholarships, and you have to take out only unsubsidized loans.  

Many people in Oregon are illiberal and against free speech, which may affect my ability to land a job if I attain my master's degree at BU. I had a youtube and podcast channel up for about two years and took it down because I could not volunteer for counseling-related opportunities and have specific jobs.  Now that I have taken down my channels, I have more options, and fewer people ghost me. Bottom line, I want to become a counselor, and I wonder if it would be a good idea to go to Texas or some other great state and find a CMHC program. Are there states hiring people who sometimes learn twice as slowly as their peers and support free speech in America? 

[sroberts16]

Further, before I go to graduate school, I want to work as a Peer Support Specialist, and I am having trouble landing this type of job in Oregon around the Eugene area. I worked as a Caregiver for over two and a half years and still am working as one and have done and am doing various volunteer experiences like participating in various leadership meetings( learning communication skills) and working as a child mentor and tutor. 

Edited November 22, 2021 by sroberts16