Driven by a deep belief in the power of education, Rama Alzamel embarked on her journey to turn her dreams into reality. As a mother, she sought a program that would provide the flexibility she needed to balance her family responsibilities while pursuing her academic goals. Enrolling in 麻豆社鈥檚 Medical Assisting associate degree program allowed her to excel as a student, a mother, and a wife鈥攁ll without compromise. Her efforts have earned her the title of Term Trailblazer for Term 248, a nomination she earned from her professors through her dedication to her courses and willingness to learn.
Originally from Syria, Rama moved to the United States with her family in 2016, eager to build a better future. As a wife and mother, she wanted to earn a degree that would help her reach her career goals while balancing family life after having to put her education on pause during her pregnancy. Upon exploring different opportunities in the medical field, she came across 麻豆社鈥檚 Medical Assisting associate degree program and knew it was the right fit for her. 鈥淥ne of [ANU鈥檚] advisors really helped me. He directed me through the whole program鈥� I told him about my situation that I have a baby, like my schedule is not always as I need it to be. He was like, 鈥榶eah, you can do morning classes! Or if that doesn鈥檛 work, you can do evening classes.鈥� And I was like, 鈥榦kay, that鈥檚 amazing, that鈥檚 what I鈥檓 looking for!鈥欌赌� She explains. As Rama has always had her eyes on the medical field, this program allows her to get her foot into the door and earn more as she desires.
鈥淚 love the medical field. I鈥檓 so excited since I鈥檓 getting to the end of the degree because now we have hands-on stuff. We鈥檙e looking more into things in detail and I鈥檓 not just learning about the overall human body. We鈥檙e now doing blood pressure, we鈥檙e doing some injections 鈥� that gets me so excited! I always tell my husband, 鈥榦h my gosh, I have a lab kit coming! I鈥檓 so excited to see what鈥檚 in it!鈥欌赌�
With her excitement in her courses, Rama was also pleasantly surprised to learn that her lab kits were included in her tuition, and she didn鈥檛 have to pay out of pocket to obtain the material she needed to learn in her courses. 鈥淲hen I started the program, and the teacher told us. 鈥榶eah you have to send us the address and we鈥檙e sending [lab]kits.鈥� I was like, 鈥榓re you sure I don鈥檛 have to pay anything?!鈥� And she was like, 鈥榥o! This is through the program.鈥� I really appreciated that, it鈥檚 really helping me,鈥� she describes with laughter. This is one of the main reasons she stayed with ANU, because she could get the hands-on training she wanted without having to leave her daughter or change her schedule.
Rama has really been grateful to learn from her professors鈥� previous work experiences. Because ANU has career trained professors and instructors leading their classes, students can benefit from real world experiences through instruction. 鈥淚 love how they tell us these experiences, their experiences, because that鈥檚 what really sticks [in my] mind鈥� if you heard it from someone else, then you鈥檒l know how to react when it happens to you,鈥� she says. In particular, Traci Dingle made an impact on Rama鈥檚 education through her engaging Zoom sessions in Ethics. 鈥淗er Zooms 鈥� I was always excited for it!鈥� She smiles, 鈥渟he made us all excited because we were all engaging in the [ethics] situation鈥� I really, really enjoyed her class.鈥� Additionally, Rama enjoyed Dr. Stephanie Denton in her Anatomy and Physiology course:
鈥淪he is super! I love her. She always tells us examples and made it so simple and easy to understand鈥� She always tells us stories, she has a lot of experience that she shares with us.鈥� She also explains that Stephanie made things easier for her as English isn鈥檛 her native language 鈥� 鈥淚t鈥檚 sometimes hard to understand some grammar and some words that are new to [me], but she always makes it simple to understand.鈥�
Within the next ten years, Rama hopes to spend as much time with her daughter as she can. She plans to stick with medical assisting for a while in order to evaluate her goals at every step of life. 鈥淚 see myself working part-time and then continuing my education,鈥� she explained.
Would she recommend ANU to others? She already has! 鈥淚 recommended [ANU] to my sister鈥� I was like 鈥榠t鈥檚 100% online and you can do things [hands-on]!鈥� That was like the most important things for me鈥� The instructors are so, so, so good! They help out a lot.鈥� She goes on to describe her experiences in other colleges before ANU. 鈥淚 used to send an email and not get an answer. I used to send an email and get a late, late answer and that was when the due date was over鈥� Whenever I text any of the instructors here [at ANU], they get back to me within 24 hours. I never get late, late replies or not helpful answers. I told [my sister] all of these things.鈥� Her sister has since signed up for ANU and she鈥檚 鈥渟o happy and she鈥檚 excited for everything!鈥�
Her advice to new ANU students: 鈥淟ook at everything on Sundays. Sunday is the day where every [assignment] is there鈥� I start early so I have time. I always get on Zoom [sessions], I never missed any Zoom. I ask questions if I didn鈥檛 understand the things going on 鈥� I can send a message privately if I don鈥檛 want the whole class knowing鈥� Do your work on time, attend the Zoom, and go from there!鈥� Rama emphasizes the importance of being active in Zoom sessions so that you can absorb all of the knowledge you need that may come up in later assignments, tests, and even within your career later on.
