After 11 Years in the Army, He Decided to Pursue His Degree
"I filled out my application to UNCG sitting on my bunk in Bosnia," says Scot Aitcheson, a UNCG junior who is majoring in Communication Studies. After an 11-year career in the army, he was ready for a new direction. "I sent the application to my wife in Burlington. She gave it to UNCG and later mailed me the letter of acceptance," he recalls. At 29, he knew it was time to finish his college education.
"I didn't like high school at all," Scot remembers. "I'd never have made it in college at 17 or 18." He was one of a handful of people in his New Jersey high school class who joined the military after graduation. He grins to think he chose the army to escape "the perceived fascism and tyranny" of his parents and "to get out of the neighborhood." He wanted adventure and excitement. He found both. He also learned through his army experiences what his strengths and talents are and what kinds of work he most enjoys.
Early in his army career, he was stationed in West Germany, just as the Berlin Wall was coming down. He and a friend decided to follow their craving for adventure by crossing the border and exploring East Germany. "Two or three hours from post, I met a girl who spoke no English. We started hanging out, and eventually I married her," Scot relates. In under three years he learned German, and this expertise enabled him to serve as a liaison for US and German Army officers. Without realizing it, he was preparing for his future college major in Communication. He learned that as a translator in a heated situation he could "be accurate and yet at the same time keep it from boiling over."
Another rewarding assignment was as a member of the Army's Opposition Forces, a highly specialized unit whose mission is to emulate enemy operations in order to train regular Army forces for emergency situations like terrorist attacks, assassinations, and highjackings. "You get to be an out-of-the-box thinker," says Scot. "You're not limited by the usual rules and procedures."
His Final Army Assignment Pointed Him Toward His College Major
His final Army assignment was to Bosnia as part of the Stabilization Force. The stressful environment appealed to his sense of adventure and action, but the work that he most enjoyed there pointed him toward his college major. He worked to promote the US line of peace in markets and refugee camps, and he helped with security and technical support for an army controlled rock radio station. "I enjoyed so much operating within a community," Scot recalls. "We'd go in and listen, plug army programs, and promote better feelings. I didn't know at the time that there was a course of study aimed at exactly that kind of community involvement."
When Scot began to explore possible fields of study at UNCG after his resignation from the Army, a conversation with Patricia Fairfield-Artman in Communication Studies came as a revelation. "This is exactly what I want to do," he discovered.
His Communication classes include Rhetoric, Ethics, Strategic Communication, Business Communication, and Service Learning and Communication. "I love it," he says of the curriculum; "for the first time I feel I have an understanding of things I did ten years ago that didn't make sense at the time. I am really motivated after my classes--I need to apply them right now."
One way Scot has been able to put his knowledge into action and receive class credit at the same time has been to volunteer with Knightsbridge International, a Non-Government Organization from California that sends medical supplies to Afghanistan. Scot approached local companies for donations and learned first hand about the rewards and sometime frustrations of an international relief effort.
"Can't say enough nice things" About His Program
"Communication Studies is an introspective course of studies in many ways," Scot maintains. "I have [developed] a more defined sense of what I want to do as well as who I am. I can't say enough nice things" about the program. "The professors are really supportive. Not only do you learn from them, they're mentoring you and shaping your opportunities, too."
Scot feels fortunate to be a full-time student. He has NAFTA funding as well as the GI bill to finance his college education. He came into UNCG with 30 hours transfer credit from Alamance Community College (earned during intervals in the Army Reserves), and has received 6 hours CLEP credit in German (by scoring well on the test given by the College Level Examination Program). He will finish his degree in Fall, 2003, after 5 semesters and two summer sessions.
The frustrations of student life are minimal after a decade in the army. Parking? "I threw in the towel and decided to get here at 7:30," he laughs. "It's just a matter of having coffee on Tate Street, instead of at home." He also finds the Communication lounge to be a great place to get work done before classes start.
Taking Math after a long gap? "I bonked high school algebra and geometry," Scot remembers. "I was scared about math." But his college math class addressed issues an adult is familiar with--mortgages, insurance, calculations for remodeling projects. "It's empowering to succeed at math," he notes.
Finds the College Experience Easy Compared to Military Service
Nothing here gets that BAD," he smiles. "You're inside, the heat's on, you're not standing in water, and no one's shooting at you. Problems in college are small."
Scot feels torn about his future. He has considered federal careers like the FBI or CIA that appeal to his love of action and sense of commitment. He is also attracted to the international scene and drawn to places that need help now, where as a civilian member of an NGO he would have more freedom to act than he did in the army. "I'd love to be working in Afghanistan or Uzbekistan," he says. "As much as college is doing for me, I feel like a horse in a pen, wanting to go faster; I want to get back overseas where I can be most effective."
Wherever he goes, with his college degree in hand, he'll be well equipped to become something he has striven for all along, "the best he can be."
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Page updated: 06-May-2009
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