From 1998-2003 I attended UVIC and graduated with a degree in Political Science and History. I was diagnosed with schizophrenia at age 26 in 2006. The first episode of psychosis in males occurs most commonly in their late teens or early twenties. With females the onset of illness is usually in their mid twenties. I was fortunate enough to graduate eight months before my illness got out of control. I dealt with some symptoms during my second half of university but never anything that directly affected my studies. In fact my grades got better in my last two years despite my paranoid thoughts escalating.
I was mentally ill from 2004 to 2010 but by 2011 my recovery journey plans included going back to school. My desire to further my education was met with opportunity. I was referred to an education coach who helped me get ready to go back to school. Lots of little things I took for granted while at UVIC such as registration now are complicated endeavours that I need support with.
Half of the battle now is all of the administrative things I have to take care of before class starts.
Things had changed so much in the decade that I had been away from school. I was now thirty-two and in recovery from schizophrenia. I had also began working again so things were going well and it was a good time to return to school. Things were different. Most people have laptops and computer labs are pretty empty. When I went to UVIC nobody had laptops and there were always lineups outside the labs. I’d use the Business computer labs since nobody knew about it except for business students. At Camosun the room in the library with computers is nice.
Camosun uses something called D2L. It stands for Desire To Learn. I resisted using it for about three years but eventually I had no choice but to use it. D2L no longer was optional. Professors required students to use D2L to complete quizzes and submit assignments. Fortunately it wasn’t difficult to figure out. It’s quite user friendly. There are so many courses offered online now. When I went to UVIC, online classes didn’t exist.
When I took my first class at Camosun it was weird. I was thirty-two year and in a class with mostly teenagers. It was quite shocking. It felt like it was only yesterday that I was their age. I didn’t feel intimidated because I had been in classes with close to two hundred people at UVIC and would be able to handle whatever challenges Camosun presented. I figure if anything Camosun would be easier. My education coach urged me to go to Camosun instead of UVIC and I felt it was a good decision. I thought I could handle UVIC again but he said it’s better to set yourself up for success early on. The option to transfer from Camosun to UVIC would always be there. However, if I try going to UVIC and it’s difficult, it might discourage me from pursuing more post-secondary education. Now I choose Camosun for financial reasons. I would get more out of attending UVIC though and it would be an appropriate level of academic challenge. Camosun is much cheaper than UVIC. UVIC offers a lot of aspects of student life that Camosun can’t but I’m mostly interested in learning so Camosun is sufficient for now.
The biggest difference is now I only take one class at a time. Most semesters at UVIC I’d have four classes. Three classes was easy and five classes was challenging and not something I would’ve wanted to do every semester. Now three classes in a semester would be overwhelming. Unlike the average student I would have to dedicate myself to school to make it work. Also I don’t retain information as well as I used to during lectures and while reading textbooks. I’ve managed to get good grades but also learned that it’s easier to get good marks at Camosun than at UVIC. I feel if I was at UVIC I’d be struggling to pass a lot of classes. Makes me wish I had done my first two years at Camosun when I was a teenager. However, my parents told me that Camosun was only for people who didn’t get into UVIC. Camosun has come a long way in the last fifteen years. I remember when the workout gym was just a classroom. Now it’s a nice facility. Camosun has a campus at Interurban too but I’ve always had my classes at the Lansdowne. I ride my bike to class. When I went to UVIC I drove and the parking pass was expensive. Now the bus pass is included as well which is nice.
When I was at UVIC all I cared about was academics. I wasn’t interested in talking to people in class until my final year. I felt isolated even though classes were huge because I never connected with anyone. Now I don’t take school so seriously. Smaller class sizes at Camosun make it easier to connect with fellow classmates. Part of the college experience is dealing with friendly and unpleasant classmates. College is a shared experience. Every student has a goal. Not everyone has the same goal but students are all connected. I never felt that when I was at UVIC. Interesting that I would feel more connected now that I go to school having schizophrenia. Possibly because it makes me feel like a part of the world. I’m doing something that so many other young people are also doing. Having a disability has allowed me to access things that other students can’t. I feel supported in my education and colleges treat people with a disability fairly. By John L
