Gina Shustak

CCNY was actually the only school I applied to. I lived right next to the campus. In New York, you're required to get your master's in education within five years of graduating with your bachelor's. When I got of college, I went to school upstate, and then I moved to the city and applied to CCNY because it was beautiful and super convenient to where I live. I heard great things about the School of Education, in which I had a great experience. All the staff and faculty in the early childhood program were really receptive and always willing to help answer questions and go out of their way to make time to meet with me. I think that education is a lot more collaborative than other majors, so it's interesting to have a good mix of people in the program. The faculty was really easily accessible to help you out as needed. That was a big plus. I liked hanging out on the campus and doing work outside. I was working full-time; normally it takes about two years to earn a master's but I ended up being in the program for about four years because I was working and didn’t want to take on all the finances at once. I only took one or two classes a semester.