Hello! My name is Domonique Williams and I am ecstatic to serve as the 2015-2016 Bank Street College graduate admissions blogger!
I am from Silver Spring, MD and received my bachelor’s degree in History from Tuskegee University in Alabama. As a history major, the question I always heard was, “What do you want to do? Teach?” My reply at the time was always no! Oh, how time changes things.
In June of last year, it was placed in my heart to apply to graduate school. While volunteering and working with the Education Department at the National Postal Museum in Washington, DC I realized that I really loved the work and wanted to pursue museum education as a career. I felt that the best way for me to gain the experience I needed to land a job in the field was to go back to school. All the programs I could find that matched what I was looking for in a graduate program were a) full-time, which meant I would have to quit my job and b) out-of-state, which meant I would have to relocate. Being the optimistic dreamer that I am, I didn’t focus on all the challenges and decided that if I got into any of the three programs that I was applying to, it was validation that I should pursue my dream.
Three months later with one of the three acceptance letters in hand, I boarded a one-way train to New York City to begin life as a full-time graduate student in the Museum Education: Childhood program at Bank Street College of Education. That first week on my own in New York City was exciting and frightening. I had made this major life change on a whim and second-guessed my decision every other day. My first semester was tough and not because of the school work; Yes, school was demanding and a few times I felt overwhelmed by the coursework of all four of my classes (and lack of sleep), but it was life outside of school that was tough. New York City is expensive and I didn’t save enough or prepare as much as I should have before moving. Finding employment that fit with my school schedule was difficult and I’m past the age of having my parents to support me as they did in undergrad. There were days I didn’t think I would make it, but through faith and hard work, I was able to make it day by day. Even with all the hard times, New York is just one of those cities that you want to make it in, no matter what.
Now in my second year at Bank Street, I am more determined than ever to make this dream of being a museum educator a reality. Last school year was a true-life lesson in trial and error. I made a ton of mistakes, poor decisions, and had a few meltdowns. I try not to get hung up on the past because I can’t change it, all I can do is learn from it. Life does not come with an instruction manual or how-to guide, so there are bound to be missteps and slip-ups. With that said, I’m looking forward to what this school year holds; to sharing more stories and my experiences with you and to helping you navigate through the admissions process.
I hope you can use my blog posts as resources to learn more about what life is like as a graduate student in New York City, to answer any questions you may have, and to get you better acquainted with Bank Street College of Education and all it has to offer.