When I entered civilian life at the suggestion of my wife (long since ex-wife), I initially thought to obtain a bachelor's degree from NCSU. This went well until I learned that the Navy's emphasis on safety, training and materials seemed not to carry over to the civilian industry. After a few eye-opening incidents while interviewing at several different facilities, I elected to change majors and transferred to UNC-Chapel Hill to pursue a degree in nursing. My volunteer work as an EMT in Orange County paved the way for this career change; having the school that much closer to where I was living helped as well.
While attending NCSU I'd begun volunteering with a local volunteer rescue squad and fire department. I found the work challenging and interesting, so once provided with a reason to change majors, moving to UNC to obtain training as a nurse seemed the right thing to do. Through the remaining two-and-a-half years of my college experience, I continued working in the Emergency Department at NCMH in Chapel Hill as well as working part-time in the open-heart ICU at DUMC and an occasional shift with Forsyth County EMS (courtesy of the 312th Evac. Hospital Unit I was part of in the Army Reserve (I slept on weekends).