Christine Beyleveldt

It just dawned on me that eighteen months have flown past and I never gave an update on my dental hygiene journey. 

I believe my last posts on the topic were about how I had successfully managed to return to university as a mature student while holding down a full-time job. Only I wasn’t so successful, as it turned out. I failed organic chemistry that semester, which was a devastating blow to my confidence. Not only did it push my start date pretty much an entire year into the future (and back then, 2023 seemed so far away), but it resulted in me leaving my job and changing schools.

Over the last few years, I’ve received my fair share of bewildered reactions whenever I’ve stated my intention to pursue dental hygiene. After all, I was always hell-bent on being a writer. Well, a global pandemic happened. I won’t get into the long-winded tale of how I came out of lockdown as a dental assistant, just know that I did. And I think I surprised everyone—myself most of all—when I fell head over heels in love with dentistry and decided to pursue a second education.

What Happened Next?

It was with a very heavy heart that I left my job after I wrote my post about failure. But I had tried and failed to burn the candle at both ends and I just couldn’t do it. Something had to give. So I took a new, part-time job at an office with ample staff that promised me the flexibility I not only craved, but needed, and I threw myself back into my studies.

I had done well in my other subjects, despite trying to juggle full-time work and full-time school. But with time to stop and think once in a while, I excelled in my next semester. Determined to show organic chemistry who was boss, I finished the school year with 90 percent in the subject and a GPA of 4.1. In January 2022, I had long since accepted that I would be attending a private college since gaining admission wouldn’t be such a tight race. By December, I felt confident applying for the public institution, knowing full well that over 90 percent of candidates weren’t going to make it through the rigorous selection process.

Guess what? I did.

Where Am I Going Now?

Ask any member of my family and they’ll tell you how much the process of applying to the dental hygiene program at Vancouver Community College stressed me out. Out of over 300 applicants, admissions chose just twenty of us based on combined GPA and a candidate questionnaire score. When my letter of acceptance arrived, it was while I was lunching with my coworkers and the excitement in the room was palpable.

Eighteen months ago if you had told me that it was a good thing I failed chemistry, I would never have believed you. But in hindsight, I’m glad I did. It was a hard lesson at the time, but it forced me to reckon with myself about what I was trying to succeed at, and more importantly, it forced me to make a hard decision, but a decision nevertheless. That additional year of fighting for my place has given me so much confidence going into the program. If I could conquer organic chemistry, I can manage the rigours of dental hygiene. I’m sure I’ll have much more to say about my journey by the time this year is out, but for now, I’m over the moon.