When I first found the Master of Arts in Learning Experience Design (MALXD) program, I was well into my fourth month of unemployment, struggling to find a job, and determining if I should continue down the same path or if it was time for me to pivot and try something completely different. I had been in an education related field for my entire working career and, at that point, in healthcare education for 8 years.
After weighing my options and reflecting deeply, I decided it was time to shift away from healthcare. I already had years of experience developing curriculum, facilitating training, and creating learner resources. I knew enough about learning development to be dangerous, but because my resume was focused on healthcare training and tutoring children, transitioning to another field proved harder than expected. While my roles included instructional design elements, I didn’t have the title or the degree. This program was going to help me bridge that gap.
At the beginning of the program, my goals were to better understand how to create curriculum that fully supports learners. I wanted to build programs that made people feel seen, heard, and respected. I hoped to gain formal education that would enhance my skills through context-rich coursework and pair it with the expertise I had developed over time.
I hoped to use the knowledge and skills gained from this program as a foundation to promote individuality in a system designed for sameness. My desire was to help every person, regardless of their ability or perceived ability, gain the confidence and knowledge they need to thrive as a learner.
Now that I’m in the final stretch of this degree program, I can reflect on how far I’ve come. I believe the work I’ve done over the past two years has brought me significantly closer to those original goals.
A course dedicated to accessible design challenged me to slow down and see the world through multiple lenses. Gaining a deeper understanding of the history of assessment and learning how to incorporate it seamlessly into learning experiences helped me better equip my toolbox. Developing a theory of learning, a personal leadership philosophy, and a global vision for education pushed me to think beyond coursework and toward real-world application.
As I reflect on my goals of MALXD past, I can successfully say that I have achieved them, but I do not believe they are one and done goals. These are the types of goals that I hope to use as a strong foundation for my career.
Now that I have achieved the program goals, the final goal is to make my way out of healthcare. That will come with time, of course, but whichever field I find myself in, I know that these will be the goals of MALXD future.