Born and raised in Germany, Celina Gregor immigrated to the U.S. as a high school sophomore.

After graduating, she spent the next several years building a successful career in real estate. However, she wanted to attend college and decided to obtain a psychology degree at College of DuPage to either enhance her career as an agent or become a family/marriage counselor.

Gregor also felt left behind by her peers who already finished college, so she pursued her associate degree in one year while continuing to work.

The teacher-student ratio was great as it lets you communicate with your professors and get all your questions answered easily.

Celina Gregor

“As a first-generation college student, I worked tirelessly and completed my degree in just one year, balancing a diverse range of courses from gen eds to electives such as multiple psychology classes, choreography and dance, sign language, observational astronomy, and car mechanics,” she said. “Additionally, I dedicated time to personal growth through continued education real estate classes and aerial hammock classes at Rising Goddess Fitness in Westmont. My journey reflects resilience, strength, ambition and a commitment to continuous learning and self-improvement.”

Her career interest grew out of an AP class in psychology that she took in high school.

“It never once felt like school, it was more like a hobby I got to do,” she said. “I enjoyed it and knew right away that I would want to major in psychology. There is just so much to learn. You can literally use it every day, and it fascinates me how humans think and operate. You should always do what makes you happy because then your job won’t feel like work.”

While at COD, Gregor was a member of the Psychology Club, Psi Beta Psychology Honor Society and Phi Theta Kappa. She also found an opportunity that grew out of a research project for her astronomy class.

“I wrote a 12-page paper and gave a 20-minute presentation that Professor Joe DalSanto loved so much that he nominated my partner and I to present at the HCIR (Honors Council of the Illinois Region) Student Symposium. We applied and got accepted. It was one of my most memorable experiences at COD.”

In graduating with her Associate in Arts degree, Gregor was named one of the College’s outstanding graduate finalists. Her goals are to finish bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees to become a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) and eventually open her own practice.

As for COD, Gregor enjoyed its convenience, the safe environment and the knowledgeable faculty and staff.

“The teacher-student ratio was great as it lets you communicate with your professors and get all your questions answered easily,” she said. “COD helped me achieve my educational goal by letting me save money as I work toward becoming a therapist. There is lots of free tutoring available in case it’s ever needed and the very flexible class schedule, including evenings and weekends, accommodated students like me who were working or had other commitments. Toward the end of the semester, many nearby universities had pop-up desks at COD where we could ask questions, get information and make a more informed decision on where to transfer later on.

“COD is a great school that offers a broad variety of psychology classes such as abnormal psychology, social psychology and developmental psychology. The teachers are enthusiastic about the topics, many of them have their doctoral degrees, and you will learn plenty.”

Learn more about the Psychology program at College of DuPage