Even though Richard Bica initially enrolled in classes at College of DuPage when he was 16, it took some time for him to determine what career path to follow.

“There are just so many fields out there,” he said. “When I moved out of my parents’ house and was too broke to pay a mechanic, I found I really enjoyed working on my car. From there I realized I wanted to be a technician, but I just didn’t know what kind. Eventually I found a job working as an industrial robotics technician, where I stayed for about seven years. That’s where I learned programming and started playing around with mechatronics.”

This brought him back to COD. But trying to attend school with a family is not easy, so Bica appreciated the College’s flexibility with scheduling and class formats.

COD has a pretty friendly online class structure, and a good variety of universities that accept their credits.

Richard Bica

“I’m packing on as many courses as I can get away with while still being present for my family. Too many credit hours and I will wear myself thin between work, school and the kids,” he said. “I’m enjoying my children's early years right now, so that takes precedence. I have found that half-time is about as far as I can push it.”

One subject that Bica now sees as important is math, which he’s come to realize is everywhere.

“I didn’t want to memorize a lot of academic fluff that I wouldn’t need in life,” he said. “I became really interested in both computer programming and automation projects in my early 20s, and math has been a consistent roadblock for me. I also now work as a building automation technician, and programming PID loops without fully understanding the foundational math concepts is nauseating. I’m really looking forward to learning about them.

“I highly recommend anyone taking a COD math class to visit Professor (Jen) Hill’s website, ‘Divide and Conquer Math.’ The guided notes are incredibly helpful for anyone taking a math class that follows the Lial/Hornsby textbooks. It’s been a really great help to have guided notes and an additional lesson perspective.”

Bica’s goals include finishing his associate degree and then earning a bachelor’s degree, learning as much math, programming and electronics as he can. He also wants to dive into 3D design and machinist work.

While he’s not looking at a career change in the near future, he is excited to see what comes next and thanks COD for providing him with so many options to explore. His advice for others is that it’s never too late to start.

“You don’t need to know what you want when you begin. It can take years to find out,” he said. “But I would recommend at least deciding between STEM and the arts; that way you can knock out all the gen eds while you figure things out. Also, don’t kill yourself with classes you hate, because if you hate most of your classes, then the field probably isn’t for you. And don’t spend so much time focusing on the finish line that you forget to enjoy the journey. School is fun, and it can be really magical to learn about things that you enjoy.

“COD has a pretty friendly online class structure, and a good variety of universities that accept their credits. They also have a lot of night classes, which are really important for someone like me. Not every class can be taken online, and without night classes I wouldn’t be able to finish any kind of a degree program without making some hard choices.”

Learn more about the Mechatronics program at College of DuPage