Master's Degrees Pile Up as Magnolia Woman Turns to Engineering

University of Arkansas

Caroline de Simon waits for a video interview to start at her Razorbug Diploma Tour presentation June 19 in Magnolia.

A rigorous International Baccalaureate program in her Florida high school prepared Caroline de Simon for college work, so much so that she has a bachelor's degree and three master's degrees in less than a decade after graduating from high school.

"College was really easy because high school put me through the ringer," de Simon said of her experience in Pensacola, Florida. "International Baccalaureate taught me how to study, to glean the most information possible. It was very, very hard. It definitely shaped my continuing education."

International Baccalaureate is a nonprofit organization registered in Switzerland that offers four levels of education programs for students ages 3 to 19, according to its website. At Pensacola High School, students are inducted into the IB Diploma Program in 11th grade after successful completion of the FL Pre-IB program (grades 9 and 10). Students take written examinations at the end of the program and can receive college credits, which are marked by external IB examiners, according to school district information online.

De Simon earned her third master's degree, her most recent master's degree, online from the U of A, leading to a visit to Magnolia by the Razorbug Diploma Tour. U of A staff presented her with a framed diploma for her Master of Science in Electrical Engineering on June 19.

The Razorbug pulled up in front of a stage in downtown Magnolia sponsored by Albemarle Corp., employer of both de Simon and her husband. Her family cheered her on during the blazing hot afternoon presentation with the local newspaper reporter taking notes and the U of A video crew recording the event. The small group included de Simon's husband, Mark, and their son, Harrison, who turned 1 year old in July.

To kick off her college career, de Simon earned a bachelor of science degree in computer science from Georgia State in three years after high school, although she had really wanted to go to the Georgia Institute of Technology. She couldn't afford the out-of-state tuition, so she told herself she would get a master's degree in computer science from Georgia Tech later.

When she finished her bachelor's degree, the couple moved to Magnolia for her husband to take a job at Albemarle, and de Simon started the Georgia Tech degree online. Albemarle is a chemical manufacturing company with a facility in Magnolia (Columbia County).

"My plan was I'll work on my master's degree online, but I thought I should find something to do to fill my time a little more," de Simon said. "I saw that the local university offered a Master of Arts in Teaching. That was at Southern Arkansas University, and it was also online. Why don't I do that, too?"

During her bachelor's degree, she had taken electives in educational psychology and thought that teaching might be interesting. However, she didn't realize the teaching degree program required practice teaching. She wound up taking courses for the two master's degrees simultaneously while also teaching Algebra II and Advanced Placement computer science full time at El Dorado High School.

"My first year of teaching went great," de Simon recalled. "I thought, wow, I might be able to do this for the rest of time; the second year, I thought, I can't do this for one more moment. What sealed the deal was the pandemic. In 2020, the overall face of teaching turned upside down. I was looking for something else to do."

So, after five years, de Simon had accumulated one bachelor's degree and two master's degrees. She took a break from graduate school, during which she left teaching. One night, she and her husband were out for drinks at the MuleKick, a pizza place and SAU student hangout in Magnolia, when they ran into one of his Albemarle colleagues who found out she had a background in computer science.

"He said, we need you and we are going to have a position open soon," de Simon said. "That's how I found myself at Albemarle using my computer science degree."

She works as a process control engineer at Albemarle, but de Simon didn't have an engineering degree until completing the master's from U of A last spring.

"Part of what I do is programming, and the majority of my co-workers are electrical engineers," she said. "When working with electricity, I wanted a deeper understanding of what I was doing."

The part of the M.S.E.E. she appreciated most was control system specialization and getting to take courses from Roy McCann, professor of electrical engineering.

"With Dr. McCann, I was really able to dive into the mathematics behind the programming I do," de Simon said. "If I wanted to pursue more advanced processing controls, I have more understanding. The degree opens doors to future opportunities."

Of course, de Simon enjoys learning.

"It is one of my passions," she said. "I am also not the type of person to just sit and learn something just for fun. I want to learn, but I need some sort of structure to push me, a structured path."

The engineering master's is also special to de Simon for personal reasons.

"Computer science is engineering adjacent, and I am really happy to have an engineering degree," she said. "Growing up, my greatest influence was my grandfather. He started as a mechanical engineer, and as the field became more computerized, he moved into computer and electrical engineering. I am glad to say I am an engineer like him."

The 2024 Razorbug Diploma Tour, in its third year, travels the state in the summer to celebrate the accomplishments of graduates of online degree programs. The Razorbug, a 2005 Volkswagen Beetle converted to look like a Razorback with hooves, snout, curly tail and razor spine, was on loan from the Office of Admissions. Global Campus staff drove the Bug more than 2,100 miles through western, southern, eastern and central Arkansas to present 16 diplomas in 15 counties. Only two of the graduates earned bachelor's degrees. The rest were master's degrees and one doctorate. In academic year 2023, the U of A awarded 1,074 online degrees and certificates.