Dianna Dickson - Cyber Student

In 2002, Dianna Dickson traveled down two roads in life, one as a professional truck driver traveling across North America and the other as a full time “cyber” college student from the cab of her 18-wheeler.  The student from St. Petersburg College in Florida completed veterinary studies on the road using a laptop and a Sierra Wireless AirCard 300 data card that provides wide area wireless Internet access - an early model of the same mobile data cards used by mobile workers, students and savvy consumers today.

Challenges

Dianna long dreamed of becoming a Veterinarian but working on the road prevented her from going back to school and taking the necessary courses that would allow her to complete a college degree program.

While researching potential colleges one day Dianna found that some schools offered courses online. She eventually found St. Petersburg College in Florida that offered an electronic education degree program that she could complete on the road. It was a program she wanted to pursue with the flexibility she needed. Students in this program weren’t tied to a classroom; they could instead complete their studies via the Web and communicate with the campus network electronically.

The next step for Dianna was to locate the wireless tools that would make her dream a reality. All she needed was a laptop and some type of device that would allow her to function effectively from the road, and operate like she was on a college campus.

Solution

After researching many wireless tools on the market Dianna came across the Sierra Wireless AirCard 300 data card. Wide area network coverage means that while she travels across the United States, she is able to stay wirelessly connected 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to her college campus wherever her travels take her.  Dianna connects to the Internet with her AirCard and keeps in touch with teachers, submits homework assignments, and completes exams.

She is also able to access resources on the intranet, collaborate online, and access the Internet for research and other online resources without being restricted to where and when she can connect while working on the road. By simply connecting the AirCard to her laptop Dianna becomes instantly connected to her college campus and one step closer to becoming a veterinarian.

“If I hadn’t found the AirCard I wouldn’t have jumped forward and grabbed my true passion. I am now a full time student on my way to fulfilling my dream of becoming a veterinarian,” said Dickson.

This cost effective, convenient, and easy to use mobile solution means that even a full time truck driver can pursue a dream of a college education from any destination. The Sierra Wireless AirCard has provided Dianna Dickson with the following benefits:

• Use time efficiently – Accomplish more with precious downtime
• Save money – Eliminated the need to access expensive truck stop Internet connections
• Improve quality of life - With easy to use Internet access Dianna can stay connected
• Consistent Internet performance and connectivity – Dianna can confidently complete her work on time
• Product reliability - She could rely on the AirCard 300 as durable enough to survive life traveling on the road