I've decided I won't be pursuing a bachelor's degree any longer at this time, nor will I consider a master's degree. The cost of debt is too great and not worth it when many employers out there value experience over education. I am grateful to those who wrote me letters of recommendations, grateful to those who have helped me every step of the way to get where I felt I wanted to go next, but I've decided after years of researching, it simply isn't worth it.
I would much rather finish my AA degree and get started on trying to go into the hospitality field straight away, have open availability like they want, and pursue a hospitality career without any distractions. Sometimes hands-on experience is better than education itself. I'm doing myself a great favor, alleviating myself of the worries of what kind of financial problems could be, should I have genuinely decided to push forward with a bachelor's degree.
It takes a lot of commitment and energy to pursue a four year degree.
I'd rather use that commitment and energy to gain experience in what I want to do career-wise.