I love my job

I work at a university as an academic advisor. A few days ago, I received an e-mail from a student I've never seen before and who was referred to me by an advisor in another department. It was a fairly routine request, where the student asked if there was any way out of the foreign language requirement, which was the last thing standing in the way of this student receiving a degree. It is very difficult to get approval for such a request, and I responded as such to the student, but suggested that we could discuss it in person and I would help submit the paperwork.

I received a follow-up e-mail, explaining the reason for the request.

That 2nd e-mail convinced me that this student deserved that consideration, more than almost any other student I have helped in the past 5 years at this job. In fact, due to the circumstances, I could not in good conscience require the student to come see me in person. I submitted a petition on the student's behalf to substitute courses this student had already taken in place of a foreign language, and included my own statement strongly supporting it. The dean approved the petition immediately. The student will be awarded the degree in March, without needing to take any more courses.

Given the nature of the situation, I would not be surprised if the student thought they would never be able to earn the degree. Already the student had been away from school for a couple years. In the course of 3-4 e-mails, and a little bit of time on my part, I just made a huge impact on a student's life.

That is the coolest feeling in the world.