The non-linear path: How Randi is bringing over two decades of experience into a TRU credential

For many students, the path through post-secondary education is a straight line. But for Randi Obenauer, a Bachelor of General Studies student, it’s been a multi-faceted journey of building one milestone upon the last.

A single mother, leather goods maker, motorcycle upholstery specialist, nonprofit volunteer, and project manager—sometimes all in the same week—Randi brings her diverse wealth of real-world experience back to where it all began: Thompson Rivers University.

Randi’s journey started in 2001 when she left the small community of Logan Lake, BC, to pursue a fine arts diploma at TRU. That initial step opened doors to fashion design, advanced textile arts, and the trade of automotive upholstery, starting a 20-year entrepreneurial chapter where she built two businesses simultaneously.

Eventually, she found her way to BCIT to formalize a parallel passion for project management, earning her Certified Associate Project Manager (CAPM) certification. This year, Randi brought her accumulated learning full circle by enrolling in TRU Open Learning, applying her decades of knowledge toward her degree.

A major milestone in her return has been working through TRU’s Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR) process, which evaluates real-world experience and translates it into academic credit.

“Earning my CAPM while running two businesses felt like proof that the non-traditional path can lead somewhere,” Randi shares. “But the moment I’m most proud of is being approved to proceed with a competency-based PLAR portfolio. Being told that my life and work contain enough substance to potentially complete a university degree – that meant everything.”