The Real Story – Jesse Daley’s Testimony
2021 MCA Graduate

My time throughout college definitely was not a traditional one to say the least. From dropping out of my dream school at the time, to bouncing from program to program, to going through college strikes and finishing my thesis during a pandemic…it’s been eventful to say the least.

Coming out of high school I got into my dream school for animation. At the time it was one of the best schools in the field and I could see the rest of my life laid out perfectly right in front of me. Little did I know, it would be one of the lowest points of my life, I struggled with depression and anxiety while I was there, which ultimately led me to drop out.

I had no plan, didn’t have a clue what the next step was going to be which led me to jump into another program just for the sake of doing something. During my time there, I realized I didn’t want to settle for something that would leave me in a career that was unfulfilling so I prayed about it. I put aside what I thought I should do, and asked God what He wanted me to do. What was my purpose?

And God answered my prayers. What I didn’t realize was the whole time He had it right in front of me. He had been placing the right people in my life to guide me, provided the right opportunities and experiences and all I needed to do was stop trying to figure things out on my own and just listen. Creativity was something I’ve always had, and I found that graphic design was the perfect outlet for me to not only speak/share with others but to inspire them as well.

I enrolled in a Graphic Design program the following September with so much joy and peace, knowing that it was God’s plan. I excelled in school, made lifelong connections with peers, and finished a pretty cool thesis project (if I do say so myself). People would ask me why I would be so calm when everyone else was stressing about the intense workload we had and God was the reason why. Throughout my time in that program He gave me peace, purpose and guidance through it all.

Some people may look at my time in school and think, “Man, what a waste of time! This guy went to school forever!”, but I really don’t think it was, I hadn’t even graduated yet and God blessed me with a job at a design studio. As much as it would have been nice to finish school in the “traditional” 4 years, God had other plans in mind. God’s plans for me are way bigger than anything I could ever understand, but I’m learning the blessings come when I get out of the way and just let Him do His thing.