Shorewood grad earns two college degrees in three years

I was told about a Shorewood graduate who earned two college degrees and a medical assistant certification in three years. I asked her to tell me how she did it - and if she has Hermione's time turner.

Hayley Berkman

My name is Hayley Berkman, and I am a 20-year old senior graduating from the University of Washington Seattle with two degrees: a Bachelor of Arts in Theater: Performance and a Bachelor of Science in General Biology this June 14th.

The simplest answer to “did she borrow Hermione’s time-turner?” is: unfortunately, no. I would have used it if I had one. The more honest answer is that I built my own version out of Running Start credits, too many Google Calendar blocks, asynchronous lectures, stubbornness, and a deeply unrealistic belief that if I could just make it through the week, eventually the weeks would turn into a degree.

Through the Running Start program at Shoreline Community College, I earned a general studies associate degree during the same quarter I graduated from Shorewood High School. 

That meant I came into UW with 75 credits from Shoreline and 15 credits from AP classes. Across UW and Shoreline Community College, I earned 267 college credits, even though my two degrees only required 225. 

In spring 2025, while still completing my UW degrees, I also earned a medical assistant certificate through a one-year, 57-credit program at Seattle Central College. With my medical assistant certificate program included, I have earned 324 college credits total.

My most intense quarter was spring 2025. During that quarter, I was taking 12 credits of physics and organic chemistry at Shoreline Community College, 18 credits at UW, and 14 credits of practicum classes for my medical assistant certificate at Seattle Central College, all at the same time. 

That was 44 credits in one quarter, spread across three different schools. Most of my UW classes that quarter were theater classes, which gave me more flexibility and lenience than a full schedule of lab sciences would have. Ten of my credits were also fully asynchronous online, which made it possible to keep moving pieces around when I needed to.

Hayley Berkman at home in Shoreline

I do not want to romanticize the amount of work it took. It was not glamorous. There were many days where “how I did it” was less about brilliance and more about momentum. 

I learned how to work in small windows of time, how to switch my brain from organic chemistry mechanisms to rehearsal notes to patient care skills. 

The main thing I learned was how to prioritize what had to be perfect over done, and I’m still not sure if that was the best use of my time.

Because of all of this, I am graduating in only three traditional college years. I always knew I would graduate at least one year early with my biology degree. At the time, I was planning on medical school, so graduating early felt strategic. I thought if I could finish undergrad faster, I could give myself a head start before the long road of graduate or professional school.

But though I came in focused on biology and medicine, I kept being pulled back toward theater even though it was only going to be my minor. 

Eventually, I decided to pursue the full BA in Theater: Performance alongside my BS in General Biology. And I immediately worried I had somehow “wasted” time by changing the plan. And I rushed to a finish line.

I do think there is something very theatrical about the whole thing. Theater teaches you how to hold contradictions. You can be exhausted and still walk onstage. You can be terrified and still say the line. You can have no idea how the scene is going to resolve and still commit to the action in front of you. 

That is a lot of what this experience felt like, I just kept entering the next scene. 

Now, I am considering either medical malpractice law or pursuing theater professionally. Those may sound like completely different paths, but to me they both come from the same place: a desire to understand people, advocate for them, and tell the truth about what happens to bodies, systems, and lives under pressure.

By the end of all this, I think I did it because I wanted to prove to myself that none of my interests had to cancel each other out. But mostly, I did it because I am terrified of aging and the passing of time. Severe FOMO about literally everything. During all of this I have earned department honors, acted in 3 shows, directed 2, and done so much more.

Do I regret it? I don’t know. Parts of it. I wish I had another year, I think. I wish I had more time for the non-academic. It’s funny, out of everything, I just wish I never thought I was premed.

Note: Hayley is currently one of the lead actors in “Everybody” at UW (see previous article)