Felony Guide

I was convicted of att armed rob 1 in 1996 and of coersion in 2000. i have not been in trouble since. i have been in school for the last year and a half for radiology. i just found out from my councelor at school that i may not be able to transfer to another school to finish up my degree because of my record.i have spent so much on tuition is there any thing i can do?im lost please help, i have worked so hard to change my life and now i feel its all for nothing because of my record. one last thing, when an application says they only go back 7 or 10 years on back ground checks, dos that mean my charges wont show up since its been over 7 years?