Carrie Underwood has quickly gone from a college student working toward a journalism degree to a national star with two multi-platinum albums. And though she's living a life that she had dreamed about, she never allowed herself to expect that dream would come true.

"It's just not a practical way of thinking, and I'm a very practical person," she told the CBS-TV magazine Watch!. "I'd think how cool it would be, but I never thought I'd actually get a shot at it."

Carrie's shot, of course, came from her participation in American Idol, and she believes the people who have connected with the audience through that show have become popular because they seem kind of normal.

"People really like to see people like themselves succeed, because that lets them know that they can do anything they want to do as well," she said. "I think that's why 'American Idol' is so popular ? it's just normal people getting the chance of a lifetime."

None of the contestants has done as well as Carrie at turning the opportunity into a career, and there's another accolade potentially on the horizon for her. She's nominated for Top Female Vocalist in the 43rd annual Academy of Country Music Awards, set for May 18 in Las Vegas.