Hope you enjoy quilting as much as the rest of us do and I'm sure you'll pick up lots of sewing experience over the next few years. I can't tell you about Bernina brand either, but I would say that any machine that you are thinking of buying you need to run it, try all the stitches, check the top and bottom tensions, and have it checked by a sewing machine repair person if possible. New or used machines each have their own identities. I like the longest throat bed, the most stitches built in (I still do some selective person sewing for folks,) and the best 'feet' I can get.
Welcome from Jacksonville, NC, stop in often and always say a "Hey."