Straight Through Or Returning

[daddys_girl]

I'm taking two years off... assuming I get into school for this fall... working in a technical field for my degree, saving some money and then going back to the meager wages of a student... i'm definitely going to miss the paychecks now.. but it'll be worth it!

[tshaunprice]

Well I did a MA and a MDiv in theology, and only applied to one PhD program expecting to get in (and I didn't). So they offered me admittance to a degree called a Master of Theology (ThM) which is a stepping stone degree in which you take doctoral seminars a write a 120 thesis for the degree. A week after finishing the ThM I was married, and my wife a a year left of college, so I decided to wait an extra year before re-applying. I found a MA in English program 20 miles from where a live, my job offered to pay for it, and the school offered to confer the degree for only 21 credit hours since I already had a MA. That is the long and short of it.

[hadunc]

I'm going straight through because I've known for years that this is what I want to do. I had to work through college so I already know how it is out in the "real world" and I'm not interested! Plus, my B.A. is in English, so my starting salary if I chose to get a job right out of college would probably be comparable to that of a grad student anyway, so I didn't see any advantages in waiting a year or two.

[girlseekingphd]

I graduated a year ago. My husband doesn't graduate until this May so I took the year off before applying to grad programs. While I've been waiting, I've been working and I took an independent study course with one of my favorite professors. Just to keep myself going. Personally, I feel like if I wait too long to go back, I won't have the momentum or drive. And I want to get through my doctorate before we think about kids!

[StudyMom]

Unlikely Grad,

Hey, I took a year off between my Bachelor's and Master's Degree study and then I stopped, for 20 years! Last year I decided I wanted to become a college professor, applied at the last minute, got accepted at my first choice and here I am. I thought I would be old but there are lots of people older than me in the graduate program and quite a few professors in their 50's who received their PhDs just a few years ago. So, you are only as old as you think you are -- personally I feel young and very happy to be here! Good luck!

StudyMom

[UnlikelyGrad]

StudyMom,

It's nice to hear that I'm not the only one. I just talked to a admissions coordinator (at the dept. level) this morning to check on transcripts status and she said she was pleased that I'd applied to their program, because I looked like a very interesting person. Needless to say, I'm feeling a bit more optimistic today.

[kbupz]

I took one year "off" (where off is working a 9-5 job). I think it provides a more balanced perspective to have spent time "in the real world" as well as in an academic environment. Last year while I was a senior undergrad I wasn't sure what I wanted to do, whereas now, I'm certain.

[natofone]

I've had 10 years off since undergrad but mixed in a pair of social science MAs along the way about two years apart each. I've been working in a highly quantitative field all along, which I hope will improve my chances of getting into a field that has a wicked crush on quants of late (poli sci).