When Did You Start Grad School?

[1Q84]

I know this may be a sensitive subject for some, but I'm curious. I took 5 years between my undergraduate because I was disillusioned with the system and suffered a lot in my last 2 years of school due to personal issues resulting in some low grades.

As a result, I feel REALLY behind in my timeline. I'm going be 27 if I start my Masters next Fall and I feel like all my friends have either started or finished their grad school or are in their full-fledged careers.

My partner is a consideration too. Making him wait for 8 years or so with no real income while I finish my school stuff feels pretty crappy. By the time I start working (if I'm extremely lucky and can find a job coming out of grad school), I'd be 35 or so. Only starting to have a real income and start saving for a house, etc. that late in life is really, really stressing me out.

Anyone else in this same boat? Or anyone been through this same thing and came out unscathed?

Sigh. Age is just a number right?

Edited August 5, 2012 by ponponpon

[Eigen]

So your options are missing a year- you've got spots for younger than 23, then we skip to 24.

[1Q84]

Sorry, I meant 23 and below.

[michigan girl]

I enrolled in my first master's degree at age 24 and wont finish my second master's degree until I am 28. Age is just a number. If I return for doctoral studies, I will be in my early-to-mid 30s. In the meantime, I'll focus on career advancement and paying down crucial bills like credit cards and small loans.

Edited August 5, 2012 by michigan girl

[cajunmama]

Age is just a number.

[1Q84]

So for those of you who started a bit later, then you're juggling a part-time masters with full-time work? What are all your arrangements like, if you don't mind me asking.

I mean... 8 years without a real income is scary, right?!

[MA-SLP FTW]

Starting school at 28, will finish at 30 (unless I decide to go for the PhD). I couldn't get a decent job with my BA and was disgusted by my lack of career options. Getting my master's is my road to self-fulfillment. I am "strongly discouraged" from working during my program, but student loan debt isn't real anyway, just add it to my tab.

Many of my friends have finished master's programs, and I have another about to wrap up her PhD. I also graduated with some folks who are working part-time at Outback Steakhouse. It's all about what you want for yourself and your life. A shoe for every foot, as they say.

I'm more than willing to put home ownership on the back burner to get the career I want. No sense in buying a house if you're going to be unhappy in it.

If this is what you want to do, go for it, no matter what your age. Good luck!

[cajunmama]

I began undergrad at the age of 31 after 12 years as a stay home mom. Just graduated, it took 6 years due to a couple of years going part-time, the other 4 working part-time, school full-time. I am beginning my graduate studies (going for a PhD) this month although I have been working on my project all summer.

[Hank Scorpio]

I'm 29 and will be starting my MA this year, so I'll be 31 when it's done, and around 35 or 36 when I finish my PhD. I'm ok with that. My father finished his PhD around that time, and has had a fulfilling career and life since then. Got 20 years of teaching in, still does research, etc. My sister will be 36 when she finishes her PhD. Sooooo, my family is a bunch of late bloomers...and that's ok.

There's no sense in rushing things...everyone goes at their own pace. I think you'll find once you get to grad school that there are many, many people around your age or older.

[Ennue]

21 when I started my Master's degree, 23 when I started my PhD program. I think older students are generally more motivated - they know what they're doing it for, rather than it being a 'natural progression' through higher education (I say generally, and keep in mind I'm a younger student too - don't mean to offend anyone, just observing).

The only concern with starting late would be children, if you want to have them and don't have them before starting grad school. I almost think cajunmama's method of first having children and raising them to a certain degree of independence before pursuing grad school is ideal!

[1Q84]

Starting school at 28, will finish at 30 (unless I decide to go for the PhD). I couldn't get a decent job with my BA and was disgusted by my lack of career options. Getting my master's is my road to self-fulfillment.

I'm more than willing to put home ownership on the back burner to get the career I want. No sense in buying a house if you're going to be unhappy in it.

So true! That serves as a good reminder for me. And exactly the same here: my MA/PhD is going to be my self-fulfillment for sure. I did a Bachelor of Education, and while I enjoyed it, I did not feel fulfilled at all.

I began undergrad at the age of 31 after 12 years as a stay home mom. Just graduated, it took 6 years due to a couple of years going part-time, the other 4 working part-time, school full-time. I am beginning my graduate studies (going for a PhD) this month although I have been working on my project all summer.

Inspiring!

I'm 29 and will be starting my MA this year, so I'll be 31 when it's done, and around 35 or 36 when I finish my PhD. I'm ok with that. My father finished his PhD around that time, and has had a fulfilling career and life since then. Got 20 years of teaching in, still does research, etc. My sister will be 36 when she finishes her PhD. Sooooo, my family is a bunch of late bloomers...and that's ok.

There's no sense in rushing things...everyone goes at their own pace. I think you'll find once you get to grad school that there are many, many people around your age or older.

Also inspiring. Good to know there's lots of late bloomers out there like me! I'm mostly worried about the practicalities of finances and such. If I may ask, did any of your family have trouble establishing themselves after grad school? Or did they hit the ground running?

21 when I started my Master's degree, 23 when I started my PhD program. I think older students are generally more motivated - they know what they're doing it for, rather than it being a 'natural progression' through higher education (I say generally, and keep in mind I'm a younger student too - don't mean to offend anyone, just observing).

The only concern with starting late would be children, if you want to have them and don't have them before starting grad school. I almost think cajunmama's method of first having children and raising them to a certain degree of independence before pursuing grad school is ideal!

My gosh you make me feel old! Get outta here! Just kidding... that's awesome that you had the drive and tenacity to do that (not to mention the smarts)!

[TakeruK]

I am pretty young, but not the youngest. I was 23 when I started my masters and I am now 25 and going to start my PhD this fall. Most of my cohort will be 21 though!

I know having a PhD by 30 is pretty good but my wife isn't a student so I understand the need to "start making a real income". Both sets of parents have started families, gotten jobs, and settled down by about 27-28 years old and graduate school/academia is completely foreign to our families, so we experienced a lot of concern from our families about my pursuit of a PhD.

My wife and I plan to have kids in about 2 years time, when I'm finished with courses and hopefully have a fairly concrete plan for thesis and graduation. I feel really bad that my wife is effectively giving up / pausing any potential career plans until I get a PhD. Even though she chose to do so, I still feel bad. I'm lucky to have the support from her though. She also knows that she wants to stay home with the kids for the first few years of their life, so it wouldn't make sense for her to finish school and then have kids and put all career plans on hold indefinitely. But before we decided that I should go ahead with the PhD, we made some promises to ourselves so that we can ensure our happiness in the future. We plan to settle down in our hometown no matter what -- there should be plenty of opportunities for a PhD, hopefully. But I'll probably end up leaving academia, or at least research unless I get really lucky. My only goal is to end up with a career that I don't hate and will feed our future family. I am passionate about science and research but my family will always come first!

Committing 5+ (PhD, postdocs, etc.) of your life to academia is hard. Especially when a partner or children are involved, I think it's very important to know what you're willing to compromise and what you're not when it comes to a career in academia.

[Dal PhDer]

I took 2 years off between my undergrad and MA, and began my PhD when I was (.....I just had to figure out how old I was!!! ...) 26. Honestly, I think there's pros and cons for being younger or older when starting your graduate school degree. I've seen a lot of people (35+) in graduate programs through my school (I've interacted with them during cross listed courses), and they ALWAYS have a really great grip on time management, writing/communication skills, and topic clarity. I think when you choose to go back after being away for awhile, you go back with a goal, purpose and topic (not that younger students don't, but I think an 'older' student has a different mindset).

As far as working and school. When I did my MA I clocked full-time hours at my previous job. I was fortunate enough to be doing my degree via my work, and was able to collect my data through that position. I also have the flexibility of time, so managing my course schedule and work wasn't as difficult. Working and grad school is certainly possible, and I think it goes a lot more smoothly if you have a job that is within the academics- as your boss will be aware of your school stresses and time, and this work often allows you to clock whatever hours you want, as long as the work is done.

Another thing you should be aware about is if you're being funded. A lot of time it's a 'no no' for funded students to have full or part-time jobs. I would check with your advisor and/or department if you're looking for work and are also getting funding for your degree!

[Hank Scorpio]

Also inspiring. Good to know there's lots of late bloomers out there like me! I'm mostly worried about the practicalities of finances and such. If I may ask, did any of your family have trouble establishing themselves after grad school? Or did they hit the ground running?

I know that my father got a job pretty quickly after finishing his PhD...he definitely hit the ground running. My sister is still working on her PhD, but she'll be done a year earlier than everyone else in her program, and she's been working in sociology with Gary Allen Fine (one of the sociology juggernauts), so I suspect she'll do the same when she finishes. From what I can tell, it's all about publications and conference presentations.

Another thing you should be aware about is if you're being funded. A lot of time it's a 'no no' for funded students to have full or part-time jobs. I would check with your advisor and/or department if you're looking for work and are also getting funding for your degree!

Also, this is a super good head's up. My department doesn't allow me to work a part- or full-time job outside of school.

[amandacarol1215]

I'm the baby of my PhD cohort, starting when I was 22. The others are all 26 or older. It has taken some time to get used to the idea, but I feel like I act more mature than my age, which definitely helps.

[1Q84]

But before we decided that I should go ahead with the PhD, we made some promises to ourselves so that we can ensure our happiness in the future.

Yeah, it sounds like I'll have to sit down and have this talk with my partner. Can't believe we haven't really done it yet... ack! I think it was denial on my part... going to have to answer some tough questions about our future.

I took 2 years off between my undergrad and MA, and began my PhD when I was (.....I just had to figure out how old I was!!! ...) 26.

Another thing you should be aware about is if you're being funded. A lot of time it's a 'no no' for funded students to have full or part-time jobs. I would check with your advisor and/or department if you're looking for work and are also getting funding for your degree!

Okay, good to know there are some people starting a little bit later. But believe me, if I could get funding I wouldn't even think about looking for a part-time job!

From what I can tell, it's all about publications and conference presentations.

Well noted.

I'm the baby of my PhD cohort, starting when I was 22. The others are all 26 or older. It has taken some time to get used to the idea, but I feel like I act more mature than my age, which definitely helps.

Holy crow!

It's confusing me when people say others in their PhD cohort are 21 years old. In Canada, people usually finish undergrad by 22. Are these 21 year olds super keen, fast-tracking geniuses or something?

[lydibird]

Holy crow!

It's confusing me when people say others in their PhD cohort are 21 years old. In Canada, people usually finish undergrad by 22. Are these 21 year olds super keen, fast-tracking geniuses or something?

Two of my sisters skipped grades early on in elementary school (one skipped 1st grade, the other skipped kindergarten). If they decide to go to grad school right after graduating, they'll begin at 21. I can also see someone who took AP or concurrent enrollment courses during high school easily finishing college a year or two early and beginning grad school at 20 or 21. In fact, I thought about it but ultimately decided to take advantage of my scholarships and took as many classes as the college would pay for. One of my sisters thought about it but instead decided to double major in an unrelated field.

I come from an intelligent family, but we aren't super-geniuses or even particularly ambitious. Honestly it's more that we enjoy school a lot and are lucky enough to know what we want to study early on in life.

Starting so early isn't for everyone (and it wasn't for me, I stayed the full 4 years in undergrad then took a year off) but I'm not surprised or even necessarily impressed with those who choose to. I'm more impressed by those who have the courage to go back to school later in life when they have more responsibilities (families, mortgages, etc).

[TakeruK]

Holy crow!

It's confusing me when people say others in their PhD cohort are 21 years old. In Canada, people usually finish undergrad by 22. Are these 21 year olds super keen, fast-tracking geniuses or something?

Now that you mention it -- that is a bit strange! Maybe they did skip a grade. Or maybe they are going to turn 22 later in the year? I just remember that during the prospective students visits, we went to a pub one evening and several of the prospectives made a comment that this was one of the first times they've been able to enter a pub / order alcohol legally. My mind was still on our 18/19 drinking age so I was really shocked until I remember that their drinking age is 21! But maybe they were just not pub-types and haven't been drinking very much since their 21st birthday.

[amandacarol1215]

Holy crow!

It's confusing me when people say others in their PhD cohort are 21 years old. In Canada, people usually finish undergrad by 22. Are these 21 year olds super keen, fast-tracking geniuses or something?

I finished undergrad when I was 22 and started then as well. I turned 23 in December of the first year of my program. I never skipped any grades and completed undergrad in 4 full years. Maybe it was just the way my birthday fell?

Edited August 8, 2012 by amandab

[theologyofyourface]

I'm 27 and married, and I'm starting my MA this fall, and planning to do the PhD afterwards, if all goes well.

Honestly, I wouldn't worry too much about it. My husband just graduated with his Masters at 30, and there were several people in his class who were much older. Older/second-career students are less common, but we exist.

[kateausten]

If I get into the program I'm applying to, I'll be 26 when I start. I feel a little behind sometimes. In my department in undergrad, around 60% of the students go straight into graduate programs, most of them doctoral programs, and many of the ones who don't are just taking a token year off and may not even be earning a full-time income. I always sensed an idea that we should be above pursuing anything besides our own research interests. However, I was just over it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, I wanted OUT of the academic bubble as the attitudes were driving me nuts, and I felt this driving need to travel. So, I did other stuff for a couple of years, including moving abroad and working in a business-y field at home, while thinking about what I want. And honestly, I don't think I would have been equipped to make a good decision about my professional future when I was 21-22. Not that no one can, but I learned a lot about what I love and hate to do by trial and error. I had seriously considered being an EFL teacher as a way to travel and I HATED teaching. What if I had gotten my masters in it instead of trying it out through a crappy low-paid job instead? I wish no career dissatisfaction on them but I often wonder about the 40% or so of my classmates who went straight into PhD. programs immediately. Did they seriously think about themselves, what they want in life, and come to the conclusion that an academic career was the best route to it? Or did they just think about what they like to study the most and apply to a PhD in it, and may regret it someday when they realize their personality would be better suited to business or teaching children or sales or whatever else? This happens quite a bit with doctors and lawyers who just chose one of the default options for high achieving students.

While I do feel behind sometimes, and emotionally it's a little rough to meet people who have already made a career of their passion or received a graduate degree by my age, or even to pass people studying in a coffee shop, I also try to remind myself that I'm not really behind. For a 2010 liberal arts graduate I'm doing pretty damn well -- I've lived in a few cities and two countries since graduation, I'm paying my own rent (without roommates!), saving some money, and working in a "real" career that has a good outlook, it just isn't everything I want in life. Yeah, I could be graduating with my master's this summer, but I could also easily be working at starbucks and living with my mom.

Regarding finances and logistics, I may complete part of my degree part-time as a working student but I do plan to be a full-time student and live on loans and savings for most of it. I know myself and I have a hard time balancing studying and working. I think it would ultimately pay off more for me to immerse myself in as many opportunities as I can in my field of study than to do the coursework and not have time for much else while working an unrelated job. I work in recruiting and I see a lot of resumes so I know how drastic a difference this can make in someone's career path. Whether you make yourself into a stellar candidate with internships, research, and networking or simply show up and complete the coursework can make a difference in your career for decades.

Edited August 10, 2012 by kateausten

[1Q84]

Again, good to hear from more late bloomers like me... well not late, just different!

I'm 27 and married, and I'm starting my MA this fall, and planning to do the PhD afterwards, if all goes well.

Honestly, I wouldn't worry too much about it. My husband just graduated with his Masters at 30, and there were several people in his class who were much older. Older/second-career students are less common, but we exist.

It's true, but how do you balance all the finances and job stuff and living, so to speak? I mean living on a meagre grad school budget for 8 years does not seem appealing when I see my friends making full salary and living it up. But I have long-term vision now so it's okay... heh

If I get into the program I'm applying to, I'll be 26 when I start. I feel a little behind sometimes. In my department in undergrad, around 60% of the students go straight into graduate programs, most of them doctoral programs, and many of the ones who don't are just taking a token year off and may not even be earning a full-time income. I always sensed an idea that we should be above pursuing anything besides our own research interests. However, I was just over it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, I wanted OUT of the academic bubble as the attitudes were driving me nuts, and I felt this driving need to travel. So, I did other stuff for a couple of years, including moving abroad and working in a business-y field at home, while thinking about what I want. And honestly, I don't think I would have been equipped to make a good decision about my professional future when I was 21-22. Not that no one can, but I learned a lot about what I love and hate to do by trial and error. I had seriously considered being an EFL teacher as a way to travel and I HATED teaching. What if I had gotten my masters in it instead of trying it out through a crappy low-paid job instead? I wish no career dissatisfaction on them but I often wonder about the 40% or so of my classmates who went straight into PhD. programs immediately. Did they seriously think about themselves, what they want in life, and come to the conclusion that an academic career was the best route to it? Or did they just think about what they like to study the most and apply to a PhD in it, and may regret it someday when they realize their personality would be better suited to business or teaching children or sales or whatever else? This happens quite a bit with doctors and lawyers who just chose one of the default options for high achieving students.

While I do feel behind sometimes, and emotionally it's a little rough to meet people who have already made a career of their passion or received a graduate degree by my age, or even to pass people studying in a coffee shop, I also try to remind myself that I'm not really behind. For a 2010 liberal arts graduate I'm doing pretty damn well -- I've lived in a few cities and two countries since graduation, I'm paying my own rent (without roommates!), saving some money, and working in a "real" career that has a good outlook, it just isn't everything I want in life. Yeah, I could be graduating with my master's this summer, but I could also easily be working at starbucks and living with my mom.

Well, you're ahead of me I guess! I'm still living at home with very little money. Sigh.

But I took almost the exact same route as you, except I love teaching. I graduated undergrad and was really over it, just because of the type of people I had to deal with in class. I applied twice to grad school in Canada (rejected), went overseas, did some teaching, did my Bachelor of Education but now I realised I should've stuck to grad school. So here I am!

[theologyofyourface]

It's true, but how do you balance all the finances and job stuff and living, so to speak? I mean living on a meagre grad school budget for 8 years does not seem appealing when I see my friends making full salary and living it up. But I have long-term vision now so it's okay... heh

Well, I actually find it easier to get through grad school when you have someone else (i.e., my husband) who has an income. I guess I've never been one to "live it up," exactly, but we just spent three years on one income in Manhattan while my husband did his degree, and I found it more than doable. And doable in, like, a still-get-to-go-out-to-a-movie-sometimes sense, not a Raman-noodles-for-every-meal sense.

[juilletmercredi]

I started at 22, but I was the youngest person in my cohort. (I finished undergrad at 21. I turned 22 over the summer between grad school and undergrad. If my birthday had been in September or October, I would've been 21 when I began, so that explains beginning at 21 without skipping any grades or graduating early). The ages above me ranged from 25 to 34. In my psychology cohort (I have two cohorts because I am in a joint program) I'd say about 50% of us started in our mid-to-late 20s. 27 is definitely not "really behind."

Don't feel behind - it's actually a lot less common than it used to be to go straight from undergrad to graduate school. I also want to point out that you will have a "real income," it'll just be smaller than you probably want it to me, and you can begin saving or whatever. One of the most valuable pieces of advice I heard about graduate school is don't wait to start living your life, because you are *already* living your life. Be you.

Anyway, the grass is always greener, right? My older friends tell me they are envious of my youth; I say I am envious of their life experiences and the things they did before they came to grad school. I often wish I had worked and traveled for a few years after undergrad. I also agree that the older students were more motivated and had better ideas of why they were here and what they wanted to do.

[OldGrad2012]

I just started my PhD program at age 37. I am the oldest in this thread. Gosh, I am so behind, but I know others people in the 35+ club in this forum have also started their graduate study at around this age or even older.