Nerd_For_Life Posted February 21, 2013 Posted February 21, 2013 24 and currently enrolled in my MA, will be 25 when I finish it this year and start my PhD (hopefully!) this Sept.
tchuynh Posted February 21, 2013 Posted February 21, 2013 25 with a masters. Will be 26 when I begin.
phalanges Posted February 22, 2013 Posted February 22, 2013 25. I started my PhD at 22, but unfortunately my advisor is leaving my school and I find myself in search of a new home (to finish my PhD).
tlsstc Posted February 22, 2013 Posted February 22, 2013 I am 39 and I am a bit nervous about making friends! I started law school when I was 23 and I felt a bit old, but in a good way, I appreciated being back in school after working for 2 years. Now I'm applying to speech pathology masters programs - I started doing pre-reqs in fall 2011. I have one acceptance so far - UNC Chapel Hill which is so exciting!
mary.from.maryland Posted February 22, 2013 Posted February 22, 2013 I'm 26 and will be 27 before school starts. But hey, you're as young as you feel!Â
jkabo Posted February 22, 2013 Posted February 22, 2013 I'm 48; I started my undergrad at 44. I feel like I should be twice as smart as everyone else, but it doesn't really work that way . . . callista and MSW13 2
abeilles Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 26. been working full-time in research for five years (and am earning my master's this year). interviews are making me feel pretty old...
RubyBright Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 I'm on the younger-ish side, but I look a few years younger than I even am. I'm going to have to dress well if I want to TA without looking like a member of the class...Â
Queen of Kale Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 I'm 29 and dropped out of school twice before finding the thing I loved enough to stick with it. Â I did not avoid my non-traditional status in my SOP and most POI I've met have brought it up as being a strength - as in I'm clearly not applying in autopilot because I took my time getting to this point. Â But, I've met a wide range of successful applicants at prospective student weekends and they had a range of backgrounds and ages, none of which seemed to keep them from getting into a school they were thrilled with. Â My field (geology) does seem particularly open to older students though.
Provincial Cosmopolitan Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 I'm 36. I dropped out of school a couple of times before going back for my BA and doing 60 credits in three semesters with a 4.0 GPA. Now I'm accepted to three places, rejected from four, and waiting to hear from a few others before making the decision. Â
cunninlynguist Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 3 years older than Nas when he dropped Illmatic and 5 years younger than Future.
daw0518 Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 Currently 22, will be 23 when I start a program. I thought being young & fresh out of undergrad was out of the norm, but that doesn't seem to be true after scrolling through this thread - there are actually lots of 22-going-on-23 year olds! :]
mmajum01 Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 Yeah, I'm 22-going-on-23, too! Applied to doctoral programs; will have completed my Masters by May this year.
margarets Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 I'm 29 and dropped out of school twice before finding the thing I loved enough to stick with it.  I did not avoid my non-traditional status in my SOP and most POI I've met have brought it up as being a strength - as in I'm clearly not applying in autopilot because I took my time getting to this point.  But, I've met a wide range of successful applicants at prospective student weekends and they had a range of backgrounds and ages, none of which seemed to keep them from getting into a school they were thrilled with.  My field (geology) does seem particularly open to older students though.  Why would " a range of backgrounds and ages" be a barrier?
pandaloo Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 22 going on 60. No, but seriously I feel so much older than my undergrad class. Maybe I'll feel more solidarity in grad school. MSW13 1
madricka Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 (edited) I'm 40 and was rather quickly admitted into my program (MI at Toronto), 3 weeks turnaround time. I don't think those who are older have a harder time being accepted, I think age (whether older or younger) is a state of mind. It's not about the number, it's about what you do with the time you have & what your attitude is. I'm sure a number of you would beg to differ & that's cool. Just giving my 2 cents! Â As for the friends thing... I've never had a problem making friends older or younger. It's about finding a common thread & working from there. Of course, with any huge age difference you won't mesh 100%, but who says you have to?? You have your school friends, work friends, outside friends. Nothing wrong with mixing it up. Â Older students feeling they aren't up to par with younger students? I don't think so. My experience (as a much older undergrad student who buddied with other mature students) is that we tend to be more dedicated, worked harder, never skipped classes, & earned higher grades. Of course, I'm grossly biased, I get that. I'm also referring to undergrad vs grad, a HUGE difference. Again, my opinion. Â In sum, I don't think age should be a concern at all when diving into grad school. It's all about the journey & there is no way you can emerge unchanged (unless you fight really hard!). You're supposed to enjoy it! Edited February 27, 2013 by madricka MSW13 1
margarets Posted February 27, 2013 Posted February 27, 2013 I'm 40 and was rather quickly admitted into my program (MI at Toronto), 3 weeks turnaround time. I don't think those who are older have a harder time being accepted, I think age (whether older or younger) is a state of mind. It's not about the number, it's about what you do with the time you have & what your attitude is. I'm sure a number of you would beg to differ & that's cool. Just giving my 2 cents!  As for the friends thing... I've never had a problem making friends older or younger. It's about finding a common thread & working from there. Of course, with any huge age difference you won't mesh 100%, but who says you have to?? You have your school friends, work friends, outside friends. Nothing wrong with mixing it up.  Older students feeling they aren't up to par with younger students? I don't think so. My experience (as a much older undergrad student who buddied with other mature students) is that we tend to be more dedicated, worked harder, never skipped classes, & earned higher grades. Of course, I'm grossly biased, I get that. I'm also referring to undergrad vs grad, a HUGE difference. Again, my opinion.  In sum, I don't think age should be a concern at all when diving into grad school. It's all about the journey & there is no way you can emerge unchanged (unless you fight really hard!). You're supposed to enjoy it!  I know it's not your intention but this post, and especially the bolded part, suggests that there is a perception of an issue with being an older grad student in the first place. I don't think any of the older applicants have expressed a concern about feeling not up to par with younger students, so why reassure them about it? Why is there no post reassuring the younger ones about looking naive & dumb to the older ones?  Substitute "older" for another demographic characteristic and it would be a very troubling post. sfh09 1
abeilles Posted February 28, 2013 Posted February 28, 2013 3 years older than Nas when he dropped Illmatic and 5 years younger than Future. Nice
PanicMode Posted February 28, 2013 Posted February 28, 2013 > I'm 40 and was rather quickly admitted into my program (MI at Toronto) Â It's always easier to see the bright side when things are going well.
daydreamer254 Posted February 28, 2013 Posted February 28, 2013 I'm 24, turning 25 while I'm in a MA program.
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