So what age are the ages of all you grad school hopefuls this year?

[CleverCapybara]

22. and i'm applying to ms.

[drglasner]

I'm 24, turning 25 this summer. went from undergrad straight to a Master's program. finished that and started a research fellowship, have been doing that for 1.5 years now. I applied for PhD programs, but not so sure that's gonna happen. may go back in the fall for an MPH to help my credentials.

[Grev]

I'll be just barely 28 when I start my PhD this fall.  I was 23 when I received my MA and decided to take a couple years off, partly because I felt too "young" and partly because I didn't want my only adult life experiences to be in an academic setting.

[tapdncingchemist]

24.

 

Took a few years off between high school and undergrad, but applying to programs straight after 4-year BS/MS program.

[Cela]

24 awaiting responses for MFA programs

[mightymzhand]

36! 

[wsxcv]

Yep. Anyone else here under 18?

i will be entering grad school at 17 this fall

[puffy01]

28, awaiting Stanford MS&E

[dat_nerd]

i will be entering grad school at 17 this fall

Yay, I'm not alone!   Congrats and good luck!

[nason]

26 now.  27 upon matriculation

[EngiNerd-12]

I was 20 when I started my MS and now will be 24 going into a PhD (since I worked for 2+yrs).

[Daisy Spiegelman]

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.

Actually, as an older applicant (I'm 48) I do have some concerns about being in the classroom. One of which is learning style, which is markedly different for older students. Indeed, when I attended graduate school at 29, the differences between those over 25 and those under 25 were already apparent. Another issue is how we will be viewed and treated by professors who may be our age or younger and who are accustomed to relating to students in their 20s with less real-world and employment experience. Another concern is stamina. I cannot stay awake for days on end writing or studying like I could when I was in my 20s. Finally, there is the physical aspect which directly relates to the amount of reading required in pursuing an advanced degree. One frequently loses visual acuity with age. I am now near-sighted and far-sighted -- which requires a constant refocusing of my eyes depending upon the distance of the thing at which I'm looking. Age really is a relevant "demographic characteristic."

[Daisy Spiegelman]

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

It's probably safe to say that anyone in his/her 40s (I'm 48) applying to a Ph.D. program is young at heart and doesn't worry too much about age as a reason not to do something. It may cross our mind or factor in somewhat, but it's usually not controlling. (Unless good balance is required or there's heavy lifting.)

[emmm]

It's probably safe to say that anyone in his/her 40s (I'm 48) applying to a Ph.D. program is young at heart and doesn't worry too much about age as a reason not to do something. It may cross our mind or factor in somewhat, but it's usually not controlling. (Unless good balance is required or there's heavy lifting.)

 

Yep -- but the side effect of that is I now feel more immature than I did 10 years ago. I am working so hard to learn all this new material and figure out what I want to get out of this program. It really does feel like, "What do you want to do when you grow up?"  So...I have regressed, and am no longer a "grown-up." Also, all this new learning/new experiences make me feel quite giddy at times, because I wasn't sure I'd be taken seriously as an applicant and actually be admitted somewhere, and it's still somewhat hard to believe this is all real.

[spursel]

I will be 25 in August when I start my M.A. It took me 5 years to finish my undergrads because I was a double major. I did not apply right away to grad school because I needed to save the money before I could even consider it, to be able to move, and also I went to Europe for a while. I'm in no hurry though.

[qed67]

I'm 20... This topic makes me feel like I'm going to be in class with all old folks ha! Maybe I'll hang out with undergraduates instead!

[midnight]

I'm 20... This topic makes me feel like I'm going to be in class with all old folks ha! Maybe I'll hang out with undergraduates instead!

 

Somehow I doubt that older students (30+) are the majority anywhere. And "old folks" aren't a different species.

 

I think you'll be fine.

[TeaGirl]

I'm 20... This topic makes me feel like I'm going to be in class with all old folks ha! Maybe I'll hang out with undergraduates instead!

 

Depends on you. I was 21 going into my Master's, but I hung out mostly with an older crowd, most of whom where 25 or 30 plus. I found them more fun than undergrads to be honest, and the conversations were way more interesting.

[aucinema]

I was 21 when I started my first graduate program and I'll be 23, almost 24, when I start my second.

 

It's only been acouple of years but I feel a lot older and wiser this time around! :-)

[MissC]

30 here. I hardly ever think about age in relation to my studies at this point. Then again, I'm right in the middle and don't think I need to be concerned about being "too far" in either direction on the age scale. This conversation did make me think about one thing though.

 

During my undergrad, I only remember a few "non-traditional" students and didn't know any of them well. My Masters was a completely different story. Students aged from 21 to 67 and I would say the median age probably fell around 35-40. It was a wonderful, rich, incredibly valuable learning environment and the variations in age contributed to  that. Discussions included so many perspectives. By the time I graduated, I had friends from school that were 23 years old and still living at home. I also had friends who were in their 60's with multiple grandchildren. A lot of the older students were choosing to go back to school after "retirement" to pursue interests they didn't have time for during their working years. The only problems we encountered were in group projects where preferences in technology utilization were different. Younger students wanted to use more technology for planning and research, older students weren't as familiar and comfortable with some of that. Even this difference though was easy to overcome by simply dividing responsibilities into areas of comfort.

 

I don't know if my experiences were the "norm" or not, or if hard science students might not feel the same way as a social science person like myself?  Either way- I love you all! Young and old!

 

Edit: stupid spelling errors. F.

Edited March 10, 2013 by C-Doug