Am I too old for graduate school?

[fuzzylogician]

There are really two separate issues addressed in this thread.

One is - am I too old for grad school? Answer: no. People can even finish a degree in their 90s. For sure they can do one when they're 25 or 30. Or 40. Or 50.

The other one, which I think is implicit in the OP's post, is - am I too old to have a career in Academia? That one is harder to answer and I haven't seen it addressed in any of the posts here. I'd venture a guess that those people other posters mentioned as having done a degree in their 40s-50s-60s didn't try to get a TT position afterward. I'd be very interested if you know someone who successfully did that.

[pea-jay]

The other one, which I think is implicit in the OP's post, is - am I too old to have a career in Academia? That one is harder to answer and I haven't seen it addressed in any of the posts here. I'd venture a guess that those people other posters mentioned as having done a degree in their 40s-50s-60s didn't try to get a TT position afterward. I'd be very interested if you know someone who successfully did that.

In my field (Urban Planning) I have have come across more than one professor that joined academia in their 50s. The catch was, they had all achieved a level of professional success in their career and eased into the teaching role. The planning director where I work teaches part time at the local community college and at least one of my profs from the first grad school experience was a former planning executive that finished his doctoral work and got back into academia. I find these professors especially valuable resources as they maintain a wealth of practical experience and contacts that could be used to find an internship or a job.

This may not work in other fields though

[alexis]

I'm 25 and I'm actually doing this earlier than I expected. I always knew (since college) I might want to get a PhD someday, but the last few years of work and getting my master's really put things in perspective. So for me, I still feel like I'm doing this at quite a young age!

[UnlikelyGrad]

The other one, which I think is implicit in the OP's post, is - am I too old to have a career in Academia? That one is harder to answer and I haven't seen it addressed in any of the posts here. I'd venture a guess that those people other posters mentioned as having done a degree in their 40s-50s-60s didn't try to get a TT position afterward. I'd be very interested if you know someone who successfully did that.

Good point, and one I think about a lot since I would like to go into academia.

I personally know two people who landed TT positions at age 39, and there's a guy in my current department who got his TT position @ ~ 43 (guessing based on his CV). But they all got their Ph.D.s earlier--by 35.

My plan: (1) Work fast, try to do the Ph.D. in 4 years. (2) Be aggressive in getting funding so it's obvious I can support my own research. (3) Make myself so indispensable that the department at my current school wants to hire me.

[captiv8ed]

But the OP would not be bringing into academia in his/her 40s or older. The OP is 28, which is only five years out of undergrad.

[fuzzylogician]

I'm of course only guessing what the OP had in mind, but I'll speak for myself and say that finding a TT position in my early 30s, competing against 25yr olds, is something I've spent some time thinking about. I certainly think it's possible - or I wouldn't have started grad school in the first place - and I think I am soooo much more prepared for grad school now than I would have been if I had gone straight out of undergrad (and I also didn't go straight from highschool to college). But I think it's a legitimate concern.

[figuringitout80]

I'm of course only guessing what the OP had in mind, but I'll speak for myself and say that finding a TT position in my early 30s, competing against 25yr olds, is something I've spent some time thinking about. I certainly think it's possible - or I wouldn't have started grad school in the first place - and I think I am soooo much more prepared for grad school now than I would have been if I had gone straight out of undergrad (and I also didn't go straight from highschool to college). But I think it's a legitimate concern.

This thought was in my mind as well -- on top of that I am woman which I think can be more challenging since I do want to have a family life. I kind of want to do it all, and I do know a woman whow is in her early 40s on tenure track at harvard with two small kids. She finished her phd at age 33. So it can be done I think.

[rising_star]

I agree with everyone that's said that you aren't too old to start graduate school. My mom started her PhD program at 33, and finished 8 years later. BUT, she doesn't have a career in academia (never wanted one) so I can't say anything about trying to get a TT job.

[pea-jay]

I agree with everyone that's said that you aren't too old to start graduate school. My mom started her PhD program at 33, and finished 8 years later. BUT, she doesn't have a career in academia (never wanted one) so I can't say anything about trying to get a TT job.

At one point in my life, I really wanted to get my PHD and become a TT professor of Geography (my undergrad field). Academic "difficulties" in my first 2 years and mediocre GRE scores killed that option when I was just out of school. A lack of focus with a related masters program and starting a family in my mid 20s ensured it wouldnt happen then either.

In the spring of 2008 when I was in my early 30s, I visited UC Berkeley, specifically the Geography program and inquired about the MA-PHD route, with the TT teaching position in mind. The experience was a little discouraging for a variety of the usual reasons (uncertainty in program funding, a dearth of good teaching jobs and the substantial loss of personal income). But the clincher was the fact that I would be nearly 39 when I would exit the program, a full 10 years above those that push through directly from undergrad. Add in the fact that your early post doctoral jobs are not tenure-track and most likely would require one or more moves to pursue (a non-starter with a family), meant this choice was not meant to be for me. In that sense, I was definitely too old. And I think there is definitely a point in time for everyone where at TT position just becomes unworkable due to age. It may not be exactly 24 or 25 but probably is in the vicinity.

Oh well. At least I DO enjoy my work and am looking forward to pursuing a MA program that will provide me with quantifiable benefits to my career. Nor will it preclude my spending the twilight of my professional career a few decades from now in the classroom as a guest lecturer, adjunct professor or non-tenured assistant prof (if get my PHD sometime). Which is just fine for me.

[coyabean]

There are really two separate issues addressed in this thread.

One is - am I too old for grad school? Answer: no. People can even finish a degree in their 90s. For sure they can do one when they're 25 or 30. Or 40. Or 50.

The other one, which I think is implicit in the OP's post, is - am I too old to have a career in Academia? That one is harder to answer and I haven't seen it addressed in any of the posts here. I'd venture a guess that those people other posters mentioned as having done a degree in their 40s-50s-60s didn't try to get a TT position afterward. I'd be very interested if you know someone who successfully did that.

Good point. This is about some very personal choices. As a woman I decided that I could not plan my life around my reproductive viability. Taking that off the table made me feel better. (My mom likes to point out that I can always "buy a baby". Apparently there's a store? lol) I think that helps me conceive of a career in academia though. That is my plan. I want to teach and research, but I am ALWAYS looking for ways to make myself relevant to the private and GOs. That's just my hardcore belief in being prepared as humanely possible. It helps me sleep at night.

I am also very clear about my dissert project. The plan is to let that guide my coursework so that I complete in five years or less. Even with that I will be 38 at best when I finish. That is scary. But what I can do?

But your point is valid. However, I figure if there's any career where a 40 year old upstart is acceptable it is academia. Or, that's the lie I'm telling myself.

[zilch]

I suppose I come from the other end of the spectrum, I entered grad school at 21 right after undergrad. My cohort appears to be split between people who entered from undergrad and people who went to work for a while and decided to come back to school. One of the things I considered was going straight for the PhD and staying in the academic arena and it appears that for fields where professors are expected to be heavily involved in research as well as teach it's almost unheard of to hire one in their 20s. The most common path seems to be get a PhD, do a few years of post-doctoral work somewhere and then apply for the professorships. Even in my case, if I decide to go for the PhD I'll be done at 26-28, and after doing a post-doc I'll be around 30 (or just short of it). The difference between 30 and 40 is much smaller than the difference between 20 and 30. Also, age is not as much of a concern since professors tend to have long careers and retire late (if at all).

I would say the more pressing concern for landing those types of jobs is their relative scarcity. Those positions open up one retirement/dying professor at a time.

[hamster]

Another oldster here! 35 and applying for Fall 2010 PhD programs. Regarding TT positions- how will they know how old you are?

The college graduation date listed on your CV? I mean I get carded all the time. and (good genes) can appear up to 10 years younger easily.

[rising_star]

They'll see the dates and they will have seen you at conferences. Plus, if they're worth their salt, they will Google you before inviting you for a campus interview (or even a phone interview in these uber-competitive times).

[alexis]

They'll see the dates and they will have seen you at conferences. Plus, if they're worth their salt, they will Google you before inviting you for a campus interview (or even a phone interview in these uber-competitive times).

Haha this prompted me to google myself under search terms I assume they might use (just name, location and/or colleges attended)...and just realized that facebook publicly posts pages you're a fan of! Good to know now in case I decide to change my privacy settings

[UnlikelyGrad]

Another oldster here! 35 and applying for Fall 2010 PhD programs. Regarding TT positions- how will they know how old you are?

The college graduation date listed on your CV? I mean I get carded all the time. and (good genes) can appear up to 10 years younger easily.

I look young too. But my sister (one of those mentioned above who landed a TT position at 39, who also looked young at my age) said that she definitely encountered age-ism on the academic job market. I got my bachelor's in 1993--kind of hard to hide my age. From what I've seen, there are places which require you to send your transcripts, not just your CV, when applying for a job. Do your transcripts have your DOB on there? I think mine do...

[catilina]

I think I'm older than everyone in the "am I too old" post. I'm in my early forties.

Clearly no one is ever too old to get a graduate degree just for personal fulfillment, which is what I was initially planning to do.

However, once I started really looking into it, talking to people in academia, etc. I was assured time and time again that my age would not prevent me from having a real academic career. So now I've decided to try for that. It seems to be much less of an issue for people that I would have predicted.

[LifeIsGood]

In a meeting with a potential advisor, I raised this question, and he said that it's not a problem. Most of his students are above 30 and his oldest student is in his 60s.

[LateAntique]

I'm 25 now and will almost be 26 when I finish my BA in the Spring. I've had a few hiccups along the way. I have a few friends who are currently doing Ph.Ds after having gone through law school and having successful careers. I'm also not too worried about my graduate studies translating into a vocation, so those kinds of questions don't really go through my head.

[Lantern]

Definitely not too old! I'm 33 and applying to Master's Programs for next fall. (I don't have a family, so I can't comment on that.) I always knew I wanted to go back to school, but if I had tried to go back before now it would not have been the right time. I had to go out, try LOTS of different jobs, travel, volunteer, and figure out what I really wanted to do. So what if that took me 11 years? Now I am ready and committed! I was shocked when I told friends of mine that I wanted to go to grad school and they labeled me a "non-traditional" student! It had never occurred to me that my age might set me apart because it just feels so right to me now! Good luck!

[rogue]

I think I'm older than everyone in the "am I too old" post. I'm in my early forties.

Clearly no one is ever too old to get a graduate degree just for personal fulfillment, which is what I was initially planning to do.

However, once I started really looking into it, talking to people in academia, etc. I was assured time and time again that my age would not prevent me from having a real academic career. So now I've decided to try for that. It seems to be much less of an issue for people that I would have predicted.

In a meeting with a potential advisor, I raised this question, and he said that it's not a problem. Most of his students are above 30 and his oldest student is in his 60s.

This is reassuring. I'm turning 36 this week (eek!), but I feel like this is exactly the right time in my life to go back to school.

[LifeIsGood]

In a meeting with a potential advisor, I raised this question, and he said that it's not a problem. Most of his students are above 30 and his oldest student is in his 60s.

When I posted this, I was 38. As of today, I'm 39.

[Lauren the Librarian]

I'm 30 and will be starting my masters program in a couple weeks. I hope to get a dual masters with a couple of "extras" thrown in there and I probably won't finish for 4 years. I plan on getting a PhD, which I wont start until I am 38 or 39. Tacking on another 4 years will put me with a PhD at 43. I've already had the kids I'm gonna have, so that's not a concern for me. I do think women especially need to think carefully about when or if they plan to have a family. While men sometimes help out, it's a human universal that women take care of the children, so plan accordingly.

Another example of an older graduate student is my best friend's dad. He went back to school to get his PhD in Economics when he was in his 40s. He's now a very prominent economist publishing national and local governement forecasts. He gets interviewed on TV and has a number of articles in national magazines and newspapers.

[Deleted]

I will be 25 if everything goes smoothly and I get an acceptance, with an MSc and a year of work experience. I think it's about right but there is definitely no age to embark on a PhD, unless you are here to block me out in which case you should refrain.

[APHI224]

So does this mean that younger people such as myself that are straight out of undergrad don't have a chance?

[socialcomm]

So does this mean that younger people such as myself that are straight out of undergrad don't have a chance?

No, I think everyone brings something unique to the table.