Any Older (30+) applicants out there

[Skyride Season]

On 1/24/2017 at 5:31 AM, gonzosports said:

30+ isn't older.

I'm 43, had a (mixed) 20-year career as a development/communications professional/gadfly. Came back to study lit. In MA program now, with 9 PhD applications out there. 

One of my coworkers just recently told me that she went for her PhD in her mid-50s. So I guess you could say "43 isn't older." But I wouldn't say that because each of us experiences ageism differently and pursuing different degrees at different ages is obviously very subjective. Some people told me they were glad they waited until they were 30 to do a Masters or PhD. I was one of the oldest people in my MA program, and although nobody in my program treated me differently or discriminated against me in any way, it was outside the program that I experienced negativity being 'old' and doing my MA. Especially where I'm from, people assumed I would be ashamed that I'm a 'student for life' and not making as much money as they are, not as "far along in life" as they are, blah blah. 

Anyway, it seems that being a 'nontraditional student' is a highly subjective experience...

[TheLastJedi]

I'm an older than usual applicant, I will be 32 by the time I start grad school if I apply this year, which means I may be 36 or 37 by the time I finish my PhD. I'm on the fence about whether or not I should even go for it or just keep working, but I feel like I'm at the point where it's "now or never" and if I wait much longer than this it will be too late, and that I may regret later in life having never gone for a PhD. Not meaning to sound negative but I've heard - I don't know how true this rumour is - but that universities often practice age discrimination when hiring new tenure track professors with an age limit of no older than 35-38. So I feel like I have to make a decision about this soon, even if I don't feel completely confident about it.  

[JurisPrudence]

When I was in law school, it was my experience that us older-types in general had an advantage against people who went to graduate school straight out of undergrad. We had more real world experiences, and with that a stronger sense of the advantages of having an advanced degree then those who hadn't worked for 5-10 years.  We had less of an interest in partying four nights a week and consequently more time to study.

There were disadvantages too.  I really couldn't stay up all night studying the night before a big exam.  Consequently, I had to plan my time better leading up to exams and assignments.

I'm not sure that getting a PhD at my age, 36, is worthwhile, but I figured I'd give it a shot and see if I could get in.  It's really up to everyone to make that choice for themselves, but if someone told me they thought it would be a good idea for them, I'd say go for it no matter what their age is!  Nobody knows how long we have to live.  I've known professors who worked into their 80s and 90s, so being 42 and starting an academic career doesn't seem that bizarre if I have another 40 working years after it.

Edited March 3, 2017 by JurisPrudence

[starsloth]

I'm very grateful for this thread!

I had some concerns about transitioning into a doctoral program after working for a few years, but now I see that I am far from alone. I pursued a MFA in Writing immediately after undergrad, and think that it would have been better to wait a couple of years to get some work experience and develop my writing practice first. Although I hesitate pursuing my PhD because of the student loan debt from my MFA, I also recognize that "punishing" myself for a decision I made hastily when I was younger would not be entirely fair either.

I am not currently working in my field (I work in a non-technical role at a tech company), which has presented some challenges in the application process (I experienced some interview anxiety due to the "code-switching" I would have to do from the language I currently use everyday to academic language)  - then again, people change careers all the time. ;-) I come from an interdisciplinary background, so I applied to both PhD programs in Theatre/Performance Studies and Literature/Creative Writing. I'd like to teach, but I realize it's a difficult job market and so I am open to an Alt-Ac career path as well. However, I'm struggling a bit to explain the PhD part to family members who don't understand why I can't just apply to teaching or Alt-Ac jobs now. (I haven't tried to apply for adjunct positions in writing composition, but I think it might be tricky since I didn't do it right after getting my MFA.)

In short, I would appreciate the opportunity to do research, and I would like to be able to "think like a scholar" (to acquire the solid, theoretical foundation and process of inquiry that it entails). I am interested in cross-genre work that has theory mixed in, and it would be useful for that (in addition to writing academic papers, of course). There are also some questions I wish to pursue, that I don't think can be answered via my day job or in my "spare time." However, I worry that this sounds too idealistic so I haven't been too open about sharing it.

In hindsight, I am glad that I acquired some non-academic skills along the way. I may need to do some freelance work on the side to cover living expenses. I also have ADHD, so having the structure of the 9-to-5 was helpful, although I recognize that I will now need to go beyond that.

Thank you all for sharing!

[patient0]

When I came to this forum, I had 7 applications out there. All 7 are settled up and I have made a firm acceptance. When I started the process, one of my mentors suggested that I put other applications out there for backups, because my 1st choice was so competitive. I am so glad that I did this because it was a smart move and good practice for me. However, none of my 'backups' worked out and I have my 1st choice. It's a really good school. I will be an international student (yay yay yay!) with full funding (yay yay yay!) in a 4-year program (yay yay yay!). So I am about to get the "full experience" in terms of being older, living abroad, AND doing my PhD! What's even better - and I think this is where age really comes in - I will be working with exactly the advisor that I want and doing exactly the research that I want. Having worked, I know this is where I need to be in order to advance my career and do what I love. 

I'm 32, female, and I have over 16 years of professional experience (started as a young engineer), as well as a terminal masters from a great school - and 6 first author publications in my specialization. I work in high tech (artificial intelligence). I know that there are many really awesome and competitive people coming up these days who are 10 years younger than me. And not very many of them bring to the table what I bring. I know I am academic material because I've proved it to myself over and over again. I don't have to doubt myself and I am also not cocky. I know what it takes to make a team effort work when no one on the team gets along. I know the value of mentorship and the value of my education. I know how to teach myself what I want to learn. I have vision for research that might work, what it takes to get working, and what is worth re-working from the past. 

I am always a little nervous when a new person comes into the company who is fresh out of PhD and 30 or under. They get a lot of responsibility without (in my eyes) any experience to back it up. I also work with someone who is 39 and just finished a PhD - that person brings wisdom, patience, team skills, a fresh perspective, and mostly just patience! It goes a long way. It's like someone wiped the ego right off, and I for one appreciate it!

[zactak]

Hello everyone. I am 33 and will be starting graduate school this fall. I actually just graduated with my bachelor's degree a couple of months ago. Life got in the way a bit, but I feel now is the time to achieve my academic goals, or I might never get it done. 

This is actually going to be a rather big step for me, because I am relocating to New York from Pittsburgh. When I went up there for the graduate open house, I met with a student in my program and asked him how old most of the students are. He said most were in their early 20's, with one girl that is 28. It kind of concerns me a little bit, but I'm not going to let it bother me too much. 

[T]

I found this thread super encouraging. I am 47. When I did my first degree in the early 90s, I hated school! In my late 30s, i went back to school and earned an MFA. Now for two years, I have been applying to PhD programs and rejected by a lot. This year, I was accepted by one MA in a place far from where  I now live. I went to a school visit this week. I am not sure whether I will actually accept the offer yet. I feel very old among younger students, I will be separated from my partner etc.... Still, I am proud of my challenge. I really worked hard preparing my writing samples, taking GRE three times..... I have never worked this hard even for a paid job ha ha. I really appreciate everyone's comments here. Good luck to us all. 

[Concordia]

I am 52 and more or less in the same boat, although I finished a part-time master's last year.  Partially because of my age and the specific degree I took, I'm applying in the UK only.  The duration of the program is a real consideration, and I don't want to butt heads with ratings-conscious US departments who only want young warriors bound for a tenure-track job.  Also, if you've seen Spinal Tap, you'll know that Boston isn't much of a college town.    And having recently earned my stripes at Cambridge (and Oxford, where my supervisor was) was an unexpected plus.

We'll see.  If all works out well, I will create the germ of an interesting book-- and postpone dementia for at least a little while.  I certainly wasn't ready to do this kind of thing after my undergrad, when I was completely burned out from family crises and saddled with an unremarkable transcript.   

[cowgirlsdontcry]

Replying to the 43 yo about GRE scores: I'm 50+ and decided to change careers six years ago, from being a paralegal for over 20 years to aiming for a Ph.D. in English. I obtained a BA in English and now finishing up an MA in English--graduating in May. I took the GRE general test in 2014, scoring 163 on Verbals. Math not so great--50 percentile rank, but then I am an English major and most English Departments only look at verbals--combined score was still over 300. I used an online prep program that was relatively inexpensive because I live in a small town in central Louisiana and no "live" classes anywhere near. Older students can do well on the GRE.

To Gonzosports: I agree that 30+ isn't older. I'm older!

[jnewcomb08]

Hello everyone.  Figured I would throw this in here as I'm halfway through the application process.  I posted this over in the political science forum, but I want to get in with my fellow seasoned applicants as well.

 

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad Institution:   Top 10 Public University
Major(s)/Minor(s): Political Science
Undergrad GPA: 3.96 Upper Level/4.00 Major
Type of Grad:  N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE (V/Q/AWA): 160/160/5.0
Any Special Courses:  Political Science Research Methods
Letters of Recommendation: 1 From Department Chair senior thesis adviser who is leader in field;  1 is from Graduate School Coordinator who was my adviser the previous semester while chair was on sabbatical;  1 is from Associate Professor I took 2 classes from 
Research Experience:  Senior Honors Thesis revolved around creating a unique data set from 2016 Florida General Election vote totals and break them down by method of vote to determine a phenomenon that contributes new knowledge to the American Politics field.
Teaching Experience: N/A
Subfield/Research Interests: American Politics - Citizen Initiative; Voter Behavior; Social Movements
Other: Non-traditional  38 year old student;  Outstanding 2 Year Scholar Award recipient at upcoming graduation ceremony;  Phi Kappa Phi

RESULTS:
Acceptances($$ or no $$):
Waitlists:
Rejections:
Pending:  University of Iowa, Columbia, University of California - San Diego/Riverside/Davis, University of Wisconsin, University of Maryland, Princeton, University of Florida, Emory, Vanderbilt
Going to:

 

LESSONS LEARNED:  To be determined

 SOP:  Going to keep this for my eyes, but it followed a general track of introducing myself and talking a bit about coming from periods of extreme poverty/uncertainty/sleeping in cars and on friends' couches to turn my entire life around, what influenced me to get involved with political science that included past work experience involving creating a social media platform tasked with giving citizens more direct democratic tools to be more involved with their representative's decisions towards bills they have on their plate, being involved with activism (Occupy Wall Street), what my scholastic road has been like (including transferring to a 4-year program after my AA was completed), my undergraduate research, why I want to apply to whatever school I was applying to, who teaches there and research they have done recently, and what I want to do with a Ph.D.

[BanjoBeulah]

Hello all! It is encouraging to see so many non-traditional students. I just turned 41 in August, and I've worked in clinical patient care for 20 years previously.

[TheHessianHistorian]

On 1/19/2017 at 10:11 PM, SarahBethSortino said:

Hello

Thought I would start this thread to see if I could bring together any older applicants. I see a lot of people applying while still in undergrad, or a few years out. I'm 35 with a MSc. in History from University of Edinburgh. Applying exclusively to schools in Massachusetts/Rhode Island. How are the older applicants dealing with the wait? And how are you managing the transition to Grad school in addition to work, families, spouses, etc?

I'm 31 years old and applying to a mixture of Master's and Ph.D. programs in the field of history. Finishing up a second Bachelor's degree, with expected completion in Spring 2018. (Earned my first B.A. in Liberal Studies a decade ago when I was a very irresponsible kid and finished with a 2.33 GPA. Now doing a B.A. in History and earning a 3.7 GPA.)

I am not married and I do not have any kids yet, so that frees me up to apply anywhere in the country. I have applied to 16 schools, spread out across the United States. I could end up anywhere--East Coast, West Coast, Midwest, Deep South, New England, etc.

I currently have a decent full-time job (about as decent as it gets for an educated worker in the middle of nowhere in the Midwest), but history is my passion so I am willing to take a bit of a pay cut to pursue grad school. Once I get some acceptances, a big factor I will use in deciding where to enroll will be what their funding offerings look like. I am gunning for a full ride tuition waiver and hopefully an assistantship to provide me with a living stipend. I might just go with the school that offers me the most $. Would really like for school to be my "job" for the next few years. I will still have a virtual side business that I run, which can supplement any income that I earn from working for the school (as a teaching assistant, research assistant, etc.) during my degree program.

[khigh]

I'm 31. My gap was between high school and my BA.  I recently moved to Minnesota, so I only applied to one program to test the waters.  The U is my dream school, but we will see.  My GPA, CV, GRE, and LOR seem good enough.  I included my profile below. 

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad Institution:   Regional University
Major(s)/Minor(s): History/ minors in Foreign Languages and Political Science
Undergrad GPA: 3.55 Upper Level/3.8 Major
Type of Grad:  N/A
Grad GPA: N/A
GRE (V/Q/AWA): 161/147/5.0
Any Special Courses:  Independent study in Dutch language, Dutch history
Letters of Recommendation: 1 from advisor (alumni of the U, expert in field, did research with), 1 from department chair (worked extensively with), 1 from University President (I was SGA Vice President and President my last two years and we worked on committees together)
Research Experience:  Travel/archives in the Netherlands, museum employee for 2 years (public history, archaeology, preservation, archives), independent research in Dutch history
Teaching Experience: N/A
Subfield/Research Interests: Dutch political history/early modern Mediterranean/papal state foreign policy
Other: Non-traditional  31 year old student;  Phi Alpha Theta, Phi Sigma Iota, Pi Sigma Alpha, Who's Who, Top 10 University student award, Department major of the year, Women's leadership in higher education scholar, 15 university committees, Model UN Best Delegate; various fluency in Dutch, German, French, Frisian, Afrikaans, and Italian

RESULTS:
Acceptances($$ or no $$):
Waitlists:
Rejections:
Pending:  University of Minnesota
Going to:

[Gradgirl2020]

Hi everyone! Great to see "non-traditional" students going back to school. I am 36, just finished a master's in communication and am applying to PhD programs. The waiting game is always awful but it's part of the process I guess. 

[GCBrittany]

Howdy all.

 I am in my thirties and applying in a field that is mostly younger applicants (genetic counseling). I was worried at first if the mention of my daughter in my essay or at interviews would hurt my chances of getting in, but I realize it is a part of my whole being, so I couldn't leave it out. 

I've decided to instead hope that programs will see work and life experience as valuable and worthwhile and not as distractions. So many of you have meaningful journeys, even out of your field of interest, that can help shape you in your future path. Good luck to all! 

[ElvisShrugged]

Hey, mind if I bump this thread? 

Turned 35 last month. Didn't earn my BA until 2014 (the bored-and-irresponsible-kid-who-didn't-apply-himself story). I've been employed at the small, liberal arts university that graduated me since, well, graduation, but knew since well before then that grad school was in my future. 

I've applied to only five schools, so my chances are pretty slim. But there's always next year, right? Sometimes I regret not applying myself in undergrad when I was 18. Grad school would be over by now! But that line of thinking leads nowhere. 

For those of you who finished your undergrad studies as a non-trad student, what were your experiences like? Were you full or part time?

[E-P]

Thank goodness I'm not alone.

I'll be 35 when I start next fall, and I think my age is the number one thing I'm feeling nervous about.  I'd like to finish the Ph.D. by age 40 at the latest (preferably before).  But Spouse and I also want to adopt a kid (from foster care) before then.  I'm also used to having money from 15 years in the corporate world, so the idea of going back to starving-student wages is making me super anxious.

 

I'm lucky that most of the people in my MA program were about my age (there were only a couple of kids straight out of undergrad).  But I have no doubt that most of my Ph.D. cohort will be younger.  On the up side, students will mistake me for someone who's already completed her Ph.D. since I'm "old."  I'm the downside,  I have life goals and desires and standards that I worry about matching with being a full time student.

[spamhaus]

I'm also in the 35 yr old bucket and planning on a PhD.

I've always had an interest in my particular field, but I tried to pursue it a different way in industry. Rather it feels like I just veered off track. Sometimes life happens and you loose track of the goals and desires that led you to your current juncture. I realized that I was no longer pursuing my interests and took a hard look around to realize I needed to go for a PhD.

I also don't relish the thought of being a broke grad student, especially since my wife and I are hoping to start a family. Comparing my job prospects to that of grad school, it's pretty clear I'm giving up a tremendous amount of money (at least in the short term), since I am likely to be making less than 1/4 the amount that I would otherwise make in industry... Of course, I've never really cared about the money and have focused more on having a fulfilling job. Though I know how lucky I am to have such a luxury.

[BackNSchool83]

I'm 35 years old lol, finally going to school!!! I love the whole experience to be honest, been very positive and I don't regret it at all, grad school will start in Fall and I can't wait. I hear it's actually quite common for grad students to be older as well so that's nice.

[senorbrightside]

I'm 36...applying for a Master with a plan for eventual Ph.D. I applied to grad school when I went back to undergrad to make my Spanish minor a major, and I was rejected, so I ran away to Spain with the intention of always returning for grad school...but I just didn't want to leave Spain. I finally decided to grow up as things in Spain are not the best at the moment. I know Spain will always be there, especially since I want to do peninsular literature. Anyway, it's going to be a complete fresh start, having to reacclimate to the US (or acclimate to Canada, as I applied to two Canadian programs). I don't see 36 as too old at all, and I hope I'm not wrong about that! I just hope I get accepted!  

[ktquiet81]

I'm in my mid thirties! 

[Ufffdaaa]

Can I comment in this thread if I'll be 30 by fall 2018? I identify with so many of these issues that you have brought up. Giving up a good paying job to make 1/4 as much... Postponing kids (or not having them)... 

This feels like my first real life decision that will change my future, and it's rough. 

(Still sitting here without any acceptances or rejections)

[LORDBACON]

Just stumbled on this thread but how neat!  I'll be 36 tmrw and I'm completing an MA in philosophy this semester.  Applied out to 25 PhD progs but no word from anyone yet. 

 

[Allbert]

Excellent topic, congrats !!

I believe I am the granpa here.. I am 40+ ( ouch!) and applying for Masters in Counselling ( Education) in Canada. I already have a MA , a PhD and even a postdoc but this is a carrer change moment for me. Does anyone think that us " oldies" have this going against us or for us?

[spamhaus]

3 hours ago, Allbert said:

Excellent topic, congrats !!

I believe I am the granpa here.. I am 40+ ( ouch!) and applying for Masters in Counselling ( Education) in Canada. I already have a MA , a PhD and even a postdoc but this is a carrer change moment for me. Does anyone think that us " oldies" have this going against us or for us?

I have a friend who just completed her Clinical Psychology PhD in her fifties, so it’s never too late.