I have had two experiences with college as an adult. After getting fired from the worst job I’ve ever had at the age of 33, I moved back into my parents’ house and entered a local community college to get a degree in computer programming. It was weird living with my parents, weird going to school with a bunch of teenagers, and somewhat frightening to re-enter the world of text books, homework, term papers, et cetera, when I had been out of school for so many years. But I found that school was easy. I was motivated, focused, and had no trouble doing the work and getting great grades. I graduated at the age of 34 and immediately got a job programming. That was 22 years ago, and I have been continually employed as a programmer ever since, at a level of compensation that gives me a pretty comfortable life.
When I was 36, I began to pursue a bachelor’s degree, going to a university part-time at night. Life kept interrupting, and then death did too. My wife died, I remarried a couple of years later, moved to another state, lots of things happened. Life finally settled down about 6 years ago and I started my pursuit of a BS again. This time I got it done, finally graduating at the age of 53. This degree won’t change my life the way the first one did, but at least my mother got to see all three of her sons finish college.
I did it. Got a second BS to formalize 20 years of on-the-job experience, as a warmup for grad school that I never attended.
It was waaaaaay different that BS mk 1. I went part time, and juggled a fulltime job, mortgage, raising a teen, living through a rotten marriage, and the death of both parents, and still made Dean’s List.
The perspective of going to school as a mature adult was different, too. I didn’t have any fear of the professors the second time, tending to think of them as colleagues instead of superiors, and not taking crap from them. I could add a lot of job experience to my studies, and finally, it was quite a kick in the pants to ogle the appropriate student bodies and realize I was literally old enough to be their father. :rolleyes:
If you can pull it off, go for it. Hell, if I lose my job to Obama, my plan is to dump the engineering world altogether and become an RN via an ADN, so I might do it a 3rd time.
Another vote to go for it. I started a BSc Pscyhology part time at the age of 34, about 13 years after I graduated the first time. On September 3rd at the age of 40, I will submit the disertation to complete my Masters. My situation is a bit different, I’ve had a baby and kept working part time the whole time, but the same need to balance stuff is there.
Yes, there will be differences between you and the others on your course, potentially, but you’ll have different things to bring to the programme. One thing that helped me is that I made a decision about how much time and work I could afford to put in, and set a realistic goal for the results I wanted to go for. In other words, I’ve not broken my neck to come out with a Distinction, I’ve put in a solid level of work which will (all being well) give me the Merit I chose to aim for. I think maturity and life experience has let me be much more sensible and in control to allow me to do that.
Aside from going to college: It sounds like your parents are going to have to move someplace smaller anyways. You can’t always live with them to take care of their farm for them. Maybe you can help them in their transition to someplace they can handle better in their advancing years.
preface every adjective with an adverb, preceded by the word “um, like” (e.g., it was totally like um), and be sure to use these new words 3-4 times per sentence
text message frequently, especially during class
forget everything you know about punctuation, especially when e-mailing your professors
practice dramatic eye rolls and vocal scoffs when confronted about #1,2,3
I am going to college now for the first time at age 41 and I love it! School is near my home but I commute 2 hours each way to work 2-3 days a week and go to school the other two days. Also, there are many general courses that you’ll have to take that will be required by nearly every major so you have some time to decide, even after you start classes. Good luck!
Will going back to school eat up your nest egg entirely? At 41, you really ought to have something saved toward retirement, even if you anticipate your income going up considerably afterwards.
However, for the record, I think it’s an awesome idea and I wish you the best of luck. You can even steal your daughters’ old books!
I’ll be going to graduate school at 29 after seven years of full-time employment, which is “meh”. Going back at 41 is awesome!
Gen ed or not, very few schools will honor credits earned 20 years ago. Most won’t even honor credits which are 10 years old.
