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For me, I've realized that there are things that I'm interested in but I can pursue those in my free time. You mentioned a lot of things, so some may be hobbies and maybe there are one or two things on there that really call to you that you could use to help the world or others with...that's what you should pursue.
I don't believe anyone is ever too old to go back to school, get a degree, and thrive in their chosen career. I am 29, and finishing up my Bachelors Degree in Psychology, which is almost useless, but my plan was not to stop there. I have been struggling between a Social Work Masters Degree so I could be a Therapist but I've recently decided against that in favor of Law School.
Some people may not understand my decision and I will have "some" debt, but to me, I know it's what I want to do and my options will be greater in this field than my other options. I feel confident that my current work experience and my volunteer experience will help and it is what I want to do so that I can be an advocate for women.
So, NO! You're never too old! Consider some online classes!
Yeah, that's why I'm asking those questions. I see people on this forum, and other places, talking about their huge student loan debt, (to me, anything over $30,000 is huge), and despite their degree, have no job prospects in their field of study. Most of them are young...and some of them do have "useless" degrees, so I get why they have troubles, but the very idea of having some big debt for any major is...unsettling. I hate owing money, so I try not to owe it as much as possible.
Maybe there's some grants I haven't thought of, or maybe there's other, better ways to do this than to take on some massive student loan debt. My concern about taking a class or 2 at a time is that if I do it that way, by the time I'm done...will I be "too old" for most companies seeking employees?
As someone that has a huge school loan (as an older working adult) getting a degree that's pretty much useless, I'd say strive to get a meaningful degree, not a generic liberal arts degree. It doesn't have to be all hardcore engineering, but there are some decent fields of study and degrees that can be useful for the future:
I didn't have a degree for the longest time in my life, and didn't really need it for any of my jobs including my current one. I got one simply to tick the boxes and it was also a life goal.
I also happened to go back to school during the heyday of online schools and degrees, when UoP and others like it were heavily advertising and growing exponentially. The mantra back then for working adults like me was to simply get a degree and life would be so much better. The problem was that a lot of these degrees were soft things like general studies, sociology, history. Not really going to do much for your career really.
I don't know if your employer pays tuition reimbursement but my company offers a small reimbursement. There's also some community colleges that offer a bachelor's degree at a fraction of the cost of more bigger universities and colleges. In California, several community colleges were authorized to start offering bachelor's degrees, some of them in meaningful fields like biotechnology, nursing, etc.
My DIL has her masters in Geology and has interesting work. She studies contaminated wells, streams, and old manufacturing sites, develops a clean-up plan, and then supervises the process. There are other types of work for Geologists also.
As someone that has a huge school loan (as an older working adult) getting a degree that's pretty much useless, I'd say strive to get a meaningful degree, not a generic liberal arts degree. It doesn't have to be all hardcore engineering, but there are some decent fields of study and degrees that can be useful for the future:
I didn't have a degree for the longest time in my life, and didn't really need it for any of my jobs including my current one. I got one simply to tick the boxes and it was also a life goal.
I also happened to go back to school during the heyday of online schools and degrees, when UoP and others like it were heavily advertising and growing exponentially. The mantra back then for working adults like me was to simply get a degree and life would be so much better. The problem was that a lot of these degrees were soft things like general studies, sociology, history. Not really going to do much for your career really.
I don't know if your employer pays tuition reimbursement but my company offers a small reimbursement. There's also some community colleges that offer a bachelor's degree at a fraction of the cost of more bigger universities and colleges. In California, several community colleges were authorized to start offering bachelor's degrees, some of them in meaningful fields like biotechnology, nursing, etc.
So there are relatively cheap options out there.
I listed my interests in the first post, and I don't consider a science degree as "useless". I have never mentioned a liberal arts degree.
I'm not sure how I feel about a Bachelor's being available through community college. I know that a Bachelor's degree doesn't really do much for someone like it did in the past, but the fact that you can get one at a community college makes it feel cheap. And again, in my original post, I mentioned perhaps going into a Master's program if I found something I liked...and I can just feel the dollar bills piling up by thinking about it. It's good that people can get educated for less money than at a University...I've just never viewed community college as quality education compared to a University. Maybe I'm wrong...it has been awhile since I've been in school.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Harpaint
My DIL has her masters in Geology and has interesting work. She studies contaminated wells, streams, and old manufacturing sites, develops a clean-up plan, and then supervises the process. There are other types of work for Geologists also.
I feel like someone is hearing me. While I don't want this particular type of work, this is exactly what I'm talking about when it comes to getting a science degree and doing something with it. I don't want to sit in a room with no windows. I don't want to sit at a desk. I want to be out and about and doing something. The fact that what she does is actually helpful is a plus...just what I'm talking about.
I work in IT, and while some positions allow for telecommuting - many still do not and will not for the foreseeable future. Many places will only giving telecommuting rights to the most senior staff level employees, consultants, or managers and above. If that's a major factor in your decision, don't count on it.
It's never too old to learn, but never go into large debt at a later age going to school, pursuing a degree and career you think leads to big money.
I learned the hard way.
Going into debt for school is no worse than going into debt for a car. $30K is about average for the cost of a new car these days. Just giving an example. Of course, one should be judicious about taking on (more) debt.
I went back to school when I was in my late 30's and it was the best thing I ever did. Changed careers from working as an electrician in the IBEW to a legal career working in patents and trademarks. Got a great job at a big law firm right out of school. My background helped in patent cases involving electrical components and I think they were impressed at the accomplishment.
So I will say that it's never too late. It's not easy and you have to have the determination that you want to get it done. I worked full-time in the electrical trade while going to school at night (year-round) and finished in 5 years. Ended up having a great 20+ year legal career before retiring last December.
If you are considering getting your education online, which it seems maybe you're not, there's a MOOC course available on Canvas.net called Learning to Learn Online. The course is almost over, but I'm sure it'll be archived so people can access it. I signed up but haven't started, so I have nine days to complete it. Wont be hard because MOOC courses are pretty basic, quick courses, but you can get some helpful info from them. I'm taking this particular course because I am considering getting further education with an online only program from a decent university, so hoping I might find some useful tips on how to go about it using this course.
Seems to me attitudes are changing regarding online only education. I've seen videos from people who have gone that route. A young woman that got her Bachelor's from Indiana (or Illinois?) University put up a video about her experience. I'm sure there are many videos of people sharing their experiences, and others offering tips, on Youtube.
Only thing holding me back is worrying about racking up student loan debt at my age. Refused to do so when I got out of the military at aged 24, after being cheated out of my education benefits by the Navy as so many were back in those days under the VEAP program.
Everyone's situation is different. You may feel more secure taking out student loans up to a certain amount.
Learning though is something we never have to stop doing, and we are better off for it if we do. At least in knowledge and improving our capabilities. The darned money issue and having the time to study are the main issues for me and I'm sure many people.
I missed how old you said you were but to me it sounds like you
Are bored. Join the USCG reserves as a MST (if you can qualify) https://www.gocoastguard.com/active-...tions/rate/MST
You have a degree and you are older so boot camp will be shorter for you. This will mostly fix the
School cost issue. I also this you would like a wildlife conservation major. https://youtu.be/Ekmc8uerox4.
That's what my crystal ball says 😜
Can you tell me what your first degree is? I'm curious if it was
English.
Sciences: Research jobs, obviously, but don't know where.
Languages: teacher of said language, working in a non-profit as a translator for immigrants needing their (non-profit's) services (how to become a citizen, getting info. on insurance/medical coverage, etc.), work for the CIA translating docs from said countries, working for a transcription company in which clients need their documents translated into said language, working for ICE translating for immigrants who want to come here.
Coding: Most common and most popular. Lots of people interested. Become a software developer, but very competitive, you'll have to compete with new young 20s grads, and you have to keep up with the fast-evolving tech industry. If you enjoy constantly learning and enjoy change, you'll like this. If you want a steady 9-5 job where you get your work done, go home, and not have to think about your job or industry when you get home, don't do this.
Writing: Creative? Not sure.
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