Thoughts on Education Later in Life

[Crankin]

Three things:
DH went back to finish his Bachelors degree when a) we had just bought our first home b) we had our first child when he was in his last year, and c) he sold his business and took a 50% pay cut to get a "professional" job. Was it worth it? He would say yes, unqualified, yes. Sure, we suffered financially for awhile, but without it, he never would be where he is now. Our lives would have been totally different.

I went back to school to get a second master's and start a new career when I was 55. I was making in the high five figures as a teacher and only needed to work a couple of more years to retire. I quit, took my pension $ and invested it myself. I had the luxury of not having to work while I went to school full time for 3 years, in a very intense program in clinical mental health counseling that included 2 years of internship. I had no issues with the work/academic part of school, as I have been in school all of my life. But, my first master's did not require the degree of writing and collaborative group work; it was memorize, a little bit of research, and study for comprehensive exams.
You have to learn to prioritize. I made the decision not to give up other things (like cycling) and those were the things that kept me sane. I wanted to quit about half way through, but once I registered for my last year, I knew it was smooth sailing. I am making slave wages, but now, after 5.3 years, I am about to be fully licensed. This will let me continue working on a flexible schedule, on my terms as long as I can talk and write!

My son left college after 1.5 years to join the military. He is super smart, but no one could stop him. He is now, after 9 years, back in school and loving it, and appreciating it so much more. He is very focused. He will be about 30 when he finishes and he feels way more able to deal with the stress of school.