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What is it that I loved about college? I’ve been trying to figure it out because I’ve been thinking about grad school again. I think about grad school about once a year (I think it’s the school-supply air of fall that does it), and wonder if I ought to revive my collegiate goal of becoming a professor. It still appeals to me, and my latest variation includes a marriage of my two fantasies – adjunct professor and business owner.
But really, I think I just want to be in college again, to be a student again. I was a good student. I mean, I was really good at it. I’d really like to give my senior year another shot though. I used to brag about the fact that I was drunk when I wrote the majority of my 83-page thesis in just one month. I got an A-. Imagine what I could’ve done sober.
I did love being a student. I loved to read and extract the ideas, put them in a historical context, spin them together with something new. I could write a 12-to-15-page paper on almost anything in 3-4 hours and consistently earn high marks. One professor liked my ideas on Kurt Vonnegut and Thorstein Veblen so much, he invited me to do an independent study with him.
None of that matters in my job, and it doesn’t matter in the majority of the business world. I’m sure there are companies and positions where it does matter, but the reality is that once you leave college, nobody is asking you to make a business of having an informed mind, questioning the way your mind works, or finding an outlet for your creativity. That’s been the truth I’ve found anyway.
And that’s fine for a lot of people. But four years after graduation, I find myself craving it again. I’d left college with the idea that I needed a year or two of “life” before going to grad school, so I didn’t burn out, so I could be sure. I sure have lived, that’s certain.
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Comments
09.10.08
I'm in a graduate program part time and working full time for the same university. I went back much for the same reasons you're wanting to, but I had to translate that into something practical for my boss to support my decision. Even though my degree won't directly contribute to my current position, the fact that I'm a student again is changing the way I think and work for the better. Good luck, whatever you decide!
09.10.08
Brazen editors:
Please stop changing the titles to these blog posts. The title you assigned to this post does not compute with its content. Holly's original title was fine.
09.10.08
I had the same feeling upon leaving college and I am definitely glad that I left for a bit for some "real world experience." I am actually planning on going to grad school for public health in 2009 as much for job opportunities as that intellectual craving. I think that you need both for grad school to be worth the time and money. I know that my experiences will certainly shape this next educational experience a lot.
09.10.08
I did exactly what you're saying, Holly. After my BA, I waited a few years and then went back to grad school. I've read on Penelope's blog about grad school being a waste of time if you don't have a reason and I agree. I went back so that I could teach at the college-level, I had a reason. I do love school, though, too. I was literally at the university for 14 hours a day most days, either classes, teaching, or reading tons of research. I loved it. Some people that would sound like hell, but for me, it was heaven. And I've been an adjunct professor for like six years now - I started when I was only 23. Teaching is really just such a great outlet, a way to reconnect with what's going on outside of our computer screens sometimes. You can build outstanding relationships with the professors in your department and really build a reputation for yourself outside of the business world. And in the end, you never know what opportunities it will bring.
Don't get bogged down by all these posts saying grad school is a waste, though. I barely paid a cent for it, I had two of the best years of my twenties, and it took my life into a different and better direction before going.
09.10.08
I took a long route to get my associate's degree (almost 10 years), and I start back to finish my bachelor's in January. I never liked being a student, though. Not in the traditional sense, anyway. I like learning small, specialized issues and topics, and then they build into something larger. Classrooms and I aren't the best of friends.
09.10.08
My challenge is that I've always loved learning and discovering, but I also enjoy applying them in new ways. That was part of my frustration with school, that in some ways it was just too academic.
I've discovered these new things, now I want to use them!
Unfortunately, the corporate world falls on the other end of the spectrum. You have situations in which to try new things, but rarely are the opportunities taken (or allowed) because they don't reflect "the way things are."
Where is that middle ground?
09.10.08
If you are going to do grad school - do it now.
I went part time in my 20s. One class a semester. Ended up graduated at age 31. I'm so glad I did it.
First off, I work in education, so a M.A. is not just valued, it's the standard. Secondly, I'm now watching my husband (age 37) and sister-in-law (age 32) working on their masters degrees and it just gets harder. Not the work, but the time. As you get into your 30s, if you have kids, or advance in your career, or both, your time is more limited and grad school isn't as fun.
So do it now!
09.10.08
@Kayla: I'd love to hear how you showed your boss that an unrelated degree would contribute to your current position. I think I enjoyed the consistency of being a student also. It helped me, a very inconsistent person, maintain a schedule. I can see how that would benefit me in any job I do.
@Anna: Thanks for the support, sister.
@Vanessa: I feel the same - my real world experience was so valuable. I'm not sure I would've found myself hiding in academia. I suppose I'm waiting to decide on grad school because I'm not sure about the jobs end of it... a pretty important aspect!
09.10.08
@Smith+Fritzy: What a great comment! I too loved my 5-hour jaunts in the library archives. I never got to TA or anything like that, but I would've loved to. And despite not taking my thesis as seriously as I would've liked, it was by far the most rewarding experience I had in academia. I used to entertain dreams of being the foremost Heidegger scholar. Ha.
I do also love the idea of teaching & being able to connect, as you said. And thanks for saying it's not a waste. It's not for everyone, but it is for some.
@Norcross: I hated high school so much, I just knew college was going to be great. I'm not sure what made me excel in that environment, but I did. I have a lot of friends who just didn't like it. I think that's the problem with a homogenous educational system. Everyone learns differently. Good luck on your BA. That's outstanding.
@Adam: That's a really interesting point! I guess that's why I think it would be great to be a business professor, and why I enjoyed start-up life so much. I think a start-up is the middle ground. They're smaller, more agile and open to new ideas.
09.10.08
@GenerationXpert: Thanks for the advice! I need to shut my yap and just do it already. I believe you - it's only going to be harder.
09.10.08
Great post & comments, I found myself to be in the same mindset, where I crave for another shot at fulltime college life (after 4-5 years of work)
This time, it would be for the network/connection & exploring more in the areas where I want my career to be in a MBA.
Thanks for us know that we are not alone.
09.10.08
"the reality is that once you leave college, nobody is asking you to make a business of having an informed mind, questioning the way your mind works, or finding an outlet for your creativity."
It depends on the kind of work you do. Often, you're right. But this has been true for a very long time. If you're intellectually curious, be intellectually curious. Not everything has to have a monetary reward. It's not like I'm a professional snowshoer.
09.10.08
I hate to break it to you, but you got an A- on your "drunk thesis" because your professor was grading you on your previous work and effort, he/she probably didn't read the vast majority of your Thesis. Think about it, would you read an 83 page thesis? I know my professors didn't read mine...they told me.
09.10.08
@Ian: I, too, have been looking at the possibility of an MBA to help me find my focus in business. I'm a research analyst, and yet I've had no formal training in any kind of statistics or analysis beyond what I learned in philosophy and a required statistics class. Street smarts will get you a long way, but my hope is that some formal training will get me a lot further, faster.
@Katenonymous: Yep, like I said, I know there are companies & positions where you do get to learn and expand your thinking. They're just harder to find, and not the majority of the experience. I'm not really talking about hobbies either. I know no one will pay me to knit (etsy?), but I don't really want them to. I always said in high school that my school sucked, but those who wanted to learn never lacked for opportunity. It's the opportunity I miss.
@Daniel: Actually, my profs did read my thesis. I had to defend it before a panel I chose and their questions were pretty tough. I went to a very small college, though, so I can see how this might not be the case everywhere. And while I know that at least half of that was based on my professor's knowledge of my aptitude, I did far beyond what most people were putting forth in their theses. Which, again, isn't saying much since I went to such a small school.
09.10.08
Why don't you have the opportunity? Why does that have to come from your job? There are lots of ways a job can be satisfying, and lots of ways to express yourself intellectually.
09.10.08
@KateNonymous: I'm not really sure what the argument is about here. If we desire more learning that what we get after-hours, on our own time and from our current position, then we still shouldn't go to grad school? It's simply a case that we're not looking for opportunities hard enough? I think that depends on the individual, case-by-case. In my case, I feel that I have maximized those opportunties, and still want more. Is there something wrong with that? If there were, we'd have no professors, no teachers, no grad schools.
09.10.08
I'm not really arguing; sorry if it seems that way. My questions are just that--questions.
I loved being a college student, too, so I can identify with that part of your post. Sometimes my jobs have been intellectually stimulating and sometimes they have not. I've still gotten something out of each of them, and I haven't stopped learning--regardless of where I've worked, or whether I've been enrolled in school.
Personally, I think that people should go to grad school because they want to, not because it's some sort of guaranteed path to career advancement. (For example, getting a Ph.D. is no guarantee of a tenure-track position, or indeed any job at all.) Certainly grad school can help advance your career, and in some careers it is more of a sure thing than others--depending on the school and program.
But even grad school isn't the only answer. You can learn on your own. You can find other people who have similar interests. If your high school really sucked, then that the people who managed to learn there probably were doing that already, one way or another.
If someone thinks that learning can only happen on the job or in the classroom, then yes, they are not looking for opportunities hard enough. That's what my questions are getting at.
09.11.08
The one exception I've found to this is blogging. In both of my blogging jobs, if something interests me I research it and blog about it. Constant curiosity satiation!
09.14.08
too true. i too aim for the business owner/professor combo and have been toying ith grad school 4 years post grad. this hit home. nice post.
09.18.08
I graduated university after six years with a B.A. in history. Now I work as a web developer.
You don't need grad school to learn interesting things. All you need is time... and barring that, creative ways to study while at work or at play.
02.04.09
Wow. I'm way late for this post. I'm in grad school, and have never had a 'real job.' I went from college, to MA, to PhD. I'm not sure what to tell you. There is much to be learned in both school and the real world. It is just different material. I wonder what you ended up deciding to do?
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