Would you consider starting a masters degree at age 55?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I got a masters in debating but when I tell folks they laugh at me.

The same thing happens to the people who get masters degrees and doctorates in the field of basket weaving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I got a masters in debating but when I tell folks they laugh at me.

The same thing happens to the people who get masters degrees and doctorates in the field of basket weaving.

You missed the joke

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Piggybacking on the everyone gets laid off at 55 post and turning to the Internet for advice.

Would you attempt to get a masters degree in social work at 55 years old or is it too late?

I have a college degree and a job that pays about the same as I would make as a social worker, maybe a little more but not much. In no danger of getting laid off but the job is boring and obviously not financially rewarding. I own my home outright but have all the usual expenses which I meet by living frugally. When I sell I will receive a large windfall because I bought so long ago in a now highly desirable area and if I can get a handle on capital gains as a non married person, I should be ok. I have some retirement savings but nothing spectacular although I picture working until I physically can't. This would be by choice regardless of my financial circumstances.

I want to throw caution to the wind and just go for it. I'm looking at a cheaper public program and two more expensive privates which are truly better programs with better professors and a better caliber of student. For this program only! Not dissing public programs in general. I would have to take out loans but I'm not scared of them since I am so old. Part of Mr feels like if I'm going to put in the work, I should go for the highest level option.

I have ruminated on pursuing this degree for years and although I regret not doing it sooner, I don't want to give up this dream unless I am being completely unrealistic right now. Interested in any thoughts or advice.

At your age, you should be thinking about retirement, not ruminating about unfulfilled dreams and opportunities that are long gone.

^Hey dumba$$, you can do whatever you want in this world at whatever time YOU see fit. Just b/c you wouldn't do it, doesn't mean OP shouldn't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No. You already make more money than you would with a social work degree. Volunteer on the side to be more fulfilled. Put that tuition money and lost years of work into your retirement.

This is what I was going to say. I think you'll likely lose retirement years (or retirement income) to pay for tuition (or pay off loans). Only you can decide if that is a good trade-off.

[Anonymous]

If you really want a master's in social work, I would go for the least expensive program possible. Think it's a good dream to go for, but if you actually want to be a social worker, taking out large loans for private programs isn't worth it, no matter how good the faculty.

[Anonymous]

And, get away from the idea of pursuing the "hugest level option." A master's in social work from any university will be fine, you are the person who makes it challenging.

Go someplace local or on the web, so you can stay in your paid for house.

Go part time, so you can stay in your current job and pay as you go.

Getting the master's is a good idea, "pursuing the highest level option" is not a good idea at this point. You will get a lower paying job as a social worker or counselor regardless of where your degree is from.

[Anonymous]

No, but I plan on retiring at 56.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Piggybacking on the everyone gets laid off at 55 post and turning to the Internet for advice.

Would you attempt to get a masters degree in social work at 55 years old or is it too late?

I have a college degree and a job that pays about the same as I would make as a social worker, maybe a little more but not much. In no danger of getting laid off but the job is boring and obviously not financially rewarding. I own my home outright but have all the usual expenses which I meet by living frugally. When I sell I will receive a large windfall because I bought so long ago in a now highly desirable area and if I can get a handle on capital gains as a non married person, I should be ok. I have some retirement savings but nothing spectacular although I picture working until I physically can't. This would be by choice regardless of my financial circumstances.

I want to throw caution to the wind and just go for it. I'm looking at a cheaper public program and two more expensive privates which are truly better programs with better professors and a better caliber of student. For this program only! Not dissing public programs in general. I would have to take out loans but I'm not scared of them since I am so old. Part of Mr feels like if I'm going to put in the work, I should go for the highest level option.

I have ruminated on pursuing this degree for years and although I regret not doing it sooner, I don't want to give up this dream unless I am being completely unrealistic right now. Interested in any thoughts or advice.

At your age, you should be thinking about retirement, not ruminating about unfulfilled dreams and opportunities that are long gone.

That was mean. Pursuit of dreams doesn’t have to end in your 50s.

Probably according to that PP, it ends at 30. I wouldn’t listen to a bitter, angry ageist like that. What are people supposed to do, crawl in a corner at 40 and wait to die? Geez, some people are depressing black holes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you really want a master's in social work, I would go for the least expensive program possible. Think it's a good dream to go for, but if you actually want to be a social worker, taking out large loans for private programs isn't worth it, no matter how good the faculty.

This. I’m fully supportive of someone who wants to pursue a dream, but taking out loans for this one would be a misstep, imho. I’m your age, op, so I get having an interest you want to pursue, but realistically this is not the time to put yourself behind the 8-ball with student loans. If there’s a public university option that’s affordable for you, go for that. Do not burden yourself with debt for a “name” degree that will not benefit you financially at the end.

[Anonymous]

I don’t think your age is a problem but it is a high burnout field even for idealistic young people with lots of energy. I cannot imagine going into this line of work now (I’m younger than you.) That’s not a reason not to do it but it’s a reason to be cautious and talk to many people in the field.

[Anonymous]

I'm back at school in my 50's (for a TESOL graduate certificate program -- about half of a masters degree) and it gets old fast. A number of older students started the program with me but I am the only one who will complete it, in large part because I had no expectation of this being a sound financial decision. Besides the financial end, consider how much you like working with much younger students on group projects because there will be a lot of it. Many of the older students really struggled with this aspect. Other challenges include learning new technology and more mundane things like hunting down my immunization records from 1970 (a state requirement to submit them if you are a student).

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thank you everyone for all the different perspectives. This gives me much to think about especially the no loan advice. The state program is something I can pay out right but I do worry about the necessary clinical internships that don't pay because of lost earnings.

I encounter social workers at my job and the private program graduates seem more on the ball but they have decades to pay their loans back. I don't .

The part time idea is an excellent one because what if I don't like it after all. Fewer sunk costs. The school part is a necessary evil for the career change. I think I will be ok with the younger students because I work fine with lots of younger people and my boss is a number of years younger than I am and it's not an issue.

Interesting advice re the house. I bought it 20+ years ago in an area that was nothing to brag about but was fine. Now everyone assumes you have money if you live there. I never intended for it to be much of an asset and although I'd sell it in a minute, I'd have to find something cheaper that made sense. It is the home where I raised my children so I didn't consider selling it until recently now that they're grown (ish) and out of the house.

Going to review my homeowners insurance though. I've paid the same rates for years.

I want to thank the person who said my dreams should be over because it reminded me that they are not. That would be too depressing for anyone. I'm old but I'm not dead. Yet.

[Anonymous]

If your goal is to maximize your career earnings, going back to school at 55 probably isn't the right move.

If your goal is to pursue a dream and work on something that's truly fulfilling for you, then that's a different story.

Just make sure you know why you are doing it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If your goal is to maximize your career earnings, going back to school at 55 probably isn't the right move.

If your goal is to pursue a dream and work on something that's truly fulfilling for you, then that's a different story.

Just make sure you know why you are doing it.

OP here. I don't want to look back on my life and accept that I didn't do it. I don't make too much money now so I'm used to it. I referenced living frugally in my 1st post but I don't live like an Extreme Cheapskate episode. I have enough and compared to so many worldwide, I am doing ok. The upside to having a modest lifestyle is that the downside is a continuation of the same financial situation. The setback of time of being in school and the internships is where I hesitate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Piggybacking on the everyone gets laid off at 55 post and turning to the Internet for advice.

Would you attempt to get a masters degree in social work at 55 years old or is it too late?

I have a college degree and a job that pays about the same as I would make as a social worker, maybe a little more but not much. In no danger of getting laid off but the job is boring and obviously not financially rewarding. I own my home outright but have all the usual expenses which I meet by living frugally. When I sell I will receive a large windfall because I bought so long ago in a now highly desirable area and if I can get a handle on capital gains as a non married person, I should be ok. I have some retirement savings but nothing spectacular although I picture working until I physically can't. This would be by choice regardless of my financial circumstances.

I want to throw caution to the wind and just go for it. I'm looking at a cheaper public program and two more expensive privates which are truly better programs with better professors and a better caliber of student. For this program only! Not dissing public programs in general. I would have to take out loans but I'm not scared of them since I am so old. Part of Mr feels like if I'm going to put in the work, I should go for the highest level option.

I have ruminated on pursuing this degree for years and although I regret not doing it sooner, I don't want to give up this dream unless I am being completely unrealistic right now. Interested in any thoughts or advice.

At your age, you should be thinking about retirement, not ruminating about unfulfilled dreams and opportunities that are long gone.

OP, I hope you are ignoring responses like the one posted above. Your thoughtful question is not 'ruminating' and you are not asking to 'go back in time'. Your question is super inspiring!

Colleagues of mine who recently completed their masters degrees have said that they were really grateful for the expertise and commitment of their professors, and that the work was much more in depth than they had anticipated. Can you attend any open house events or panels where former students discuss their experiences with the programs? The ability to listen to the Q&A and hear a variety of responses can be really helpful.

One graduate school open house panel that I attended a few years ago had students of all ages and life stages, and one woman had started her masters degree at the same time as you are considering. The timing worked really well for her because her some of her step-children were in college and the youngest one was in later high school, so she was able to have the physical time and emotional bandwidth to do the course work and she talked about bonding more with her high schooler especially since they both were writing papers at home in the evenings. Other graduates on the panel also talked about being glad that they had lots of time for the course work as well. I realized that I could not proceed with enrolling because my existing commitments were too time intensive then and I did not want to change my existing commitments.

So, absolutely, it's not too late to start and complete a masters degree. Who will be attending the program, and who or where would you have access to emotional support when the workload gets heavy? Or, if you are not someone who likes to study or 'talk shop' with other people, what would be your non-school emotional reset/strengthening activity that could keep you in touch with people or an activity that you like that has nothing to do with school?

Good luck! 55 is not the time to close doors