Hi all,

I'm in a bit of a panic and need some reassurance. I'm almost 27 years old (oh my, that's scary :$ ) and I am seriously considering doing a Phd. I would really like to do a taught masters first so that I can prove my worth (so to speak) in order to get funding.

However, as you've probably noted already I'm a little bit concerned about my age when entering into all of this.

I procrastinated quite a bit during my undergrad years (and there were a lot of them!) - things just got in the way of my studies so I just kept on starting again and re-taking years. Lack of money, meeting my other half at uni (we were together all of the time) and confusions about what I wanted out of life/career just all got in the way. Before, I was always someone who was top of the class and looked like I was going somewhere in life. But I've constantly had difficulties in choosing just the ONE thing to focus on, scared in case it's the wrong choice.

As a result of this, I haven't got anywhere yet, and I know that if I don't do anything about this now then I'll never achieve anything in my life.

However, I'm worried about going back to uni at 27. I'm nervous about the work. Nervous about younger masters students being so much brighter than me because I've been out of the game for so long (daft thing to worry about, I know). Bricking it that I won't actually get onto the Phd after the masters. And I'm also worried that I won't 'fit in' to postgrad and academic life. What if I'm not clever or organised enough?

Any advice would be welcome.


Many thanks in advance,
Bumble

======= Date Modified 20 Jun 2011 17:08:59 =======
Wow, lots of anxieties there! Let's look at age firstly.

27 is not too old to start a PhD. I would, however, suggest that you look carefully at your field and see what the typical age for a PhD student is and get some feel for post-PhD prospects if you are hoping to stay in academia afterwards. Some fields are very much dominated by young PhD students who may not even have a masters; others appreciate the experience that may have been gained from non-academic work.

Before you commit yourself to a taught masters, consider whether getting an entry level research job may be more beneficial. It really depends on (i) what your field is (ii) how much relevant experience you have (iii) how good your bachelor's result was and (iv) how clear you are about an area of study.

If you want an example someone of a similar age, I graduated at 22, did a year's research work, then 1.5 years of a PhD before quitting, just over a year of research work in a different field, taught masters in that field, and now I'm a first year PhD student again at the age of 28. Most people on my masters were 25-35 (mine is a field that people tend to come to a bit later on) and the other two PhD students in my research group are 28-29. So it doesn't have to be an issue. But it does sound as though there are other things you need to consider carefully. Some questions to ask yourself:

1. Can you maintain the focus required for a 3 years PhD. You will have very little guidance and input compared to a Bachelor's degree, so you need to be able to find a path and stick to it to some extent (expect deviations, but not continual changes of direction)

2. If you did a masters and then didn't get on to a PhD, would that be so terrible? Make sure you choose a masters that is worthwhile in its own right.

3. There is no 'perfect choice'. We rarely have the fortune to make perfect decisions. But there are plenty of 'good enough' options that will get you to the next stage in life. Try to reconcile yourself with that and stop worrying about perfect choices.

Thanks for your advice Hazyjane.

I think I will be able to maintain my focus for the 3-4 years needed to complete it. What I really need right now is something definite and permanent to focus on, instead of swaying from one idea to another about what I want to do with my life. The thing is, I just hope I can achieve everything that I want to achieve in this area with such a late start into it. I will be 31-32 years old by the time I finish the phd, then I'll need to get a job. I wouldn't have had a lot of work experience in this field by that time, and yet this will probably be the time that I will want career security. With it being such a competitive area to get work in, how early would you recommend that I get work published and take on teaching jobs? Can you do that whilst doing a masters? Would there even be enough time?

Just out of curiosity - why did you quit a year and a half into your phd?

I quit because I wasn't enjoying it, it wasn't going anywhere, I'd decided I wanted to work in a different field, and the environment I was in was not pleasant. That seemed like a good enough set of reasons to move on!

Some of your other questions depend on your field. If you're a science student I doubt you'd have time to teach during an MSc but an arts timetable might be more flexible. Publish as soon as you can, but that might not happen during a masters. Really depends on your discipline.