I completed my masters (MChem) in 1999 and the desire to earn money pulled me into the business world...
It's now nearly 10 years later and I'm thoroughly bored with my career. I still love my degree subject but have become very rusty.
I would love to return to academia and complete my DPhil, but am worried that my application won't be taken seriously.

Has anyone else returned after a long gap to do their DPhil? If so, do you have any advice on how to get back into the swing of things and convince people that you are serious about slashing your salary in half for the sake of not being bored?!?!

Wow! I was about the post a very same message! So I cant help you, but add my issues here, if its okey. My concern is a bit different though, I was wondering if I was too old for this? I mean, I feel that many phD students are graduaets from masters and never try business, so there would be an age gap. And I want to do phD because I feel that I am trough working for others, and I think I would love researching learning and teaching. But I dont want to be an outsider oldie, and I dont want to compete with 20 sometings. I am 30 years old and pregnant. Maybe I should stick with the job I have but I really do not want to give up something I want because of my circumstances

It is not an issue whatsoever, unless you make it to be. I did my degree 20 years ago. It just needs more organisation, balancing family priorities etc. as you will not be as 'free' as the average 25 year old. Your past experience will give you more life skills and maturity than most.

I agree wholeheartedly with aloha - go for it!

i too started my PhD at age 30. i found that i wasn't the oldest, by far. actually i'm probably just over average. (that doesn't change the fact that sometimes we PhD students are treated as if we were all 23 years old or such, which is sometimes hard to deal with)

as to how to convince people that you really want this: well, as a mature person who has had a good income for many years, people will expect of you that you have considered carefully what it means in terms of finances. and being mature and all, people expect you to have chosen this course specifically and consciously, rather than just wanting to do a PhD because it is the "natural" thing to do after an MSc. so actually, you can use that to your advantage. "look how much i want this. i'm even ready to half my salary for this opportunty!"

You'll be in good company, I'm sure. As Shani said, those in their 30s seem to be the majority here too.

People will be impressed that you took a salary cut to do this. Where I am, a good few of the academic staff are refugees from industry: they took a pay cut to work in academia, but are happier here.

In my dept I was one of the youngest to start the PhD at 27. Most people are in their thirties. There is a lot to be said for life experience - particularly when it comes to looking for work after the PhD. I would definitely go for it, both of you - if it what you want to do, why not try? We only live once and it's too short for regrets I say.

x J

I think really thinking it through in terms of the financial and career implications are key. There are a lot of older PhD students - you certainly won't be alone (although some have done their degrees as mature students and just carried straight on). I read your message earlier and having just had coffee with a friend who started her PhD after seven years in industry, I asked her what she thought you needed to think about and this is what she reckoned:
1) It's not just the financial implications of doing a PhD, it's what happens afterwards - make sure you are fully aware of the relatively poor pay, difficulty of getting academic jobs, the need to be geographically mobile to maximise chances and the fact that most academic jobs immediately after a PhD are fixed term contracts aka job insecurity. Oh and think through pension implications!
2) If planning a return to industry afterwards, try to do a fairly applied topic and keep all links and contacts open. They will be invaluable.

3) Are you prepared for the fact that your supervisor might be your age or even younger? And that you will be a student not an equal with the faculty? The unhappiest person my friend knows is a mature student who assumed her management experience would enable her to do a PhD effortlessly and that she didn't need the research training. Five years on, she is being told to write up for an MPhil and is deeply miserable.
4) A lot of the PhD process is about having your work criticised so that it improves. This can be a nasty shock if you've been in a management role previously.
5) academia isn't a nicer, less competitive world than industry. It's not very family-friendly in the hours you are expected to work and it's surprisingly cut-throat and very bureaucratic.
6) You will be taken seriously as a mature student but you won't be trated differently to younger students.
PS She doesn't regret her choice to do a PhD but says it was certainly not a financially sensible thing to do...

bewildered has a point about academia not being less competitive, in fact it's certainly much more than average workplace. Everyone is very academic and some let it go to their heads to the point they are unbearable! Not trying to put you off, just wanted to point that out.

As for being rusty, just read a load of books/articles.

Go for it, apply for a PhD if that's what you want, don't worry about your age. I also started my PhD later than most of the people in my department, and I really love to reply to my colleagues when they say: "I can't wait to finish my PhD and get a real job" with "I had a real job and I can't wait for the rest of my PhD"
Hope that helps.

I started my PhD last year, in my late 30s, after a ten year break from studying. It is quite an adjustment to become a student again and if you'r trying to get away from working for someone else then this won't do the trick for you. In my situation (which has not been great, and I am about to move unis) I have never felt more at the behest of an authority figure. However, I am sooo glad I am doing my PhD, do it now, not when you retire or you could end up regretting and wondering what it would have brought you for the rest of your life. I know that is the way I felt - if you feel strongly enough about it then there is no choice. There will be rewards.

Thought I'd update this. I've been doing my PhD for 2 years now and here's what I've found:

Finance - the money is awful, but you can survive on it if you're careful. The worst is when you are socialising with you pre-PhD friends, as you can no longer afford to do what you are used to. There are opportunities to supplement your stipend with income from undergraduate teaching - though, be prepared for the hassle of claiming the tax back!!!

Supervisors/Peers - I've had no problems relating to my age, my supervisor treats me like a person and my peers (who are all younger) recognise that in some areas I have more experience/knowledge than them and in other areas, I need their help. Occassionally you'll meed an arrogant little upstart who thinks they are font of knowledge - but that happens in the business world too!

Family life - being single, this has not been too bad. I have had to move back in with my parents, who are very understanding, but this does affect your personal life.

Bureaucracy - OMG!!!! Be prepared to be buried under a mountain of pointless paperwork, review meetings, review-of-review meetings etc. Academia is filled with thousands of castles, each with their own king - most of whom couln't logic their way out of a paper bag. If you have half a brain, you'll probably feel like you're going to end up with an ulcer!

Working Hours - There's something deeply rotten about the institutional attitudes to postgraduate working hours. The situatuion for undergraduates is heavily regulated within the uni, but it's a blank page as far as PGs are concerned. There are no defined terms, no written annual-leave policy, no sense of progess through the PhD, no milestoning. It's a case of someone fires a starting pistol and then you run as fast as you can until you have a heart attack or they hand you a silly-looking gown. I work 8am-5.30pm mon-fri and 9am-2pm every other saturday...I am still sometimes made to feel like this is not enough. Work-Life balance is something that you must enforce, nobody else will consider it on your behalf.

Work is the word I use - I am a worker, not a student (if only I had the legal protection granted to workers!!!!)

Career - If, like me, you are doing your PhD in an area unrelated to your previous career, you are probably going to burn a lot of bridges. you must be as sure that you want to do your PhD as you are that you don't want to return to your old career.

Hope that helps anyone in the situation I was in 2 years ago.