Oh and I forgot to add: It was one off the best decisions that I have taken in life!
Regards, Rashmi Dhanwani Linkedin: http://in.linkedin.com/in/rashmidhanwani Twitter: www.twitter.com/rashmid -Sent on the go. Apologies for the brevity or typos, if any! On 02-Oct-2014 10:41 AM, "Rashmi Dhanwani" <[email protected]> wrote: > Dear Aadisht, > > My circumstances are not exactly similar (I did my Masters after a few > years of working and just before I turned 30), but since I am fresh off > that boat I could probably share some vishesh tippani. > > We all miss College and those idealist learning spaces and that nostalgia > can turn to wishful thinking. The reality, however, is startlingly > different in terms of: > > 1. You will be substantially older than the median age of the class, which > can lead to exasperation when it comes to dealing with those who speak from > books and theories, especially when you have experience to back that some > of what they suggest looks good only on paper. Here, you will need to have > an extremely open mind, patience and malleability of a string of thread to > not be carried away by your own judgements of things around you. > > 2. You will often oscillate between the practical experience you have > gained and the idealistic bubble in the class room. While it can be highly > refreshing, it also means that you often rage against the ideal, with the > practical. In your head it can make you feel frustratingly dated. > > 3. You probably havent written a paper in at least 15 years, so your academic > reading ability, writing and academic argument skills are rusty. You will > need to hit the ground running from day minus 30 and keep at it without > stopping. You probably have to work harder than most others in the > classroom. And in spite of doing that and working your ass off over a > gazillion coffee'fuelled nights, when you that uncherished B, you have to > trust yourself and remember that this takes time. Relearning the rules of > the game is a slow process, and you have to turst yourself and give > yourself the space to stumble and rise again. > > Discipline is key. > > 4. Depening on which part of the world you choose to do this degree from, > your identity as an Indian and everything that you have known to be true > about who you think you are will be called into question. Strong proven > theories, anecdotal arguments, unicultural academic thinking will redefine > your own sense of self. It is a highly uncomfortable and yet an extremely > rewarding process. > > 5. A Bacelors degree is at least 3 to 4 years of monetary and time > investment. A previous thread on silklist on early retirment offers some > fabulous insights in this regard, so I wont say much... except that you > have get used to living on a budget again. And stick by it, especially if > you have no additional income coming in. > > 6. About changing careers, if that is one of your key intentions then you > have to invest time in getting involved in placement cells and doing > internships throughout your programme. Employers are often suspicious of > those changing tracks and you have to work on building new networks and > contacts, not to mention work skills, through college. Students appear to > be the least harmful, and you will be surprised to find how much the top > executives, chairpersons of organisations open up to you about their > strategies, goals and vision. So it is important to work through it along > with your degree > > 7. I will reitertae that maintaining discipline is extremely critical. > > 8. Finally, the process of going back to school, I have been told, is a > brave move. It means putting to test everything you have ever known to be > you and true. It is not just learning about new things or relearning what > you have forgotten, but putting yourself through the proverbial fire all > over again. And three or four years of it is a very brave decision. You > need to make sure those around you (wife and family) and OK with supporting > you through your commitment. It is also likely to take a toll on them. > > Have you thought about a test programme? It might help to try and do some > basic courses on Coursera or start with a part time diploma programme to be > sure. > > Hope this helps. > > Rashmi > > p.s.: apologies for the weird absence of punctuation and some spelling > errors, am using a Hungarian keyboard so very lost on what is located where > > Thanks. > > Regards, > > Rashmi Dhanwani > Linkedin: http://in.linkedin.com/in/rashmidhanwani > Twitter: www.twitter.com/rashmid > > On Thu, Oct 2, 2014 at 7:55 AM, Aadisht Khanna <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Hello all, >> >> does anybody have any experience or advice on doing a second bachelor's >> degree program in one's thirties? In the past eight years, I've moved from >> being entranced by the idea of doing a PhD, to realising that what I >> wanted >> was the glamour of a Doctorate and not so much the actual work of the >> program itself, to "oh lord, no more formal education ever". Now in the >> past few months I've been thinking of doing not a masters' program, but a >> second bachelor's (leaning towards Geology). Reasons for this are: >> >> >> 1. Pure Wanderlust / Sehnsucht. I've been enjoying my work recently >> (but >> often, only as long as I start getting out of the office and factory >> and >> doing customer visits and chasing new projects.) Starting a whole new >> lifestyle might help. >> 2. Realising, thanks to German lessons, that I really missed being in >> classroom environments. >> 3. On going to mining trade fairs (the mining industry is a huge >> customer base for me) that geology is an entire area of science I have >> negligible knowledge about. >> 4. Also realising that I've almost forgotten everything I learnt in >> high >> school (which is why I'm thinking of a bachelor's program and not a >> master's) >> 5. Realising that I wasted my original bachelor's coasting through the >> program and just trying to pass (with the exception of a few courses I >> enjoyed) and feeling that I'd like to go and get it right this time. >> >> If I do do a geology program, it won't really help me in my current line >> of >> work, as the actual process of mine exploration / surveying/ excavation >> has >> very little interface with what I do (supplying conveyor belts to mines >> that are up and running). >> >> Does anybody have any experience to share on switching careers/ fields >> after their thirties? What is the potential of just going for a Bachelor's >> program out of sheer curiosity to derail my earning potential etc? >> > >
