Is grad school for me?

Graduate School
1

<p>My GPA will probably be around a 3.2 by the time of senior year graduation. 3.5 in my upper-divison classes. </p>

<p>I was considering graduate school and I am still going to take the GRE, but I've recently discussed plans with my girlfriend about not going to graduate school and just working. I'm an applied math/stats major with a minor in physics (+ a little more) and from all of the graduate programs I've looked at nothing really interests me math-wise because I am kind of geographically restricted. I plan on living in Kentucky because the graduate program she wanted to attend at UCLA is not what she wanted (I live in California). We've been long-distance all through undergrad and so that definitely has to end. So both of us have to live within driving distance.</p>

<p>I like physics a lot and I talked to a lot of physics professors about graduate school. Physics really interests me and I'd like to pursue that dream someday, but I have debt and she has debt so I'm thinking the right direction is to get a job. We're also going to have to finance our own wedding (probably $30K out of our own pocket). I was thinking actuary. Starting salaries seem good and progressing I could be making six figures relatively soon. I'd like to get an MBA, but I have no work experience so I was thinking I'd just work for a couple years and try to do well. I mean right now I am young-ish (23), I don't know how admissions people feel about a thirty something year old returning to get a PhD in Physics. I was thinking I could somehow work in a master's in physics going part-time somewhere before I hit mid-30s. Maybe teach actuarial science and physics at a university somewhere in Kentucky way later down the road. </p>

<p>It's just that I am kind of unclear on my plans. I'm thinking of this as a time to make something happen, but I know she's going to have 30K student loan debt and I will probably have 30K debt as well. I'd probably have to take out some more for graduate school to fund a master's...</p>

2

<p>Definitely get a job and let your ideas settle for a while. Don’t take on additional debt if you are not sure. If you decide to follow up on physics in a couple of years, you will not be too old by any means. At that time, make sure you study for the GRE exams and go for a Ph.D. where you should be supported for studying and incur no additional debt. If you choose a Masters, then full funding is a bit harder to find but it is, after all, only a 2 year degree and the expense is limited.</p>

3

<p>23 isn’t young-“ish”; it’s just plain young.</p>

<p>Yes, definitely go get work experience first. People begin PhDs in their 30s all the time, it’s not unusual at all. 30 is a lot younger than you think it is when you are 23, lol.</p>

<p>What I will say is that an academic career will require you to be geographically mobile. There just aren’t that many universities in Kentucky; perhaps none of them have the physics research you are interested in, or maybe none of them will be hiring when you graduate and need a job. Or maybe the one that is is on the other end of the state from your girlfriend. If you want a career in academia down the road, you’ll have to discuss with your girlfriend whether she’s willing to be geographically mobile with you. Otherwise, you’ll need to be open to the idea that you may have to take non-academic employment.</p>

4

<p>Don’t rush into graduate school if you’re not sure that’s where you want to be. Work for a while, and perhaps that will help you see that you either really want to go back to school or your really don’t. Graduate school will always be there when you’re ready for it. There’s nothing wrong with going back when you are a little older and a little wiser.</p>