<p>Hi College Confidential Community. I'm a rising senior in High School, and I've considering possible plans for graduate school and career options after receiving my bachelors. I hope to major in materials science (or chem if the college doesnt offer a mat. sci degree) and minor in business. When I get my bachelors, I want to become an entrepreneur and start up my own business selling products I design and engineer. However, I've also always wanted to get a PhD both for teaching in academia later in my life and to get an in depth understanding of my science field. I want to spend the years immediately after having graduated college building up my business, and I don't thnk I want to pursue an MBA. Is it posslbe/a good idea to pursue a PhD anywhere from 10-30 years after having established a business? I figure that my background in buidling up a company and engineering my own products would make me a good professor who could teach college students.
Also, I don't think pursuing a PhD after having paid for 4-5 years of collgee is financially wise, even if I get a fellowship. I think that pursuing a PhD is a much safer decision if I have a stronger financial base.</p>
<p>First of all don’t worry about paying for your PhD. Almost every program has tuition waived by an RA/TA position even if you don’t get the benefit of a fellowship. You also get a reasonable stipend to pay for living needs. What’s generally more important is how much you give up by putting off starting a 60K+ job for 4-5 years.</p>
<p>In terms of coming back from industry to get your PhD that’s a solid idea, and your experience can even make you more attractive to graduate programs. I’m not sure how it would actually help you teach students (besides having industry connections maybe?), but many universities like to advertise the fact that they have professors with real world experience, so it definitely won’t limit you.</p>
<p>30 years after establishing a business would be way too long. Assuming you’re 22 when you finish college, that would make you 52… consider a 5-year Ph.D program and you’re 57 when you’re done. Even assuming you were accepted anywhere, you’d never find a tenure-track job.</p>
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<p>This doesn’t really logically follow - the ability to do something doesn’t automatically give you the ability to teach it. Also, professors at research universities are expected to have extensive, well, research experience - the research part of their job is generally more important than the teaching bit.</p>
<p>Relax. You’re not even out of high school yet - concentrate on graduating and choosing the right college for you next year. Your major may change, your interests may change, and 5 years from now you may find yourself teaching English in Brazil or analyzing business data in London or something.</p>
<p>I will say this though - “always wanting to get a PhD” is not a good reason to get a PhD. The ones you cited later are better ones - if you want to teach college, then you’ll need one.</p>
<p>It’s not uncommon for people to get PhDs “later in life,” i.e., later than the 22-30 age range people usually begin a PhD in. It’s becoming increasingly common for people to get them later - especially in professional fields like accounting in which experience is valued. I’d say it’s less common in the natural and physical sciences, and it depends on what you’ve spent that time doing. If you’ve spent years as a research associate on the master’s level and return to do a PhD so you can lead a lab, that’s normal. If you spend years doing business (even leading a biotech firm, or a science firm) and then try to get your PhD in science without any research experience…that’s not so normal.</p>
<p>However, consider that the training for a science career can take anywhere from 8-12 years depending (5-6 years of a PhD, then 2-6 years of postdoctoral training). Also consider that sometimes (SOMETIMES, but not all the time) some programs are wary of hiring a professor that may retire very soon.</p>