Going back to college in your early 40s...sounds like a terrible idea...but Im considering it.

[StuckInTheEast]

Fair enough and easy enough for me to say knowing absolutely nothing.

But…..there’s always only fans?

Not sure that works quite as well for guys...but if I had anything anyone wanted to pay to see I'd show for a paycheck in a heartbeat

 

[MarkOrtiz]

I went back to school at 36 and just graduated from SNHU at 41 this spring with an Environmental Science degree. It was mostly paid for by my employer which was the only reason I really could do it, plus SNHU was pretty easy and all after work in the evenings online. Now looking at other jobs that I might like better and everything is about 50% of what I make now. We are set up pretty well and packing away money into 401ks, HRA, and investments with a plan to retire/semi-retire about 55. I think I will just stay here at this employer and take more vacations and just learn to live with it at this time. I'll keep the degree for a what if or need to move scenario. Maybe just a lateral shift for you might be what you need. Close to equal pay and close to the same job, but for a different employer, or just different enough that it makes your day to day life a little better. Hope you find a solution or something that works for you.

 

[Amos Keeto]

I went back to school at 36 and just graduated from SNHU at 41 this spring with an Environmental Science degree. It was mostly paid for by my employer which was the only reason I really could do it, plus SNHU was pretty easy and all after work in the evenings online. Now looking at other jobs that I might like better and everything is about 50% of what I make now. We are set up pretty well and packing away money into 401ks, HRA, and investments with a plan to retire/semi-retire about 55. I think I will just stay here at this employer and take more vacations and just learn to live with it at this time. I'll keep the degree for a what if or need to move scenario. Maybe just a lateral shift for you might be what you need. Close to equal pay and close to the same job, but for a different employer, or just different enough that it makes your day to day life a little better. Hope you find a solution or something that works for you.

Put yourself out there as a "consultant". Guy i worked with was the first person in our department to work with an ozone (O3) generator in one of our plants.
Until he retired and after he retired, he made some good money as other plants in the area installed ozone systems.

 

[Sandhills]

My dad did it in his late 40s and early fifties. Goofed off too much when he was younger, would rather party.

He got a degree, associates of science as he went to a jr college, and a certificate in fish hatchery management. He took out a 30 k student loan and then never applied his degree or certificate to a career.

Not trying to dissuade you, because education is important and I commend anyone who wishes to further theirs. Good luck and I hope you find a kick ass job in the field you like

 

[180ls1]

Interesting how fast time goes by.

Since my post here, I earned my Masters in Personal Finance. Some of my designations applied/exempted me from 2 classes and some of the other classes I could pass at my own pace (expedited, been in the industry a while).

I know confirmation bias is real but it feels like the right decision. I'm 37 and never plan to fully retire until I have to. Best of luck everyone! It was certainly rough at times but I am glad I jumped in and hit it hard.

 

[jdl25]

Just a thought, based on how I went back to college as an adult. I went to community college and got a two year associates degree, then transferred to a four year school and finished the last two years. This saved me a ton of money. Plus it was cool in the short term to earn the two year degree, a halfway point goal with something tangible.

Initially I was so scared to fail that I took one class per semester in community college for the first few semesters. By the time I got to the university I was taking a few classes each semester, maximizing both summer sessions, working full time, and I had a part time job. Adults do well in college. It's mostly time management.

You can do anything you put your mind to.

 

[Pony Soldier]

I graduated from high school at 18. Got my first degree if fisheries at 23. I got a second degree in mining at 28. I got a masters in mining at 48. In between I was 1 class short of a degree in geology. I took multiple classes in metallurgy and now I occasionaly teach them.

Along the trip I have taken numerous classes in the form of short courses at 5 or 6 universities. I have taught classes at 2 universities and for the federal government. All of this while working hunting elk every fall.

You never quit learning and often you⁰ learn more teaching. I have spent the last 30 years teaching people how to be successful including solving complicated industry problems. You never quit learning.. Make life work for you. School teaches you how to think- life teaches you how to use it.

 

[Hnthrdr]

Have you looked at fleet maintenance jobs? Would at least take dealing with the public out of the equation.

Our fleet guys do well, they get to be apart of our union and it’s a fairly chill environment, it seems pretty sought after, but great guys!

 

[F16pointy]

I spent 20 year in the USAF, thought I knew the entire time what I was going to do when I retired. The last 8 years that I was in I was miserable most of the time. I also had completed 3 degrees while I was in, highest was a Masters. Then I got a wild hair up my butt and completely changed directions, started Electrical Engineering degree at 43. Definitely wasnt easy juggling home life and school work. But I have been done now for a little over 6 years and love what I am doing. It was totally worth the time it took to complete the degree. Life is to damn short to be miserable all the time! Go for it dude!

 

[VomSteinbruch]

I went to an art school when I was 17. I spent five years studying everything and nothing at the same time, while also drinking, dating, and generally trying to figure myself out. If a class was considered cool, I took it: painting, sculpture, anthropology, urban studies. You name it. I probably wasted a fair amount of my parents' money and patience along the way.

I graduated at 21 with even more confusion and delusion than when I started.

Then I moved to NYC where my uncle lived. He told me he could get me a day job so I could pursue my dreams at night. I started working as a drawing librarian at a large engineering company. I was impressed by how serious and committed those people were. Unlike many of my artist friends, they actually built things.

Long story short, I started an apprenticeship and learned drafting. I spent five or six years there and eventually worked my way up to assistant engineer. I met some great people, including a surprising number of closet hunters and outdoorsmen. You can't exactly advertise that hobby in NYC.

Then I went through a breakup. For a sensitive young man, it was devastating.

I walked away from everything and spent four months hitchhiking across the country. It was an incredible period of solitude. I saw some beautiful places and realized just how magnificent God's creation is. Eventually, I returned to my normal life. My old boss rehired me, and I spent more time in the field working on larger and more complex projects.

A few years later, my boss, an avid outdoorsman from some godforsaken village in Arctic Norway, sat me down and told me that I would soon hit a ceiling because I didn't have a degree, and there was nothing he could do about it.

By then, I was 32. I honestly thought I was too old to go back to college.

I told my wife what was going to happen. She said I had to get a degree and that she would support me however she could.

So, I moved to Michigan and earned a bachelor's degree in building sciences. I graduated just three months before my 36th birthday. Those were some of the best years of my life.

My dad went to a collage at 35 and graduated 40.

If you really want something and have the support to pursue it, age becomes secondary.