What are you studying?

[MrHat]

I've been taking Spanish classes for quite a while now and I hope to start Russian in the next week or three.

Having a "full-time job" that only takes 25 or 30 hours a week is pretty damn nice 

:-D  I know the feeling.

[veredus]

Polysomnography right now. Then when done going to do respiratory care. Plan on going to school for RC degree while working as a polysom tech.

From Wikipedia:

Polysomnography or PSG is a multi-parametric test used in the study of sleep and as a diagnostic tool in sleep medicine. The test result is called a polysomnogram, also abbreviated PSG.

Interesting. Is this undergraduate work or self study or ?

Medtech type job. Hook you up to the machines and watch you sleep all night. I am actually just doing a cert program at the local community college. Only three quarters long and since being laid off her shortly the speed of the program + it being interesting is a good combo. Just finished my first quarter of school which were my prereqs to get into the program. Weird experience (but loved it actually) since I'm 30 years old and never went to college other then running start in high school.

[Lianka]

I'm working my way toward a MA in Computational Linguistics.  Right now, I'm taking the math and the programming courses I need to qualify.  Prior to starting this, I hadn't taken a math course for 16 years! 

Barring being accepted into that, I'll likely do an undergrad in CS, or I'm considering math.  Math is cool.  Math is sexay.   

[K9]

[Soln]

CompLing seems to have worked well for Goog

[Bunk]

Organizational Behaviour - two weeks left before the final. Taking a business course at my age has taught me something - 90% of kids right out of highschool do not have the slightest clue how to speak in front of a room full of people, or give a presentation..

You got it, they also feel entitled to marks if they do work. Even if the work is completely and utterly wrong. They type up reports using chat style typing, don't use spellcheck and complain that "no one will care how I write." Keep in mind I'm in a business program.

On that note, Business Administration - Human Resources. Final semester. Wish I knew what I was doing after I graduate.

Thirty marks of our group project were for spelling and grammar. As in, she would remove one of those thirty for every mistake. She implemented this after recieving too many reports that looked like they'd been texted in from a mobile.

This is a year one course, generaly considered a gimme course. I scored an A- on the first midterm with about four hours of studying. Over 40% of the fucking class failed the first midterm.

[trias_e]

I'm in my last semester at the university of utah as a philosophy major.  I went to school simply because of my parents in the first place, and honestly, it was almost entirely a huge waste of time.  Partially my own fault for wasting a few years failing classes as an retarded alcoholic.  But I guess I'll have a degree.  A useless degree with a terrible GPA.  But a degree nonetheless.

That said, philosophy has been enlightening at times.  Everyone should read Plato and Aristotle at some point in their lives.  They may not have the answers, but the questions they ask are pretty huge, meaning of life type stuff.  All of philosophy is a footnote to Plato.

I plan on continuing my current illustrious career post graduation.  That is, playing poker for a living.

If anyone has any ideas on what to do with a philosophy degree with no connections whatsoever, let me know!

[gimpyone]

Graduated in 08 with Greek and Latin BA. I am getting a pointless certificate right now that says I spent the last year doing the same thing as undergrad but with less financial support.  Next year, I am going to graduate school to get my M.A. in Lit.

Basically, what I hope to do through understanding Greek and Latin is apply disability theory (or make up theory) to how the Greeks and Romans perceived and wrote about disabilities in their literature.

[Bzalthek]

Organizational Behaviour - two weeks left before the final. Taking a business course at my age has taught me something - 90% of kids right out of highschool do not have the slightest clue how to speak in front of a room full of people, or give a presentation..

You got it, they also feel entitled to marks if they do work. Even if the work is completely and utterly wrong. They type up reports using chat style typing, don't use spellcheck and complain that "no one will care how I write." Keep in mind I'm in a business program.

On that note, Business Administration - Human Resources. Final semester. Wish I knew what I was doing after I graduate.

Thirty marks of our group project were for spelling and grammar. As in, she would remove one of those thirty for every mistake. She implemented this after recieving too many reports that looked like they'd been texted in from a mobile.

This is a year one course, generaly considered a gimme course. I scored an A- on the first midterm with about four hours of studying. Over 40% of the fucking class failed the first midterm.

I am a horribly anti-social and introverted person.  However, for group projects, I take the lead.  I want to make sure what the teacher gets comes directly from me after I've had time to strip out the stupid and the retard.

[schild]

In high school, on every group project, I did _everything_. Thank god there were no presentations. Relying on other people that you have no say in involving yourself with sucks. I can work on a capable team just fine. I did so many times in college. But high school? No way, it was my way or the highway. Also, I got As. Every goddamn time. And so did they. I don't think I got thanks once, except from one person - who happened to be my best friend and I wanted him to get an A. God, people are just unreliable.

[Lianka]

Awesome!  That solidifies it!  If it's mocked in xkcd, it's ok with me! :) 

It'll be just like those "Russian?  Why are you studying Russian?  That language is going to die soon!" and "Linguistics?  What's that?  Are you one of those people who is trying to make Ebonics a real language?" questions I fielded throughout undergrad!

[Abagadro]

An update on the amount of progress I have made on my PhD dissertation after passing my comps a year and a half ago:  ummmmm, nil.

[ghost]

<------Orthodontist.

Don't plan on doing any "studying" any time soon after having spent 11 years after college getting here.

[Grimwell]

I'm considering taking classes again. Mainly because my employer offers tuition support and my wife's job (college professor) lowers tuition for me. It's essentially going to be close to free and I can pick and choose things.

I am considering courses toward a business degree, but that is countered by me not wanting to deal with the stupid that is college again. Not the kids in the classes, my gray hair will ensure that they avoid me; but professors with agendas that have nothing to do with learning the subject. I didn't do well with them as a young man and am much more cranky these days. 

[K9]

Can you only take business/skills oriented classes or do you have a broader scope? If you can do pretty much anything, why not just take something you enjoy and learn more about it?

[Grimwell]

I have to be able to show that they are tangentally related to my work for tuition reimbursement; same as anywhere.

I don't see that as a huge problem. I could use another run through a technical writing course just to get the chops back up; etc.

Plus, if I want to study anthropology and can't justify it, my wife's employment makes it cheap enough for out of pocket if I save smart.

It's a good thing.

[Delmania]

AS, BS, MS in Computer Science.  My master's thesis was a game. 

[Chimpy]

I have been toying with going back to school for about 3 years now. Problem is I don't want to finish my M.F.A, as I don't plan on ever going back into the scenery building business, so anything I would be interested in would effectively require starting over from scratch in a new bachelor's program. Yay for 15k in loans for 1/3 of a degree I will never finish.

Right now I can't afford the extra debt load, so it will probably stay put off until at least the spring.

[Gets]

I go to law school in my hometown, just trying to get a BA and see where it takes me, but most likely taking the extra two years for an MA. Will try to avoid becoming a future bloodsucker. It really is one of those things you go to study if you're unsure what you like. So far I've gotten the basics thrown at me about sociology, philosophy, ancient history, psychology, economics and linguistics. Actual legal subjects have only touched the surface mostly, but I have one course right now which basically talks about violence and violent behavior. Pretty awesome.

The most interesting thing about it is how I got into university in the first place, so this is more of a "Cool story, bro." from here on. When I was in high school the part geek in me got me sent to different state-wide science competitions, but somehow I managed to make it to the national Finnish language competition. Twice. First year I just got to know what it was like and I had no chance of beating the older kids who at one part lived in Finland or had Finnish parents. My biggest weakness was that I had no ability to actually speak the language, not having any Finnish friends or relatives. Hell, I knew as much as I did from watching a lot of Finnish TV and studying the language for a year.

Next year a Finnish guy I had met in an MMO (saved his Dark Shield from looters once) tells me he's coming to visit my town and he would like to meet me along with his friend, who happened to be a foreign exchange student and staying very close to where I live. We become friends and the exchange student agrees to occasionally get together on weekends to help me learn to speak this strange "orcish" language - this means grabbing some drinks and staying up late in a dorm room talking about whatever. Time passes and I take part in the language competition again. Thanks to spending time with my new finnish friend I ace the verbal part of the test and beat some girl with a Finnish surname by two points, coming in first. Since the whole thing was held by the top university in my country it lands me a full scholarship if I had decided to study there, which I did.

After that I've always valued every person I've gotten to know online and sigh a little when people claim video games are useless wastes of time.

[Mosesandstick]

About to finish my BSc in Physics. Applied for MScs in all sorts of random environmental and sustainable stuff.

[Mandrel]

I'm in my second attempt at a Bachelor's degree.  First time, I went to a small liberal arts school in central New York (Colgate) on a full academic scholarship.  I was very indifferent towards classes, changed my major about 6 times in a year and a half.  Got really poor grades.  I went off to Colorado for a break that was supposed to last a semester and a Summer, ended up staying for 10 years.  After working a ton, and having some good times, I finally decided I wanted something different, and that I needed to go back to school.  My Mother had a stroke, and my Father was planning to retire, so I moved back to my hometown.

I'm Hoping to finish BSc in Biomedical Science at the University of Buffalo in about 3 more semesters.  I'm actually enjoying school now a lot more than I did 10 plus years ago.  Then, the plan is to move to Texas, establish residency, and apply to Med Schools, taking advantage of their Academic Fresh Start Program.  It lets you drop grades/ credits that are more than 10 years old in applying for programs.  It's basically the only feasible chance I have to get into an M.D. program with my earlier shitty academic record.  If that doesn't work out, maybe apply to Master's, PhD, or possibly PharmD programs.

Yeah, I'd be 35 -starting- medical school, but there are always a few older med students, and even if I take 10 years to graduate and finish a residency, that's still 20 plus years of practicing.  Not having a wife or kids (thank God) makes this doable.

[Paelos]

I was studying for my Masters in Accounting. Now, I'm studying the CPA exam sections.

[Lantyssa]

Yeah, I'd be 35 -starting- medical school, but there are always a few older med students, and even if I take 10 years to graduate and finish a residency, that's still 20 plus years of practicing.  Not having a wife or kids (thank God) makes this doable.

As long as you enjoy what you're doing, when you start it doesn't matter.

I dropped my Ph.D. candidacy to go back for a second Bachelor's when I was 25.  It was one of the best decisions I ever made.

[Nebu]

Yeah, I'd be 35 -starting- medical school, but there are always a few older med students, and even if I take 10 years to graduate and finish a residency, that's still 20 plus years of practicing.  Not having a wife or kids (thank God) makes this doable.

I've granted admission to many people just like you that ended up being at or near the top of their respective classes.  Maturity and experience matter. 

Advice: Don't screw up the MCAT. 

[Mandrel]

Advice: Don't screw up the MCAT. 

Yeah.  I take tests reasonably well, and I'm planning on taking it in my "year off" from school while getting Texas residency.  I'm aiming to have a 3.6- 3.8 GPA in my new 90- 100 hours of coursework.  If I had to count all my old grades, I'd be looking at below a 3.0.

I may speak to some admissions committee members here in New York next year to see what my chances are -here-, given my "upward trend", but I have a feeling the old grades are going to hurt me too much.

I've researched this pretty thoroughly, and Texas is the only state that has a program like this.  It's part of their using the TMDSAS, versus the AMCAS for admissions.

[Nebu]

I may speak to some admissions committee members here in New York next year to see what my chances are -here-, given my "upward trend", but I have a feeling the old grades are going to hurt me too much.

They won't if you have a) good MCAT scores, particularly verbal and b) some healthcare experience.  The last 2-3 years are the most important in the admissions decision.  Being a state resident will help your odds immensely as well if the school is a state program.  If you've done well the most recent few years because of going part-time, that doesn't help.  It has to show a record of recent success in some tough classes (being at a good school helps).

[NiX]

In high school, on every group project, I did _everything_. Thank god there were no presentations. Relying on other people that you have no say in involving yourself with sucks. I can work on a capable team just fine. I did so many times in college. But high school? No way, it was my way or the highway. Also, I got As. Every goddamn time. And so did they. I don't think I got thanks once, except from one person - who happened to be my best friend and I wanted him to get an A. God, people are just unreliable.

Yay for forced random groups. I've had to suffer through 4 this semester alone. One of those groups I've had to deal with for 2 semesters straight. My teacher has to praise me in private because only 1 person out of my group of 6 has come to class in the past 5 weeks. She has no idea what's going on in the class and is really only there to ensure I can't peer evaluate her ass to a failing mark.

I'm very bitter about the post-secondary education system. I don't mind the cost, not in Canada at least, the Government has made it very accessible. Too accessible. And by subsidizing it, they've made it profitable for Universities/Colleges to let stupid people coast on through to a diploma/degree.

[Mandrel]

They won't if you have a) good MCAT scores, particularly verbal and b) some healthcare experience.  The last 2-3 years are the most important in the admissions decision.  Being a state resident will help your odds immensely as well if the school is a state program.  If you've done well the most recent few years because of going part-time, that doesn't help.  It has to show a record of recent success in some tough classes (being at a good school helps).

I'm hoping to hear good things, but not getting my hopes up.  I have about 100 credits at around a 2.0 average from 10+ years ago, and nothing since then until I returned to school last Fall.  I'm hoping the 90+ additional, new credits with a good GPA will outshine the old ones, but with the crazy numbers of applicants, and how many schools auto- decline by GPA based on AMCAS, I'm not very hopeful going that route.  I'm retaking all the pre- reqs, shooting for all A's, and taking some more advanced science classes.  My real test will be taking Orgo this Summer.  I plan to live for the class for 3 months.  I'm kind of apprehensive about doing it over the Summer, but I heard it's much better at my particular school that way.  But, I figure it's a good test for me.  If I can't do well in -one- intense, difficult class, I probably won't do too well in Med School.

[apocrypha]

Yeah, I'd be 35 -starting- medical school, but there are always a few older med students, and even if I take 10 years to graduate and finish a residency, that's still 20 plus years of practicing.  Not having a wife or kids (thank God) makes this doable.

In the UK over the last 8 years a whole bunch of new medical schools have been built running what they call Problem Based Learning courses, i.e. much more focussed on teaching medical students the skills needed to, effectively, teach themselves. This is as opposed to the old "rote learning" methods with a strong focus on packing huge amounts of information into their heads. One of the things that's come out of this is that mature students are doing much better at these courses and have been more strongly encouraged to apply than was previously the case.

When I was working at the Derby medical school there were a high proportion of over-40s in the first couple of intakes and they did very well on the PBL courses. They'll be entering actual medical practice by now so it'd be interesting to find out how they've done. My suspicion is that the maturer students will probably have coped with the junior doctor years very well, aided by their experience and confidence.

I'm 39 years old and embarking on a new career myself, so I know how daunting it can seem. Best of luck with it and remember that age is often a positive thing, not a handicap :)