The first time I attempted college, it was a state tech university. I picked chemistry for my major. Then totally fucked off the first year, got pregnant, and dropped out to become a single mom.
The second time I attempted college, it was a community college with a transfer agreement with the state university that has a branch in my city, so I could do the first half of the degree at the CC and transfer to finish the four-year degree at the University.
But before I managed to even get my associate's degree, life got crazy. I took a semester off, and that turned into two semesters, then two years, then two decades.
For a long time, I was okay with not finishing my degree. I had managed to claw my way out of abject poverty and the sort of homelessness where I technically had a place to live, but it was in a basement "room" made up of plywood walls with no bed so I had to sleep on carpet on concrete floor. I'd built up an audience on Facebook, I'd managed to buy a house, I'd gotten out of a horribly toxic marriage, and I was finally at a point where I could just let my curiosity reign supreme - my ADHD rabbit holes are a BIG part of why my audience sticks around.
Then things arranged themselves so I could return. My state started tuition guarantees, as did the University, so that anyone whose family made less than $75,000 gets guaranteed free tuition through a university grant that covers anything other grants and scholarships don't cover. And I learned about the student loan Fresh Start program for defaulted loans, which I applied for as soon as I learned of it.
Once I got the clear on my loans, I filled out my FAFSA and applied to go to the University of Michigan-Flint. My credits from the community college transferred even after all this time, and I've got just two years to do before I get my bachelor's degree.
For fun.
Because I have no desire to have a job. I work for myself doing whatever I feel like to make me money. As long as it keeps working, I'll keep doing it.
It's a Philosophy degree. I could go onto grad school and hope to get one of those rare professor jobs, but honestly? It sounds awful being a professor. I don't wanna grade papers. I just like philosophy and I want to improve and refine my thinking and writing, and philosophy programs are really good for that.
Being middle-aged in college, going for the sake of curiosity and personal goals rather than the hope of some new career is a special experience. It's so different from the pressure I felt when I tried college before. I maintained a 3.8 GPA, but I was stressed and fuck that noise. I got mostly Bs Winter semester, and I'm fine with that. I'll still get the degree. And it was my first semester back in school after 20 years, so it took a bit to get back in a groove. Also... I'd have gotten an A in the Early Modern Philosophy class if the professor wasn't such a stickler... he gave me a 0 on the first paper because I forgot to double-space and didn't take resubmissions. 20-something me would have dropped that class in a heartbeat, but I just kept chugging along and brought that grade up to that acceptable B.
I've very much enjoyed that there are far more online options for taking classes as well. I'm attending a local university, but I am not a people person. I like asynchronous online classes. Just tell me when the assignment is due and I'll get it done.
What will I do with my degree?
IDK Maybe nothing. Maybe I'll go to grad school - though my options on that are likely to be more limited due to my preference for remote schooling and work. That whole Hermit thing and all. There is a Master's in teaching foreign languages at one of the other state universities that is intriguing - last year, I started learning Chinese and discovered I have a knack for languages, but there's not a lot of content online geared for solo language learners, so I've pondered starting a solo language learning channel for people like me who don't necessarily have speaking as a goal, but instead want to be able to consume content in those languages - I fell in love with Xianxia and Cdramas.
Or maybe I'll develop some mind-blowing philosophical theory that changes the world and every university in existence will want me to lecture.
Which is improbably, but not necessarily impossible.
❤️ Gwynne
Gwynne Michele - The Curious Hermit
For Curiosity Sake: Finishing a Philosophy Degree in Middle Age
"It's a Philosophy degree. I could go onto grad school and hope to get one of those rare professor jobs, but honestly? It sounds awful being a professor. I don't wanna grade papers. I just like philosophy and I want to improve and refine my thinking and writing, and philosophy programs are really good for that." Relatable. I completed a second baccalaureate in philosophy for much the same reasons. Never wanted to teach or be employed in the field; I just wanted to read, study, and discuss systems philosophy with other nerds. My biggest frustration at the time was that I wasn't able to find a "philosophy of work and leisure" program, because that's what I *really* wanted to study and write about. Ended up rolling my own and started a blog. Anyway, it's great that you're now able to return to school tuition-free! What a blessing for someone who clearly loves learning as much as you do.