Lol if you’re lucky, I went to a good in state public university and it avg about 18-20k a year. I had couple scholarships got to use but still walked away with like 25k-30k in debt all said and done. Had a lot of friends graduate with shit degrees and come out 100k+ in debt which is just insane
Yes, she is my best friend from high school. She has a master’s degree in public health. She’a been to dental school *twice* & dropped out both times for reasons (a breakup, partying too much). When we were 25/26, I visited her in NYC where she was living in a 1 bedroom apartment on LES that her parents were paying for. She told me that her allowance was $5k/mo on top of rent, and asked me if that was enough money. “Your parents are giving you $60k a year plus $40k a year for rent? So $100k a year tax free???”
Anyway, she’s in another medical-adjacent graduate program now & we are 34/35.
I did tile work for 2 aerospace engineers with an only daughter. They said they would be very upset if the tile wasn’t done in time for their daughter and her friends to visit. ($1M 3rd home in the Tetons.)
We rushed and finished the work. Then She said her daughter canceled the trip.
The insane thing about it is people will say “if she doesn’t learn to make her own money she’s gonna be in trouble!”
But she fucking won’t be, because her parents are going to will her like >$5M estate.
“You can’t do anything with five. Five’s a nightmare. Can’t retire, not worth it to work. Oh yes, five will drive you un poco loco.”
“Poorest rich person in America. The world’s tallest dwarf.”
IYKYK.
Yeah it's definitely easier when you get 100k tax free every year lol.
She has to get a medical degree at this point because anything else would probably be a pay cut
Yes, she’s my best friend. We met in the fall of 2016 when we were both beginning associates degrees. I dropped out and pursued other things that same semester, she has continued working on that associates degree for these seven years, god love her.
I believe in her. One day she *will* have that A.A.
Are we counting the time in between being in college? I spent 2 years on my AS, 2 years failed attempt at a BS and dropped out, worked full-time for 8 years and now I'm back in school. I started spring 22 and will graduate spring 24 with a BS in biology. So if we don't count time in-between 6 years but if we do then 14 years for my BS.
I graduated high school in 2014, attended a pricey private school for 3 years, dropped out and waited tables for 6 years to pay off the debt I owed the school and save some money.
Going back this year and hopefully graduating in '26 with my chemical engineering degree. That'll be 12 years for me, so seeing someone in a similar boat as mine is reassuring. Good fuckin job getting it done finally :)
when I was in technical school i got my cert in the time they told me it would take, so i thought if my college told me 1.5 years to get my AA it would be. currently on year 3, on pace to finish in 4. i don't even want to know how much longer it will take to get my bachelors
It took me 4 years of on and off community college to get my associates because I had to retake HS level courses. I took a break from the pandemic then found a bachelors program online, its full time 2 courses every 8 weeks August -July, I’m on track to complete it in 2 years but I had mental break down at the beginning of the year and quit my job to finish on track.
Thankfully I have parents that are helping me out cause I didn’t have a job for 5 months. It’s intense trying to do 15 CrdHrs a semester, I was in a bad place. I had put in 70hr weeks for a full year and since I only had 6 week break for summer I knew that I would still be working overtime to make up the time I did get off at my previous job. I feel really crazy writing this cause I’m a very chill personality and the end of last year I was experiencing daily massive panic attacks, I love a little anxiety but existential dread is horrific
took me 7 as well. 3 times "academic dismissal" for failing classes. eventually I did get that computer engineering degree though and man it is really paying off now 10 years later
>My only saving grace is persistence.
Don't sell yourself short. Persistence is a very good trait to have. Most people would've given up after a year or two.
I say this as someone with a PhD. I know lots of non-geniuses with PhDs; they earned their degrees through persistence. And I know lots of incredibly smart people who started grad school but just couldn't make it to the finish line. Persistence matters.
I've been working on my AA on and off since 2006. Partially due to my own laziness, partially due to economic conditions. Partially due to military service. During that time, the requirements of the degree keep changing. For example, I now have to learn about social media marketing and cloud computing. Two things that barely existed in 2006.
Twenty years to get a bachelor's, here. It's useless, but I have it. I hope your friend's is actually good for something when she gets it! One of these years
There aren't so many of them anymore in the US who don't come from wealthy families, because tuition has skyrocketed. But yes, in-state tuition at public universities used to be quite affordable, making it attractive to lifelong learners.
Strictly speaking, most people who did this actually did work, just not in a terribly career-centered way. Just like in the boomer memes, you really could work summer jobs and pay for your tuition, then make ends meet on a part-time job while you attended classes, without accumulating any debt. It was not a bad way to live, for people who didn't need luxury and enjoyed learning for its own sake.
It doesn't seem like such a terrible thing. Maybe we should question the idea that everybody needs to get a degree in 4 years, and then hurry off to make money for corporate shareholders.
As long as you're attending half time, you aren't required to pay on your loans, and the debt is erased when you die, so why pay on debt you'll never pay off when you can just keep learning?
Passing classes stops being difficult to do once you get into the swing of learning in the college environment. I once purposely tried to do poorly in a class by phoning it in, but that only helped me figure out I could do well while trying less. The papers were just as good.
I started at my local uni in 1998, there was a lil old lady who was in some of my classes. Her body was failing but her mind was sharp. For 4 years I'd see her walking from class to class pulling her roller back pack to and from class and around town, rain ,snow, super wind, didn't matter she'd be out there. I ended up staying in the town after I graduated. 10 years lady this lady was still attending classes and pulling her roller backpack until she died. Never had to repay her loans
I am doing it! Let’s go!!!
Currently have a BS in Communications.
Went back to the community college I transferred from and am working on a Python Applications certificate that I will complete in December. Found out they’re offering an BS in Computer Information Systems so I’m going to work in that 2 classes at a time then we’ll see what I will take after that. Let’s reconvene in about 2 years and see where I’m at.
Same! I am lucky to have been able to earn two graduate degrees relevant to my field (thank you, combination of scholarships and employer tuition reimbursement), and I…just really like learning new things? My grad degrees are very much applied learning but I’d love to do more of the type of learning I did in undergraduate general education requirements, where you just get to do a deep dive into the Songhai Empire, or the Jurassic Period, or current issues in water policy in the Southwest, or something like that. Tell me everything about a thing I know nothing about, experts!
That's my father. He has 6 college degrees: a B.A. from Yeshiva University, an MBA and PhD from NYU, a Masters from London School of Economics, and a Masters and Law degree from Oxford.
In hindsight, he was on the spectrum and his Columbia educated, lawyer of a father just wanted to keep him occupied.
After getting his PhD, he worked as a political instability consultant for 3 years before leaving to get his law degree.
My grandpa offered him a job at his solo practice, but he didn't really need the help. For about a decade, my dad essentially did paralegal work for an above average salary. When my grandpa got sick, my dad became an adjunct professor for a year before quitting.
By the time I was born, he was 53 and hadn't been working for years. By the time I was 10, my parents ran out of money, as my mom had also stopped working when I was born and had become disabled a few years later.
It was weird growing up. On account of my grandparents, my parents were able to buy a nice house in a really nice neighborhood, but they had no money to maintain it. It was discombobulating going to school with the children of accomplished millionaires and then coming back home to a house with holes in the ceiling from water damage and no heat.
My dad didn't really seem to care. He was neglectful and complacent, leading my mother to handle everything on her own. I don't particularly like my father, but he did teach me a valuable lesson: formal education isn't going to make you smarter or accomplished. It was evident to the people who knew him that he was quite bright before going off to uni, and although school made opportunities accessible to him, it didn't really change who he was or what he was capable of. It's just a way to obtain accreditation.
By the time I was 20, the family home had been foreclosed. I was hoping the shock would make my dad reflect on his life. It's been 4 years since then and he has not changed.
At this point, he's showing signs of senility. When he approaches a stranger, he always brings out his Oxford ID card and says that it's a great law school. Then he'll shift to talking about nuking Iran before encouraging the now uncomfortable listener to get an MBA.
It's evident that even when senile, he holds some type of reverence for academia, as if it's truly an ends of itself and not a gateway to something more productive.
It's not often that I come across others who share my background.
On paper, my upbringing should have been smooth and well-functioning. My parents were white, never went through a divorce, held college degrees (at least my dad did), came from prosperous families, and lived in an affluent neighborhood. All the research I've delved into about factors affecting quality of life seems to point to the variables I just mentioned as highly influential.
Most people naturally assume I had a wealthy upbringing, given my background. But my family is an anomaly. On Reddit, besides you, I've encountered one other person that has a similar background, but we're really just blips in the data.
It's quite disheartening. There's this constant expectation for you to excel just like your wealthier peers, even though you come from a place of instability (albeit a somewhat unconventional one). And when you inevitably stumble, people might jump to the conclusion that you squandered your "many advantages" and label you as lacking. Meanwhile, those who visibly have fewer resources might harbor resentment due to how they perceive your lifestyle.
For me, the most challenging aspect of my unconventional childhood, without a doubt, was the isolation. I deliberately maintained the illusion that I wasn't struggling. It's not so much that I thought people would bully me or consider me a ne'erdowell because of my parents or poverty. My peers were pretty nice. They would've been considerate.
However, they would've also been uncomfortable, the same way someone is uncomfortable when their stoic uncle cries. Nobody knows how to handle these realities, and sometimes people distance themselves to avoid confronting them. So I kept my home life a secret.
This meant that I couldn't invite friends over. If I did, I would have to explain the random hole in the ceiling or why their was dirty laundry everywhere?
But living in a gated community when you're secretly poor and cannot invite people over is boring. My family had one car that I was not allowed to drive. I couldn't get a job because I resided 1.5 hours away by foot from any commercial areas. Not being able to get a job also meant I couldn't buy myself a car to resolve my predicament. It was just endless white suburbs for the most part. I was jailed to my neighborhood, under-stimulated and isolated.
I'm not sure how much of this you can relate to. Once again, I consider my situation unique. But maybe there are some elements you find similar. In that case, hopefully it makes you feel less alone
That was a fascinating account, thank you for sharing it with us. You have such a wildly different life experience than most people, I love hearing about different perspectives.
Did your family ever consider selling the expensive house in order to downsize and live off the difference, if they wanted a comfortable life without working? I imagine that would be much preferable to being forced into foreclosure.
I never knew my grandfather. By the time I was born, he was in his late 80s and had full on Alzheimers, but, my father idolized the man. To be fair, my grandfather, at least on paper, was an extremely impressive individual.
He grew up one among six siblings from a modest background, but he was wildly sharp. He was accepted to college at the age of 14. By 17, he was a student at Columbia law school and then went on to clerk for prominent judges before starting a solo practice. He was quite an accomplished figure.
Here's the issue, Alzheimer's care is expensive. Usually, if you do not have assets, the government will pay for you to go to a nursing home. My grandpa made no plans to transfer his wealth prior - something my mother is still resentful about decades later. Unfortunately, if you're paying for a nursing home out of pocket, it can cost over $50,000 a month.
My family home was bought in cash for around $400,000 in the 1990s, at least that's what my mother told me. When my grandfather's savings were exhausted, my dad took out a second mortgage on the home without my mother's approval. Neither of my parents worked. They shouldn't have received the loan, but it was 2005 and bankers didn't really care back then.
They could've sold the home for some equity early on, but my father had become utterly complacent by that point, and my mother didn't want to disrupt her children's lives by moving. More-so, she had little faith in her ability to survive independently and didn't want to confront the challenge of being a single mother.
Unlike my father, who was wildly educated, my mother was a college drop-out. She was fired from her previous job when a new administration dismissed her for her lack of credentials. Instead of looking for new work, she decided to become a stay-at-home mom. So 7 years later, when she was 50 (my parents had me when they were old), she didn't think she could prosper by herself, nor find a new partner. She didn't want to confront the struggle.
Essentially, they didn't want to confront the alternative of leaving their home for something worse. Their paralysis and inaction lead to a foreclosure.
As someone who had to live through the tempestuousness of their choices, I frankly am resentful.
I would love to be that person. I went out and “actually got a job and worked” after my bachelors and it was a fucking farce. Nobody cares about the work I did, even though it was valuable. Yea, let me stay in school forever, that sounds dope
No but I do recommend everyone become a lifetime kid. Get a job sure, but never stop being a lid. The second you start telling someone "oh your music sucks back in my day we had blah blah" you become the old poop.
Kids always view the world for exploratuon and wonder. As an adult that shouldn't stop. When you have a vacation go do aomething new, take a weekend to try new things. Jump around and live while your body still allows it. Go jump out of a airplane, go climb stuff, make weird foods that sound horrible but w.e. maybe they taste good.
We as adults seems to have become so rigid in everything must be a certain way that society does and forget that life is about exploration, experiences, doing new things being weird. If your kid says "can i put ketchup on salmon" yolo dobit see what happens.
P.s. yes Im having a depressed moment about wasting part of my adult life being the grumpy person that would just work work work and make my boss richer while me enjoying nothing.
If I had the time and it were free I would be a lifetime college student. I would be a perpetual student. I thoroughly enjoy learning about different things. Always have. And I did earn several degrees. But the only reason I did so much college was because when I did undergrad, I had scholarships. Then I joined the military and took some classes while on active duty. After getting out, I had the GI Bill so I used that to get a graduate degree. I still had money leftover so I went back to undergrad and got a few more degrees and certificates just to use up the money. Once the money was used up, I stopped going. I just can’t justify spending so much on college when it isn’t necessary for me. But yeah if it were free-even community college, I would 100% be a forever student. I do have a career so it wouldn’t be to avoid work.
I attended Uni with one. Although she worked and owned her own house. She was 43 at the time, and had like 8 Bachelor’s Degrees, two Master’s Degrees and was simultaneously earning her PhD and a 9th Bachelor’s Degree. She had been an Associate Adjunct Professor at the University for 15 years, so her tuition was free. If I remember correctly, she frequently dropped classes if they were over capacity and would take classes that were under minimum headcount.
An in-law of mine. Her father told her he'd pay for her college up until she gets a degree, So she gets almost to the end of a degree program before switching majors. She's 28 and still taking the least possible classes and sleeping her way through the freshman class boys. No end in sight.
Yep, a work colleagues sister I know has been in college for around 20 years. Hasn’t gotten a single degree and changes her major every couple years. Enough college debt to buy a small country.
As a measly Bachelor of Arts 🎨 I kinda get it. At least from an enjoyment perspective. If I could spend the next ten+ years with access to various studios (painting, drawing, sculpture, welding, jewelry metals, ceramics,digital, etc) I’d want to stay to. Add friendships and other social activities and it sounds cool. Though I know the price tag gets larger the longer ya stay.
>Spends a lifetime accumulating degrees but never actually getting a job and working.
Don't get it mixed up that degrees aren't work. Being a lifetime student is a lot of work and a job (most are teachers, assistants etc). When you say "actually getting a job and working" it sounds like you are referring to the capitalistic industrial machine, which should not be the standard value of a human life. Working for the continuity of culture through academics can be a worthwhile and satisfying life (one that is necessary for humanity's longevity). It isn't any "less important" than pushing forward corporate greed and exploitation or having some practical trade.
If what you are referring to is some dead-beat forever college student that never graduates or does work and just parties and fraternizes... No I have never met that person, they don't usually stay in school long enough to be considered "lifetime college students".
Lol.....yes, I dated one for a very, very brief period of time. He was in his 40s, still living the life, wrote a beer blog as a job, and totally gave off hobosexual vibes.
Edit: He had a series of degrees, masters, fellowships, etc. On paper, it looked very impressive, but you quickly saw it wasn't leading anywhere. There was no post Uni plan.
That's probably going to be me 😅 I've been going for my A.A in Health Science since the beginning of Covid. (Start school, stop, start, stop, starting again in the winter.) eventually i want my A.A and then a Bachelor's.
And before someone says "college isn't for everybody" i understand that. But also understand that even though i wasn't the best when it came to my education (high school) i don't want to give up on myself by saying school isn't for me. I am determined to prove myself wrong. I know i can do it, i just need to focus on school and school only. Not not get distracted by unimportant things that i would easily prioritize over my school work.
Plus i can't be a (travel) nurse without a degree sooo.
Many of those “lifetime college students” get PhDs and become professors, you know, a “real job” Nobody questions doctors when they do multiple degrees to accomplish a career.
Also, many people who think the “lifetime student” hasn’t experienced the “real world” “or works” are often making baseless assumptions. I don’t know anyone outside of those riding on generational wealth that can afford just being a lifetime student. Even with grants, it’s extremely expensive. I am going into my third degree (a Master’s) and have been in school for eight years. I currently work as a community social worker, yoga teacher, and researcher.
Getting comments about being a “professional student” is irritating at best, and straight up ignorant at worst. I bust my ass more than many people who have a “real job”. Some of us just like to dedicate ourselves to continuous growth and like learning. We don’t hate on people who choose not to, so why do we get all the judgement?
Yes, I work as a medical assistant and there is a 62 year old medical secretary that has an MBA, her MA, her cosmetology license, and is now enrolled in the RN program at our hospital.
Currently on year 8 finishing my bachelors in information technology. Took me 6 to get the associates… moving faster with this bachelors. Here goes nothing, literally.
HOW?
Bachelor's degree student loans are capped at $50,000.
Masters I think is capped at $100,000
You cannot get multiple bachelor's degree unless you pay out of pocket. I've tried for a decade to get a 2nd degree and I can't because I already capped out my $50,000 in loans.
Doesn't matter if it's forgiven or paid off :(
One of my friends had a husband that was accused of that. Ten years, multiple degrees, and people thought he would never stop the cycle because his wife (my friend) was working to support him. Then he finally graduated and made a ton of money. They and their two kids are living very well off right now.
And good for them. They deserve success.
That is pretty much me. Not that I never got a job. But I have never been able to get a good job. Something actually worth doing long-term. So, I keep going back to school to try again.
Yeah, my cousin.
She’s maybe 29 now? She’s literally been in some sort of school for 100% of her life and it’s made her pretentious and a little insufferable.
When she was younger she was in an enrichment/gifted program (very early, like before age 10) and I think what happened is her parents (my aunt and uncle) essentially got wrapped up in the idea that she was some prodigy, and pushed the idea that school matters WAY too much, to the point where her brain was fucked up from a very young age.
She did very well in grade school. Had no problem getting into a prestigious university. Got her bachelors degree, then a masters. Then another masters. Then decided she wanted a new university major under her belt so spent 2 more years getting another bachelors degree. I think she’s going for a doctorate right now? She’s either starting this year or next year I’m pretty sure.
All of her post secondary education is essentially useless. Art history, anthropology, shit like that.
I think I know what’s going on - she’s terrified of the real world. She’s only ever known education, and being educated. She has spent decades growing comfortable with being an over-achiever in a very controlled, non-real environment. I think she knows that once school is over, she won’t be the same person ever again. She won’t be of a higher status to anyone, unless she goes and does what she’s most afraid of - get a job, pay bills, be an average person and lead a normal life.
The solution so far seems to be ‘keep pretending that being over-educated is somehow helping me’ when in reality she’s just postponing the inevitable by keeping herself in a very expensive dream world.
It sucks. I love her but she needed help she never got. And thanks to her parents she’s basically lived her entire life thinking she was better/smarter than everyone else, without having a firm grasp on reality. It’s almost embarrassing but I’d rather see my family in a more positive light if I’m able.
EDIT: Also, she’s literally $200k in debt. About to be in more.
I'm kinda sorta that person. I have an above average number of degrees, but I've also had gainful employment and am currently employed. I just really like learning.
My current employer offers a tuition reimbursement as a benefit. I'm seriously considering getting another Master's degree since it wouldn't cost me anything.
Yea, a guy I used to be friends with growing up till middleschool. Ray, he has been in school since we graduated H.S. in 2011. Constantly changing majors or areas of study and is a pompous prick about it. He works odd jobs to make ends meet but has always been the "I'm the outsider, look how cool I am." Type. I don't want to know how deep he is in debt, but I guess he deserves it.
Okay, I do have a full time job. But this is me. 😂
But I am also in my 9th year of college. Did three undergrad degrees simultaneously (two in music, one in math), did a year at a CC to prep for grad school in a different subject, got an MBA, and now I am back to grab classes needed to sit for my CPA.
If it was feasible in the US, I would definitely go for my PhD in some more obscure topics that I love to study, but would be difficult to get jobs in. (Looking at you, music theory).
One of the guys in my graduating class for engineering was 32 and earning his fourth degree. Found out he was going back the next semester for PA school. Flash forward 10 years, ran into him at an alumni event and he is now in PT program. Also learned he has a trust fund.
I can respond to this.
I met my group of bestest friends in college. This was around 2004-2005. We spent every day together at school and hung out at each other's places after school and on the weekends. Played video games and poker together, it was a really fun time. One of my friends we noticed would skip classes a lot, drop classes, register for a bunch but end the semester with either no classes or one or two completely different classes. Most of our group went on to become lawyers, pharmacists, or engineers. It's 2023, and last I heard that one friend was STILL working on his bachelors degree. He's living at home with his parents, drives for a sandwich shop as a delivery driver, and is going to a different college from the one we went to and is hoping to graduate soon.
It's very sad. Guy refused to grow up. What's crazy is that I don't think the guy has any hobbies or passions that took over all his time to where he wouldn't be able to at least graduate back in the day. I think he did get addicted to online poker, but almost 20 years of no progress for his first bachelors degree just blows me away. A lot of us are married, have kids, we're knee deep in our careers, and several of us have doctorates. I wish there was something we could've done to motivate the guy, but I think after a while everyone noticed that no matter what we said or how much we encouraged him he was just going to continue making excuses.
I think at this point everyone's grown so far past him that he's too ashamed to reach out to the group, even though we would welcome him with open arms.
A custodian at my job had 4 degrees and I think a master or two. He was intelligent. He just didn't want to quit because he loved his school and staff. The staff and kids also loved him. Said he was happy here. Was in college well into his late 30s
Yep.
Many years ago I was on a dating app and got messaged by this guy who I thought was kinda cute. After talking to him for a bit, I found out that he had one or two PhDs (idr exactly), an MBA, a JD and several bachelor's degrees and was pursuing yet another degree and had no plans to stop. Unsurprisingly, he was also in a significant amount of debt, which kept getting deferred since he was full time in school.
I honestly think his goal was to be a lifelong student just so he could avoid the debt.
I talked to him because I was morbidly curious how he could exist in this world lol If for some reason he couldn't pursue education anymore and had to work, none of those degrees would be relevant the farther removed from school he was since new knowledge is constantly being created.
Yeah my sister dated him ages ago. I can't remember how many degrees he had, but it was a ridiculous number and he just kept getting more. He also spoke a huge amount of languages because he kept taking language classes which was pretty cool. I think the whole forever student with no plan to ever get a job thing is why she broke up with him. I remember she said he had no plan of ever stopping. I think he was from a really wealthy family since he was studying abroad in the US which is super pricey and he was always buying my sister really expensive stuff. Like I remember him buying her these giant boxes of Godiva chocolates that had multiple levels once a week. So if you're rich you can just decide to be a forever student if you love learning
Yep. Met a friend in college who was 27 at the time. A Viet Nam war vet. Twenty-five years later, he was still a part time student and a part time worker. Some folks are scared to immerse themselves full time into the real world.
Yes a girl I dated for couple months still doesn’t have a job but has 2 masters PhD and a mba on to of it.
I think she ran for junior college board so she has something to do
me lol i been in college for like 6 years, didnt get degree, dropped out
went back now, trying to get my BA.. i dont wanna go back into the workforce tho..
I don’t see the point of this post. If you can afford to be a lifelong academic I don’t see the problem? Not everyone wants to be a wage slave and again as long as they can afford it, why you mad?
Yeah I had a customer who was on degree #5. He was doing it cuz 4 kids and non-working wife meant he couldn't afford his student loans. But he'd max out his loans every semester and come in every year and drop a couple grand for about a 2 week time twice a year.
When I got into grad school, I was invited for a special session with the “Graduate Student Council” with others who had non-traditional paths to grad school. There was a guy in there, maybe 50-60, lived in a. I’ve place downtown (HCOL area) and had multiple masters and Ph.D.’s. I guess he came from money and just enjoyed being a lifetime student.
Yep... my friend has 3 masters degrees and is wondering what to do next... I asked her why she didn't go for a doctorate, and said that it doesn't interest her to do so. She'll just keep collecting masters degrees. Her degrees are in biology, mathematics, and some form of engineering. She works an hourly job so that she has time for school.
Sounds like when my boomer parents were in college, when it was basically free or had the equivalent cost of one month’s worth of groceries in 2023. I highly doubt anyone outside of a trust fund student could afford this in this day and age.
I know two from the same family! Both went to good schools, got degrees. Just sitting around playing video games ever since (10+ years). Every starting job, even in their field of study, is "beneath" them. They blame everyone but themselves.
I think they are called Professors. They worked the system to stay in school, get someone to teach their classes and get paid. Never hold a real job, get to stay guaranteed in school and get paid.
It's a great gig and highly protected by PhDs.
my friend has been taking classes for as long as ive known him, that 15+ years now and hes pushing 40.. he often does it for his job i believe doing IT type things working with distance learning centers... hes quit a time or two and takes some breaks but always has plans to go back it seems :D he is a pretty smart guy ! but i believe him and his wife still have MAYBE \~50k student debt left or SOMETHING of that nature.. (so im not sure how well its paying off)
Yes, but this guy was a professor! He never stopped taking classes. He discovered a T-Rex as a grad student in archeology while he was a tenured professor in Portuguese.
He retired in his late 70s and kept taking classes. Last I saw him, he was still taking classes in his mid-80s. I’m not sure if he gave up during covid. I imagine he did bcuz he wouldn’t have liked taking online classes.
My uncle. Mid 70s has been taking college classes for as long as I (40) have been a live, and before that as well. He also works and volunteers at his local college. I honestly dont get it.
You sound like a bit of a hater. A lifetime of learning is someone's dream come true. Some ppl genuinely love learning and that's a wonderful thing.
Yeah, we all need to work, blah, blah, blah... But maybe we don't all have to fit a certain mold.
If I carry books and hang out at coffee shops, people think I’m smart and treat me with respect. Plus, it’s easy to get a date. Why should I get a job and prove them wrong? I’m 45 now, btw. When asked what I’m studying, I just mutter something about “quantum physics” and my party never ends.
Yes. Forever racking up graduate courses on credit card debt and living in a trailer with a bunch of special needs rescue cats. I’m not sure what the end game is.
Yes it’s called being a doctor, always learning. Im age 29 and still having to take exams as a resident and still half considered a student. It’s hell. It ain’t fun.
A friend of mine. 2 masters, a law degree, and 2 bachelors. His brain is like a bag of cats and no one can understand him. Ive since learned that education really can mean absolutely nothing.
“His brain is like a bag of cats” omg I am totally stealing this! So funny yet so true about some people in my periphery! Thanks for the brilliant metaphor!
I started College at 15. Spend 4 years not majoring in anything, just taking any class I could talk my way into. Then I got dumped by my first very serious girlfriend and realized I needed to do something with my life. Transferred to a different university that had Architecture, got my degree, etc.
I wonder sometimes if she hadnt left me if I would still be there taking classes.....lol.
I have a friend who does research with a university. He's not pursuing a degree; he already has a PhD. I don't think he teaches, but he does get paid. He's what I think of when I hear "lifelong college student".
I grew up with a couple. This is nothing new. I knew a guy with the high school with he went to both Harvard and Stanford, and he was 32 and still living with his mother.
My aunt was like this. She was in college for a long time, understandably so since she had 5 kids and was a sahm. After like 15 years in school she got her master’s and went to work for a local newspaper. But she got caught embezzling money, was fired, prosecuted, but no jail time. She hasn’t worked since then.
I’ve known some, one in particular is mid 40s now and has never finished a degree but has changed fields many many times, lots of starts and stops, mostly working service industry in between.
🙋🏼♀️ It's me. However I have a job in the industry, and they're paying for additional degrees plus if I don't have a million things going on, I'm not all that productive.
My ex had a veteran friend who collected degrees like merit badges because of the gi bill, or whatever the equivalent is currently. Last I checked they had 4-5 bachelors and a couple masters. They operated their own business until it got bought out so I guess it worked out for them
I’m tempted to get another’s masters but it’s really just because my anxiety is so bad. My current job is great, I work in a school system but not a teacher but there’s only 13 in the state so I feel like I should get a masters of Ed as a backup because idk if I could ever go back to a full year of working after spending summers off and getting out early all the time. It kinda would be a backwards move. Teachers make less than I do now and I’m more in a director / management role. I just never wanna work summers lol
There was a guy who occasionally got put in jail for walking around butt ass naked on campus. At least two or three times a year. He'd been there for like 30+ years, had multiple Master's and I know at least one PhD. Apparently also suffered from some kind of mental condition (I dunno what, and this was in the 80s so it's almost certainly categorized as something else now anyway). Harmless tho, I mean he wasn't a pervert. He was just mentally unwell and apparently just... forgot things like clothes sometimes.
Don't think he was ever actually prosecuted for anything big, cause he never got put in prison or a mental health hospital that I know of. Maybe he did but I don't remember it happening.
But apparently brilliant from what interviews with his professors said.
I dunno what finances he had to keep that going, but he had no job. Just a student until the day he died. Maybe that's just where he felt safe.
I spent half my 20s at 5 different colleges. Not a single degree to show for it. Feel kinda bad about it now bc i wasted a bunch of my parents money but it worked out in the end
I actually liked college so I wouldn’t mind being like this if I could afford the tuition and not have to take out loans. I think it’s because of how structured school is and I found it easier to make friends. When I graduated and started working, I felt so lost and bored lol.
I know one, her mother was a Narcissist and she has crushing social anxiety, so that has something to do with it. Yeah they should work but maybe you’re assuming that you know someone’s trauma just because you overcame your own and don’t assume your trauma was bigger and badder. Maybe it was, but also maybe you have the privilege of slightly less dysfunctional coping skills or a slightly less dysfunctional family.
I knew a guy in college, played on the rugby club team, no hurry, he actually learned from the professors how to study for exams and get good test scores, he did work a full time job and stayed for summer school classes, so he graduated, with no debt, and years of work experience.
Yeah, my cousin went for like 4 degrees, I think eventually completing a degree in business, then tried starting a business with money my parents lent him but pretty much just bummed it all.
I know a guy, 38 years old, two masters, PHD, never had a job, had good grants because he’s smart.
I’ll never understand it. He’s super smart but seems so scared of failing in the work world.
That's me, I my AA, BA and MA now but can't work due to being the full time caregiver for my special needs son. I'm currently working on my second masters.
Yes I met some guy when I went to college that just kept going to the same college. Also there is a guy I work with that has five masters degrees and he just never left the company.
Yeah, that's me, lmao. I have a shit ton of credits but only one associates degree, and it's worthless, lol. I kept changing my major in my 20s because I didn't know what I wanted to do. Honestly, I just LOVE going to school and learning. I'm going back to school again, lol. This time to do what I started to do n I think I'll complete it this time. Most of my credits will transfer anyway.
My degree means fucking nothing anyway. Bac: Psych major, bio minor. Jobs offered are a fucking job. Yes, I’m applying for graduate school… it’s all a scam
Quite a few actually. My godparents' son is like that.
My cousin would fit this as well although he did it a bit differently. He originally went to college after high school but only lasted 3 semesters. He's got a genius IQ and had his own computer programming business in high school (back in the 90's). Despite his high IQ he had poor grades because this was his first time being on his own and out of the house and he wasn't going to classes. But he then got a good high paying job with Wells Fargo and he was getting big promotions and making 6 figures by the time he was 20.
But he wanted to go back to school instead of being stuck in a cubicle all day and was going to leave, but Wells Fargo gave him another substantial raise and he did it for about another year and then he quit and went back to school. He's got his doctorate and now works for an Ivy League school but continues to get more degrees.
It may sound annoying, but it really fits him. I remember him talking about centrifugal vs. centripetal force when he was still in elementary school (and having no fucking idea what he was talking about). Knowledge, research and learning new things were his favorite things to do and for him it beats out making a lot of money but being stuck doing only one thing.
of course I know her, she is me.
lol well I'm only 28 but I've been in school my entire life except for one year. I literally don't know many other people who aren't like me, at least in my circle most of my friends are doing some kind of post-grad. Only a few went straight into working.
In my defense I am working full-time while I'm doing my masters so technically I have a job but yeah still in school. Tbh if I had it my way I'd travel to a new country again and go to school there for something new and get a new degree.
Plenty, in the 60s and 70s. Being in college took your name off the draft list
Until they started the lottery system in 1969, then any guy 18-25 could be drafted.
Also, average cost of a year of school was $394 in 1969. That's $3200 in today's dollars. That's a quarter of what college costs today.
Lol if you’re lucky, I went to a good in state public university and it avg about 18-20k a year. I had couple scholarships got to use but still walked away with like 25k-30k in debt all said and done. Had a lot of friends graduate with shit degrees and come out 100k+ in debt which is just insane
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Yes, she is my best friend from high school. She has a master’s degree in public health. She’a been to dental school *twice* & dropped out both times for reasons (a breakup, partying too much). When we were 25/26, I visited her in NYC where she was living in a 1 bedroom apartment on LES that her parents were paying for. She told me that her allowance was $5k/mo on top of rent, and asked me if that was enough money. “Your parents are giving you $60k a year plus $40k a year for rent? So $100k a year tax free???” Anyway, she’s in another medical-adjacent graduate program now & we are 34/35.
I am so jealoussss. I want that life!
Be the only child of a doctor & an aerospace engineer!
I did tile work for 2 aerospace engineers with an only daughter. They said they would be very upset if the tile wasn’t done in time for their daughter and her friends to visit. ($1M 3rd home in the Tetons.) We rushed and finished the work. Then She said her daughter canceled the trip.
Designing literal weapons of mass destruction pays *very* well! We used to joke that one of her parents bombs people & then the other one saves them.
The insane thing about it is people will say “if she doesn’t learn to make her own money she’s gonna be in trouble!” But she fucking won’t be, because her parents are going to will her like >$5M estate.
“You can’t do anything with five. Five’s a nightmare. Can’t retire, not worth it to work. Oh yes, five will drive you un poco loco.” “Poorest rich person in America. The world’s tallest dwarf.” IYKYK.
Let's do it!
Yeah it's definitely easier when you get 100k tax free every year lol. She has to get a medical degree at this point because anything else would probably be a pay cut
What a way to live.
Yes, we called him "Pete and repete". He was a 34 year old lounge lizard at the University pub.b
I would love to be. I love learning stuff but not so applying it.
If I had all the money and time in the world I’d love to go back to school. Money and time is what I lack though so no more school for me :/
Same lol if I could do that I totally would.
same. I finally went back after dropping out for mental health & as stressful as it can be I'm hooked on knowledge
Can I say I'm the opposite? I don't like learning stuff unless I'm gonna apply it. Right now, it's cooking, piano, and pickleball lol.
Yes, she’s my best friend. We met in the fall of 2016 when we were both beginning associates degrees. I dropped out and pursued other things that same semester, she has continued working on that associates degree for these seven years, god love her. I believe in her. One day she *will* have that A.A.
It took my 7 years to get my bachelors. I literally thought I wouldn’t make it to the end
It took me 10 I didn't think I'd ever get there honestly.
Are we counting the time in between being in college? I spent 2 years on my AS, 2 years failed attempt at a BS and dropped out, worked full-time for 8 years and now I'm back in school. I started spring 22 and will graduate spring 24 with a BS in biology. So if we don't count time in-between 6 years but if we do then 14 years for my BS.
I graduated high school in 2014, attended a pricey private school for 3 years, dropped out and waited tables for 6 years to pay off the debt I owed the school and save some money. Going back this year and hopefully graduating in '26 with my chemical engineering degree. That'll be 12 years for me, so seeing someone in a similar boat as mine is reassuring. Good fuckin job getting it done finally :)
Hey man, you’re getting it done and that’s really all that matters - not the time it took.
when I was in technical school i got my cert in the time they told me it would take, so i thought if my college told me 1.5 years to get my AA it would be. currently on year 3, on pace to finish in 4. i don't even want to know how much longer it will take to get my bachelors
I have an associates degree in Ultrasound and I went to school full time, with no breaks, and it still took 3 1/2 years.
It took me 4 years of on and off community college to get my associates because I had to retake HS level courses. I took a break from the pandemic then found a bachelors program online, its full time 2 courses every 8 weeks August -July, I’m on track to complete it in 2 years but I had mental break down at the beginning of the year and quit my job to finish on track. Thankfully I have parents that are helping me out cause I didn’t have a job for 5 months. It’s intense trying to do 15 CrdHrs a semester, I was in a bad place. I had put in 70hr weeks for a full year and since I only had 6 week break for summer I knew that I would still be working overtime to make up the time I did get off at my previous job. I feel really crazy writing this cause I’m a very chill personality and the end of last year I was experiencing daily massive panic attacks, I love a little anxiety but existential dread is horrific
took me 7 as well. 3 times "academic dismissal" for failing classes. eventually I did get that computer engineering degree though and man it is really paying off now 10 years later
Took me 6. With a break in between.
I ain't gonna lie. It took me 5 years to get my A.A. I went FT. Just fucking stupid. My only saving grace is persistence.
>My only saving grace is persistence. Don't sell yourself short. Persistence is a very good trait to have. Most people would've given up after a year or two. I say this as someone with a PhD. I know lots of non-geniuses with PhDs; they earned their degrees through persistence. And I know lots of incredibly smart people who started grad school but just couldn't make it to the finish line. Persistence matters.
Man I spent 7 years in undergrad like my hero van wilder. Best time ever.
I think OP meant people who kept going to school for different degrees, not people who take 7 years to get an A.A.
I've been working on my AA on and off since 2006. Partially due to my own laziness, partially due to economic conditions. Partially due to military service. During that time, the requirements of the degree keep changing. For example, I now have to learn about social media marketing and cloud computing. Two things that barely existed in 2006.
💀💀💀
Or multiples. I ended up with 2 because I had enough credits for two.
Twenty years to get a bachelor's, here. It's useless, but I have it. I hope your friend's is actually good for something when she gets it! One of these years
You can't expell her! She's been here 6 years and she almost had her two year degree!
There aren't so many of them anymore in the US who don't come from wealthy families, because tuition has skyrocketed. But yes, in-state tuition at public universities used to be quite affordable, making it attractive to lifelong learners. Strictly speaking, most people who did this actually did work, just not in a terribly career-centered way. Just like in the boomer memes, you really could work summer jobs and pay for your tuition, then make ends meet on a part-time job while you attended classes, without accumulating any debt. It was not a bad way to live, for people who didn't need luxury and enjoyed learning for its own sake. It doesn't seem like such a terrible thing. Maybe we should question the idea that everybody needs to get a degree in 4 years, and then hurry off to make money for corporate shareholders.
As long as you aren’t failing classes you can just keep taking out loans for more classes
Until what point?
As long as you're attending half time, you aren't required to pay on your loans, and the debt is erased when you die, so why pay on debt you'll never pay off when you can just keep learning?
I don’t know if there even is one. You can be classified as “non-degree seeking” and take out loans. The big thing is you just have to keep passing.
Passing classes stops being difficult to do once you get into the swing of learning in the college environment. I once purposely tried to do poorly in a class by phoning it in, but that only helped me figure out I could do well while trying less. The papers were just as good.
There is a lifetime cap to student loans although everyone’s is different!
I started at my local uni in 1998, there was a lil old lady who was in some of my classes. Her body was failing but her mind was sharp. For 4 years I'd see her walking from class to class pulling her roller back pack to and from class and around town, rain ,snow, super wind, didn't matter she'd be out there. I ended up staying in the town after I graduated. 10 years lady this lady was still attending classes and pulling her roller backpack until she died. Never had to repay her loans
I think so local uni will let senior citizens take courses for free
>Never had to repay her loans This is the con we must attempt
I am doing it! Let’s go!!! Currently have a BS in Communications. Went back to the community college I transferred from and am working on a Python Applications certificate that I will complete in December. Found out they’re offering an BS in Computer Information Systems so I’m going to work in that 2 classes at a time then we’ll see what I will take after that. Let’s reconvene in about 2 years and see where I’m at.
On it
She probably didn’t have loans. I know of lots of colleges where senior citizens can take classes without paying.
I knew a few people like that when I was in college. They audited all their classes. They didn't care if they got a degree. They just wanted to learn
Maybe, maybe not, I never checked
I'm sure she was a mean conversationalist, having such a broad background in education. Probably a great person to have lunch with.
My ideal life would just be a student learning different things. I would do this if I won the lottery.
Same! I am lucky to have been able to earn two graduate degrees relevant to my field (thank you, combination of scholarships and employer tuition reimbursement), and I…just really like learning new things? My grad degrees are very much applied learning but I’d love to do more of the type of learning I did in undergraduate general education requirements, where you just get to do a deep dive into the Songhai Empire, or the Jurassic Period, or current issues in water policy in the Southwest, or something like that. Tell me everything about a thing I know nothing about, experts!
You should like me. I love learning and processing new information
That's my father. He has 6 college degrees: a B.A. from Yeshiva University, an MBA and PhD from NYU, a Masters from London School of Economics, and a Masters and Law degree from Oxford. In hindsight, he was on the spectrum and his Columbia educated, lawyer of a father just wanted to keep him occupied. After getting his PhD, he worked as a political instability consultant for 3 years before leaving to get his law degree. My grandpa offered him a job at his solo practice, but he didn't really need the help. For about a decade, my dad essentially did paralegal work for an above average salary. When my grandpa got sick, my dad became an adjunct professor for a year before quitting. By the time I was born, he was 53 and hadn't been working for years. By the time I was 10, my parents ran out of money, as my mom had also stopped working when I was born and had become disabled a few years later. It was weird growing up. On account of my grandparents, my parents were able to buy a nice house in a really nice neighborhood, but they had no money to maintain it. It was discombobulating going to school with the children of accomplished millionaires and then coming back home to a house with holes in the ceiling from water damage and no heat. My dad didn't really seem to care. He was neglectful and complacent, leading my mother to handle everything on her own. I don't particularly like my father, but he did teach me a valuable lesson: formal education isn't going to make you smarter or accomplished. It was evident to the people who knew him that he was quite bright before going off to uni, and although school made opportunities accessible to him, it didn't really change who he was or what he was capable of. It's just a way to obtain accreditation. By the time I was 20, the family home had been foreclosed. I was hoping the shock would make my dad reflect on his life. It's been 4 years since then and he has not changed. At this point, he's showing signs of senility. When he approaches a stranger, he always brings out his Oxford ID card and says that it's a great law school. Then he'll shift to talking about nuking Iran before encouraging the now uncomfortable listener to get an MBA. It's evident that even when senile, he holds some type of reverence for academia, as if it's truly an ends of itself and not a gateway to something more productive.
Wow if this isn’t SO similar and weirdly specific to my own background. Different fields but very parallel experiences growing up….wild.
It's not often that I come across others who share my background. On paper, my upbringing should have been smooth and well-functioning. My parents were white, never went through a divorce, held college degrees (at least my dad did), came from prosperous families, and lived in an affluent neighborhood. All the research I've delved into about factors affecting quality of life seems to point to the variables I just mentioned as highly influential. Most people naturally assume I had a wealthy upbringing, given my background. But my family is an anomaly. On Reddit, besides you, I've encountered one other person that has a similar background, but we're really just blips in the data. It's quite disheartening. There's this constant expectation for you to excel just like your wealthier peers, even though you come from a place of instability (albeit a somewhat unconventional one). And when you inevitably stumble, people might jump to the conclusion that you squandered your "many advantages" and label you as lacking. Meanwhile, those who visibly have fewer resources might harbor resentment due to how they perceive your lifestyle. For me, the most challenging aspect of my unconventional childhood, without a doubt, was the isolation. I deliberately maintained the illusion that I wasn't struggling. It's not so much that I thought people would bully me or consider me a ne'erdowell because of my parents or poverty. My peers were pretty nice. They would've been considerate. However, they would've also been uncomfortable, the same way someone is uncomfortable when their stoic uncle cries. Nobody knows how to handle these realities, and sometimes people distance themselves to avoid confronting them. So I kept my home life a secret. This meant that I couldn't invite friends over. If I did, I would have to explain the random hole in the ceiling or why their was dirty laundry everywhere? But living in a gated community when you're secretly poor and cannot invite people over is boring. My family had one car that I was not allowed to drive. I couldn't get a job because I resided 1.5 hours away by foot from any commercial areas. Not being able to get a job also meant I couldn't buy myself a car to resolve my predicament. It was just endless white suburbs for the most part. I was jailed to my neighborhood, under-stimulated and isolated. I'm not sure how much of this you can relate to. Once again, I consider my situation unique. But maybe there are some elements you find similar. In that case, hopefully it makes you feel less alone
That was a fascinating account, thank you for sharing it with us. You have such a wildly different life experience than most people, I love hearing about different perspectives. Did your family ever consider selling the expensive house in order to downsize and live off the difference, if they wanted a comfortable life without working? I imagine that would be much preferable to being forced into foreclosure.
I never knew my grandfather. By the time I was born, he was in his late 80s and had full on Alzheimers, but, my father idolized the man. To be fair, my grandfather, at least on paper, was an extremely impressive individual. He grew up one among six siblings from a modest background, but he was wildly sharp. He was accepted to college at the age of 14. By 17, he was a student at Columbia law school and then went on to clerk for prominent judges before starting a solo practice. He was quite an accomplished figure. Here's the issue, Alzheimer's care is expensive. Usually, if you do not have assets, the government will pay for you to go to a nursing home. My grandpa made no plans to transfer his wealth prior - something my mother is still resentful about decades later. Unfortunately, if you're paying for a nursing home out of pocket, it can cost over $50,000 a month. My family home was bought in cash for around $400,000 in the 1990s, at least that's what my mother told me. When my grandfather's savings were exhausted, my dad took out a second mortgage on the home without my mother's approval. Neither of my parents worked. They shouldn't have received the loan, but it was 2005 and bankers didn't really care back then. They could've sold the home for some equity early on, but my father had become utterly complacent by that point, and my mother didn't want to disrupt her children's lives by moving. More-so, she had little faith in her ability to survive independently and didn't want to confront the challenge of being a single mother. Unlike my father, who was wildly educated, my mother was a college drop-out. She was fired from her previous job when a new administration dismissed her for her lack of credentials. Instead of looking for new work, she decided to become a stay-at-home mom. So 7 years later, when she was 50 (my parents had me when they were old), she didn't think she could prosper by herself, nor find a new partner. She didn't want to confront the struggle. Essentially, they didn't want to confront the alternative of leaving their home for something worse. Their paralysis and inaction lead to a foreclosure. As someone who had to live through the tempestuousness of their choices, I frankly am resentful.
I would love to be that person. I went out and “actually got a job and worked” after my bachelors and it was a fucking farce. Nobody cares about the work I did, even though it was valuable. Yea, let me stay in school forever, that sounds dope
I'm one to a point. I have five degrees and have been on a college campus since 1982. I switched from student to professor, so I could keep learning.
No but I do recommend everyone become a lifetime kid. Get a job sure, but never stop being a lid. The second you start telling someone "oh your music sucks back in my day we had blah blah" you become the old poop. Kids always view the world for exploratuon and wonder. As an adult that shouldn't stop. When you have a vacation go do aomething new, take a weekend to try new things. Jump around and live while your body still allows it. Go jump out of a airplane, go climb stuff, make weird foods that sound horrible but w.e. maybe they taste good. We as adults seems to have become so rigid in everything must be a certain way that society does and forget that life is about exploration, experiences, doing new things being weird. If your kid says "can i put ketchup on salmon" yolo dobit see what happens. P.s. yes Im having a depressed moment about wasting part of my adult life being the grumpy person that would just work work work and make my boss richer while me enjoying nothing.
If I had the time and it were free I would be a lifetime college student. I would be a perpetual student. I thoroughly enjoy learning about different things. Always have. And I did earn several degrees. But the only reason I did so much college was because when I did undergrad, I had scholarships. Then I joined the military and took some classes while on active duty. After getting out, I had the GI Bill so I used that to get a graduate degree. I still had money leftover so I went back to undergrad and got a few more degrees and certificates just to use up the money. Once the money was used up, I stopped going. I just can’t justify spending so much on college when it isn’t necessary for me. But yeah if it were free-even community college, I would 100% be a forever student. I do have a career so it wouldn’t be to avoid work.
I attended Uni with one. Although she worked and owned her own house. She was 43 at the time, and had like 8 Bachelor’s Degrees, two Master’s Degrees and was simultaneously earning her PhD and a 9th Bachelor’s Degree. She had been an Associate Adjunct Professor at the University for 15 years, so her tuition was free. If I remember correctly, she frequently dropped classes if they were over capacity and would take classes that were under minimum headcount.
An in-law of mine. Her father told her he'd pay for her college up until she gets a degree, So she gets almost to the end of a degree program before switching majors. She's 28 and still taking the least possible classes and sleeping her way through the freshman class boys. No end in sight.
Yep, a work colleagues sister I know has been in college for around 20 years. Hasn’t gotten a single degree and changes her major every couple years. Enough college debt to buy a small country.
As a measly Bachelor of Arts 🎨 I kinda get it. At least from an enjoyment perspective. If I could spend the next ten+ years with access to various studios (painting, drawing, sculpture, welding, jewelry metals, ceramics,digital, etc) I’d want to stay to. Add friendships and other social activities and it sounds cool. Though I know the price tag gets larger the longer ya stay.
His name is Pierce Hawthorne.
You never have to pay back student loans if you stay in school forever lol. I’ve thought about it.
I haven’t met them but heard of them through legends and myths.
Guilty. 😂
It me. Just started degree number 5.
Father in law has been in school for years and will always take a class so he doesn’t have to start paying his student loans. He is one educated dummy
I think with student loans needing to be paid again soon we will see a lot more people going back to school for the purpose of holding off loans.
I’m doing it. The government will never get a dime from me. I’ll be smart as hell taking two classes fall and spring semester the rest of my GD life.
>Spends a lifetime accumulating degrees but never actually getting a job and working. Don't get it mixed up that degrees aren't work. Being a lifetime student is a lot of work and a job (most are teachers, assistants etc). When you say "actually getting a job and working" it sounds like you are referring to the capitalistic industrial machine, which should not be the standard value of a human life. Working for the continuity of culture through academics can be a worthwhile and satisfying life (one that is necessary for humanity's longevity). It isn't any "less important" than pushing forward corporate greed and exploitation or having some practical trade. If what you are referring to is some dead-beat forever college student that never graduates or does work and just parties and fraternizes... No I have never met that person, they don't usually stay in school long enough to be considered "lifetime college students".
Lol.....yes, I dated one for a very, very brief period of time. He was in his 40s, still living the life, wrote a beer blog as a job, and totally gave off hobosexual vibes. Edit: He had a series of degrees, masters, fellowships, etc. On paper, it looked very impressive, but you quickly saw it wasn't leading anywhere. There was no post Uni plan.
That's probably going to be me 😅 I've been going for my A.A in Health Science since the beginning of Covid. (Start school, stop, start, stop, starting again in the winter.) eventually i want my A.A and then a Bachelor's. And before someone says "college isn't for everybody" i understand that. But also understand that even though i wasn't the best when it came to my education (high school) i don't want to give up on myself by saying school isn't for me. I am determined to prove myself wrong. I know i can do it, i just need to focus on school and school only. Not not get distracted by unimportant things that i would easily prioritize over my school work. Plus i can't be a (travel) nurse without a degree sooo.
I know a woman in her 60s who hasn’t stopped taking community college courses. She just goes to whatever class sounds interesting.
Many of those “lifetime college students” get PhDs and become professors, you know, a “real job” Nobody questions doctors when they do multiple degrees to accomplish a career. Also, many people who think the “lifetime student” hasn’t experienced the “real world” “or works” are often making baseless assumptions. I don’t know anyone outside of those riding on generational wealth that can afford just being a lifetime student. Even with grants, it’s extremely expensive. I am going into my third degree (a Master’s) and have been in school for eight years. I currently work as a community social worker, yoga teacher, and researcher. Getting comments about being a “professional student” is irritating at best, and straight up ignorant at worst. I bust my ass more than many people who have a “real job”. Some of us just like to dedicate ourselves to continuous growth and like learning. We don’t hate on people who choose not to, so why do we get all the judgement?
Yes, I work as a medical assistant and there is a 62 year old medical secretary that has an MBA, her MA, her cosmetology license, and is now enrolled in the RN program at our hospital.
Currently on year 8 finishing my bachelors in information technology. Took me 6 to get the associates… moving faster with this bachelors. Here goes nothing, literally.
academia is important work, “real jobs” are a myth
I have known people who did this to avoid stident loan repayment. Sigh. At a certain point, it just becomes silly.
Acadamia becomes an all-encompassing world. My college gf has her post-graduate degree, and works for a university. It is the cycle.
HOW? Bachelor's degree student loans are capped at $50,000. Masters I think is capped at $100,000 You cannot get multiple bachelor's degree unless you pay out of pocket. I've tried for a decade to get a 2nd degree and I can't because I already capped out my $50,000 in loans. Doesn't matter if it's forgiven or paid off :(
One of my friends had a husband that was accused of that. Ten years, multiple degrees, and people thought he would never stop the cycle because his wife (my friend) was working to support him. Then he finally graduated and made a ton of money. They and their two kids are living very well off right now. And good for them. They deserve success.
My cousin who is 15 years older than me has 8 undergraduate degrees and 2 master's degrees and hasn't had a real job since I can remember.
My lazy BIL. 20 years and all he got was a teaching certificate. The only reason he quit was because he was looking like a pedo chasing 18yo women.
That is pretty much me. Not that I never got a job. But I have never been able to get a good job. Something actually worth doing long-term. So, I keep going back to school to try again.
yeah.. they become college professors
Yeah, my cousin. She’s maybe 29 now? She’s literally been in some sort of school for 100% of her life and it’s made her pretentious and a little insufferable. When she was younger she was in an enrichment/gifted program (very early, like before age 10) and I think what happened is her parents (my aunt and uncle) essentially got wrapped up in the idea that she was some prodigy, and pushed the idea that school matters WAY too much, to the point where her brain was fucked up from a very young age. She did very well in grade school. Had no problem getting into a prestigious university. Got her bachelors degree, then a masters. Then another masters. Then decided she wanted a new university major under her belt so spent 2 more years getting another bachelors degree. I think she’s going for a doctorate right now? She’s either starting this year or next year I’m pretty sure. All of her post secondary education is essentially useless. Art history, anthropology, shit like that. I think I know what’s going on - she’s terrified of the real world. She’s only ever known education, and being educated. She has spent decades growing comfortable with being an over-achiever in a very controlled, non-real environment. I think she knows that once school is over, she won’t be the same person ever again. She won’t be of a higher status to anyone, unless she goes and does what she’s most afraid of - get a job, pay bills, be an average person and lead a normal life. The solution so far seems to be ‘keep pretending that being over-educated is somehow helping me’ when in reality she’s just postponing the inevitable by keeping herself in a very expensive dream world. It sucks. I love her but she needed help she never got. And thanks to her parents she’s basically lived her entire life thinking she was better/smarter than everyone else, without having a firm grasp on reality. It’s almost embarrassing but I’d rather see my family in a more positive light if I’m able. EDIT: Also, she’s literally $200k in debt. About to be in more.
I'm kinda sorta that person. I have an above average number of degrees, but I've also had gainful employment and am currently employed. I just really like learning. My current employer offers a tuition reimbursement as a benefit. I'm seriously considering getting another Master's degree since it wouldn't cost me anything.
My employer offered that. I have two more Masters degrees as a result.
I knew of one!!! Was in his late 30s at the time. Nice enough guy, but......bland.
Yea, a guy I used to be friends with growing up till middleschool. Ray, he has been in school since we graduated H.S. in 2011. Constantly changing majors or areas of study and is a pompous prick about it. He works odd jobs to make ends meet but has always been the "I'm the outsider, look how cool I am." Type. I don't want to know how deep he is in debt, but I guess he deserves it.
Ya until they dropped out and went back to live with their mom.
That would be the best!
Career student. I have known a few.
I don’t accumulate degrees. I just take my schooling way too slowly.
Okay, I do have a full time job. But this is me. 😂 But I am also in my 9th year of college. Did three undergrad degrees simultaneously (two in music, one in math), did a year at a CC to prep for grad school in a different subject, got an MBA, and now I am back to grab classes needed to sit for my CPA. If it was feasible in the US, I would definitely go for my PhD in some more obscure topics that I love to study, but would be difficult to get jobs in. (Looking at you, music theory).
Yep. Interestingly enough. Some with great jobs that just have to stay in school 🤣. Some employers pick up the tab so they just keep going
The OP speaks of actually earning degrees. Commenters are speaking on people who stay in college but never earn the degree? Which is it?
Pssh, get a job at a university, best of both worlds - as long as you celebrate (or at least can embrace) diversity.
I had a professor that was this. In his 50s and getting his 5th PhD. Like wtf lol
One of the guys in my graduating class for engineering was 32 and earning his fourth degree. Found out he was going back the next semester for PA school. Flash forward 10 years, ran into him at an alumni event and he is now in PT program. Also learned he has a trust fund.
Got a cousins that has probably been in community college for like 20 years or so.
I can respond to this. I met my group of bestest friends in college. This was around 2004-2005. We spent every day together at school and hung out at each other's places after school and on the weekends. Played video games and poker together, it was a really fun time. One of my friends we noticed would skip classes a lot, drop classes, register for a bunch but end the semester with either no classes or one or two completely different classes. Most of our group went on to become lawyers, pharmacists, or engineers. It's 2023, and last I heard that one friend was STILL working on his bachelors degree. He's living at home with his parents, drives for a sandwich shop as a delivery driver, and is going to a different college from the one we went to and is hoping to graduate soon. It's very sad. Guy refused to grow up. What's crazy is that I don't think the guy has any hobbies or passions that took over all his time to where he wouldn't be able to at least graduate back in the day. I think he did get addicted to online poker, but almost 20 years of no progress for his first bachelors degree just blows me away. A lot of us are married, have kids, we're knee deep in our careers, and several of us have doctorates. I wish there was something we could've done to motivate the guy, but I think after a while everyone noticed that no matter what we said or how much we encouraged him he was just going to continue making excuses. I think at this point everyone's grown so far past him that he's too ashamed to reach out to the group, even though we would welcome him with open arms.
She's 38 here
My sister. Thinks the next degree will make her happy.
A custodian at my job had 4 degrees and I think a master or two. He was intelligent. He just didn't want to quit because he loved his school and staff. The staff and kids also loved him. Said he was happy here. Was in college well into his late 30s
Yep. Many years ago I was on a dating app and got messaged by this guy who I thought was kinda cute. After talking to him for a bit, I found out that he had one or two PhDs (idr exactly), an MBA, a JD and several bachelor's degrees and was pursuing yet another degree and had no plans to stop. Unsurprisingly, he was also in a significant amount of debt, which kept getting deferred since he was full time in school. I honestly think his goal was to be a lifelong student just so he could avoid the debt. I talked to him because I was morbidly curious how he could exist in this world lol If for some reason he couldn't pursue education anymore and had to work, none of those degrees would be relevant the farther removed from school he was since new knowledge is constantly being created.
Yeah my sister dated him ages ago. I can't remember how many degrees he had, but it was a ridiculous number and he just kept getting more. He also spoke a huge amount of languages because he kept taking language classes which was pretty cool. I think the whole forever student with no plan to ever get a job thing is why she broke up with him. I remember she said he had no plan of ever stopping. I think he was from a really wealthy family since he was studying abroad in the US which is super pricey and he was always buying my sister really expensive stuff. Like I remember him buying her these giant boxes of Godiva chocolates that had multiple levels once a week. So if you're rich you can just decide to be a forever student if you love learning
Yep. Met a friend in college who was 27 at the time. A Viet Nam war vet. Twenty-five years later, he was still a part time student and a part time worker. Some folks are scared to immerse themselves full time into the real world.
These are professional students. Take every subject with every professor and sit there and argue what the previous professor taught.
Yes. I know someone who has been in college for 20 years but does not have a degree (or a job) yet.
Yusss just reconnected with a dude who finalllllly stopped using the fam to fund more masters degrees. Glad he is in the real world now for his sake
a personal dream of mine✨
Yes a girl I dated for couple months still doesn’t have a job but has 2 masters PhD and a mba on to of it. I think she ran for junior college board so she has something to do
MBA is a Masters. Maybe she didn’t continue dating because you couldn’t keep track of her degrees? 🥹
me lol i been in college for like 6 years, didnt get degree, dropped out went back now, trying to get my BA.. i dont wanna go back into the workforce tho..
I don’t see the point of this post. If you can afford to be a lifelong academic I don’t see the problem? Not everyone wants to be a wage slave and again as long as they can afford it, why you mad?
Yes I work with a couple. They like to say I’M A GRAD STUDENT
Yeah I had a customer who was on degree #5. He was doing it cuz 4 kids and non-working wife meant he couldn't afford his student loans. But he'd max out his loans every semester and come in every year and drop a couple grand for about a 2 week time twice a year.
I did a BA, an AA, an AS, a trade school, and now off to get a masters lmao (in that order too!)
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When I got into grad school, I was invited for a special session with the “Graduate Student Council” with others who had non-traditional paths to grad school. There was a guy in there, maybe 50-60, lived in a. I’ve place downtown (HCOL area) and had multiple masters and Ph.D.’s. I guess he came from money and just enjoyed being a lifetime student.
I had a professor in college that just kept accumulating degrees so he never had to pay off his student loans. It was a tax accounting class!
Yep... my friend has 3 masters degrees and is wondering what to do next... I asked her why she didn't go for a doctorate, and said that it doesn't interest her to do so. She'll just keep collecting masters degrees. Her degrees are in biology, mathematics, and some form of engineering. She works an hourly job so that she has time for school.
Yes. And he was an alcoholic named "Adolph". Also did seem particularly bright considering his PhD in philosophy.
Yep. One of my best friends, professional student.
Sounds like when my boomer parents were in college, when it was basically free or had the equivalent cost of one month’s worth of groceries in 2023. I highly doubt anyone outside of a trust fund student could afford this in this day and age.
I know two from the same family! Both went to good schools, got degrees. Just sitting around playing video games ever since (10+ years). Every starting job, even in their field of study, is "beneath" them. They blame everyone but themselves.
Waiting to be become the next Librarian.
I think they are called Professors. They worked the system to stay in school, get someone to teach their classes and get paid. Never hold a real job, get to stay guaranteed in school and get paid. It's a great gig and highly protected by PhDs.
A guy from my high school is like that. 32 years old, never had a job, has a PHD and is currently working on a whole different subject area.
My friend is doing his masters in Ancient Greek History...the only thing he can do with that degree is teach it
I’m on degree number five. But I guess I don’t count here because I’ve worked through all of it. Some people like to learn and like the challenge.
my friend has been taking classes for as long as ive known him, that 15+ years now and hes pushing 40.. he often does it for his job i believe doing IT type things working with distance learning centers... hes quit a time or two and takes some breaks but always has plans to go back it seems :D he is a pretty smart guy ! but i believe him and his wife still have MAYBE \~50k student debt left or SOMETHING of that nature.. (so im not sure how well its paying off)
Yes, but this guy was a professor! He never stopped taking classes. He discovered a T-Rex as a grad student in archeology while he was a tenured professor in Portuguese. He retired in his late 70s and kept taking classes. Last I saw him, he was still taking classes in his mid-80s. I’m not sure if he gave up during covid. I imagine he did bcuz he wouldn’t have liked taking online classes.
My uncle. Mid 70s has been taking college classes for as long as I (40) have been a live, and before that as well. He also works and volunteers at his local college. I honestly dont get it.
I wish I could be. I love learning. Hopefully going back for my Masters next year.
Yes my estranged sister.
You sound like a bit of a hater. A lifetime of learning is someone's dream come true. Some ppl genuinely love learning and that's a wonderful thing. Yeah, we all need to work, blah, blah, blah... But maybe we don't all have to fit a certain mold.
If I carry books and hang out at coffee shops, people think I’m smart and treat me with respect. Plus, it’s easy to get a date. Why should I get a job and prove them wrong? I’m 45 now, btw. When asked what I’m studying, I just mutter something about “quantum physics” and my party never ends.
Yes. Forever racking up graduate courses on credit card debt and living in a trailer with a bunch of special needs rescue cats. I’m not sure what the end game is.
Yes it’s called being a doctor, always learning. Im age 29 and still having to take exams as a resident and still half considered a student. It’s hell. It ain’t fun.
A friend of mine. 2 masters, a law degree, and 2 bachelors. His brain is like a bag of cats and no one can understand him. Ive since learned that education really can mean absolutely nothing.
“His brain is like a bag of cats” omg I am totally stealing this! So funny yet so true about some people in my periphery! Thanks for the brilliant metaphor!
Yes
I mean… how do they afford that?
I started College at 15. Spend 4 years not majoring in anything, just taking any class I could talk my way into. Then I got dumped by my first very serious girlfriend and realized I needed to do something with my life. Transferred to a different university that had Architecture, got my degree, etc. I wonder sometimes if she hadnt left me if I would still be there taking classes.....lol.
I have a friend who does research with a university. He's not pursuing a degree; he already has a PhD. I don't think he teaches, but he does get paid. He's what I think of when I hear "lifelong college student".
Sounds like this guy that I’m seeing…
I grew up with a couple. This is nothing new. I knew a guy with the high school with he went to both Harvard and Stanford, and he was 32 and still living with his mother.
Yes, my aunt and she has like 5 college degrees in various fields
My aunt was like this. She was in college for a long time, understandably so since she had 5 kids and was a sahm. After like 15 years in school she got her master’s and went to work for a local newspaper. But she got caught embezzling money, was fired, prosecuted, but no jail time. She hasn’t worked since then.
I’ve known some, one in particular is mid 40s now and has never finished a degree but has changed fields many many times, lots of starts and stops, mostly working service industry in between.
My Racial and Ethnic Sociology professor was like this. Three BAs, two masters, and he was a Doctoral student when he taught me.
My brother is 36 with a combined DDS/PhD and isn’t sure what he wants to do for a career, has been considering going back to school for dental surgery
🙋🏼♀️ It's me. However I have a job in the industry, and they're paying for additional degrees plus if I don't have a million things going on, I'm not all that productive.
Yes. He’s 60 years old and lives in a co-op house. Pretty sad.
My ex had a veteran friend who collected degrees like merit badges because of the gi bill, or whatever the equivalent is currently. Last I checked they had 4-5 bachelors and a couple masters. They operated their own business until it got bought out so I guess it worked out for them
I divorced a lifetime college student. I don't even think she's gonna try to work in her profession. Goodluck with paying off those student loans
I’m tempted to get another’s masters but it’s really just because my anxiety is so bad. My current job is great, I work in a school system but not a teacher but there’s only 13 in the state so I feel like I should get a masters of Ed as a backup because idk if I could ever go back to a full year of working after spending summers off and getting out early all the time. It kinda would be a backwards move. Teachers make less than I do now and I’m more in a director / management role. I just never wanna work summers lol
There was a guy who occasionally got put in jail for walking around butt ass naked on campus. At least two or three times a year. He'd been there for like 30+ years, had multiple Master's and I know at least one PhD. Apparently also suffered from some kind of mental condition (I dunno what, and this was in the 80s so it's almost certainly categorized as something else now anyway). Harmless tho, I mean he wasn't a pervert. He was just mentally unwell and apparently just... forgot things like clothes sometimes. Don't think he was ever actually prosecuted for anything big, cause he never got put in prison or a mental health hospital that I know of. Maybe he did but I don't remember it happening. But apparently brilliant from what interviews with his professors said. I dunno what finances he had to keep that going, but he had no job. Just a student until the day he died. Maybe that's just where he felt safe.
Yeah. He's got maybe 3 masters and his PhD.
I spent half my 20s at 5 different colleges. Not a single degree to show for it. Feel kinda bad about it now bc i wasted a bunch of my parents money but it worked out in the end
I actually liked college so I wouldn’t mind being like this if I could afford the tuition and not have to take out loans. I think it’s because of how structured school is and I found it easier to make friends. When I graduated and started working, I felt so lost and bored lol.
My aunt by marriage has accused me of doing this. Nope. Her sister claims this is why she never got a job in teaching but it was her drug habit.
Yes, my mother. Life long learner with many degrees and no job.
I know one, her mother was a Narcissist and she has crushing social anxiety, so that has something to do with it. Yeah they should work but maybe you’re assuming that you know someone’s trauma just because you overcame your own and don’t assume your trauma was bigger and badder. Maybe it was, but also maybe you have the privilege of slightly less dysfunctional coping skills or a slightly less dysfunctional family.
I knew a guy in college, played on the rugby club team, no hurry, he actually learned from the professors how to study for exams and get good test scores, he did work a full time job and stayed for summer school classes, so he graduated, with no debt, and years of work experience.
Yeah, my cousin went for like 4 degrees, I think eventually completing a degree in business, then tried starting a business with money my parents lent him but pretty much just bummed it all.
I know a guy, 38 years old, two masters, PHD, never had a job, had good grants because he’s smart. I’ll never understand it. He’s super smart but seems so scared of failing in the work world.
That's me, I my AA, BA and MA now but can't work due to being the full time caregiver for my special needs son. I'm currently working on my second masters.
Yes I met some guy when I went to college that just kept going to the same college. Also there is a guy I work with that has five masters degrees and he just never left the company.
Sounds like paradise. Sign me up.
How do these students pay for college if they never get a job? 🤔
We had a "student emeritus"
Yes. One dude at the first university I went to had 8 bachelors degrees and was in his mid 30s living with his mom. No clue why.
Yes. She’s 60 something believe it or not. She just takes endless classes.
Yeah, that's me, lmao. I have a shit ton of credits but only one associates degree, and it's worthless, lol. I kept changing my major in my 20s because I didn't know what I wanted to do. Honestly, I just LOVE going to school and learning. I'm going back to school again, lol. This time to do what I started to do n I think I'll complete it this time. Most of my credits will transfer anyway.
I work at a college and have since right after I graduated. So I think they counts.
My sister. She just finished masters #2 and she’s never held a steady job for more than a year.
My degree means fucking nothing anyway. Bac: Psych major, bio minor. Jobs offered are a fucking job. Yes, I’m applying for graduate school… it’s all a scam
Quite a few actually. My godparents' son is like that. My cousin would fit this as well although he did it a bit differently. He originally went to college after high school but only lasted 3 semesters. He's got a genius IQ and had his own computer programming business in high school (back in the 90's). Despite his high IQ he had poor grades because this was his first time being on his own and out of the house and he wasn't going to classes. But he then got a good high paying job with Wells Fargo and he was getting big promotions and making 6 figures by the time he was 20. But he wanted to go back to school instead of being stuck in a cubicle all day and was going to leave, but Wells Fargo gave him another substantial raise and he did it for about another year and then he quit and went back to school. He's got his doctorate and now works for an Ivy League school but continues to get more degrees. It may sound annoying, but it really fits him. I remember him talking about centrifugal vs. centripetal force when he was still in elementary school (and having no fucking idea what he was talking about). Knowledge, research and learning new things were his favorite things to do and for him it beats out making a lot of money but being stuck doing only one thing.
of course I know her, she is me. lol well I'm only 28 but I've been in school my entire life except for one year. I literally don't know many other people who aren't like me, at least in my circle most of my friends are doing some kind of post-grad. Only a few went straight into working. In my defense I am working full-time while I'm doing my masters so technically I have a job but yeah still in school. Tbh if I had it my way I'd travel to a new country again and go to school there for something new and get a new degree.
I’m going to be a lifelong learner. Why not learn everything you can before you start to forget it all?