Is (was) it a good decision? What do you think?

Sometimes that's all I want to do: give McGill another shot and see what happens. But then all this rational arguments and statistics about employment for Humanities graduates come to mind again and I can't simply ignore them because they are part of the reality. If I were interested in Med School or even Law, I guess I wouldn't worry that much. But History/Literature/Philosophy and especially at my age... I don't know, I feel I'd be pushing too much. I still would like to buy a house one day and be able to travel once every two years at least.

The truth is, I feel completely lost. I'm not chasing some dream here. I only got that interested in History a few years ago (although I did well and enjoyed it in school) and I fear I may be just trying to avoid being stuck in another 9-5 job, as I was before. But I also fear not giving it a shot and not having a blast, as you said, and still end up in a boring 9-5 job.

That's why I would like to hear people's stories on this. I am aware no one can make a decision for me and no life story is identical to the other, but maybe I could at least gather more info about if I'm way too scared of debt/unemployment/underemployment or if I really have a point here.

Thank you for sharing this, rosemadder. It's really inspiring! We have a few similar points in our stories. I, too, was very unhappy in my 9-5 job, and that unhappiness led me to read more English literature. That prompted me to start reading about philosophy, which in turn awakened in me a strong interest in history. I had always been more or less interested in all that, but since I have always heard that those fields do not lead to a career, I never really thought about studying them, let alone trying to find a job related to them.

I'm glad that you can count on your partner, that is probably very encouraging! I can count on no one but myself, unfortunately. I don't mind living on a small budget, but I'm not sure if going back to school in any of those fields (literature, history, philosophy...) would be a good thing for me. The knowledge would be invaluable, I don't question that for a second, but I worry that after years of study I would be deemed too old to pursue academia and/or too old and too inexperienced to try any other job.

Those are some of the reasons I don't want to talk about "chasing my dream" or whatever.. almost everything seems justified when people say they want to make their dreams come true, but I'm a much more practical person, I suppose.

Nevertheless, you seem pretty confident in the path you've chosen and I truly wish you all the best! Cheers!

Your welcome, I wish you luck in whatever you choose to do as well. Just remember life is short, it's there to be lived, experienced and enjoyed No regrets

Thank you very much I've been trying to live and not worry about the future, but I can't help wondering if going back to uni for something that's not really marketable and finishing it so late in life is a wise step. I thought quitting my stable, well-paying but boring job would be the hardest part, but I found out that making the decision of what to do next is actually the hardest one. I'm terrified of not being able to work anywhere if I decide to go back to school.

Another Canadian here. I didn't even try to go to university during or out of high school because I have learning disabilities and my parents trashed Humanities and Social Sciences so much (those were the subjects that interested me as a kid). It's taken until my 30's to decide that I don't care if it will or won't lead to a career. I hope it will lead to something, but this extremely conservative approach that my parents taught me hasn't served me in the long run. I have to take chances sometimes.

I'm first gen post-secondary with disabilities and children, which qualifies me for a good deal of financial aid. Not to say I'm rolling in dough, but in the 2 years I've been going to school, I've qualified for more aid than I was expecting. I hadn't realized those kinds of things were taken into account. Going to school at this age is a big chance but I'm done with playing it safe. Playing it safe meant I missed out on a lot of things that I wanted to do so badly. My grades are great (they were usually terrible when I was a kid) and I enjoy it so much! I've been told by TA's and a couple of professors how unique my papers are and I'm able to make good arguments. I should hope so, I've had years of debating with bosses to try ideas to make the company more money. My writing has a long way to go, but I enjoy being challenged and I enjoy challenging my TA's and professors. Going back to school was an excellent decision! I'm really happy I'm doing this.

If you really feel that crushed when you see reports about certain British universities, then I'd say that there's your answer. I don't imagine that feeling will ever go away until you do something about it. I think dealing with those kind of intrusive thoughts about what could have been, is really hard, and I can't imagine it being fun dealing with that forever.. (I'm in a slightly similar boat about obsessively thinking about whether I will regret not studying further)..

Before deciding anything, I would contact the university (and maybe other unis) about the BA you already have - and the degree to which it would limit your preferred route into academia - is there a chance you could be wrong about needing to take a second BA?

The age thing seems to be an anxiety that a lot of people have (including myself), which is a shame as so many people study later in life and retrain, and have a lot to add to their chosen subject. Only going back to university if you go into medicine/health or law, due to job prospects is a really sad thought - that there are some passionate bright people who may have a lot to add to different subject areas, but are too put off by money etc. I really don't think 40s or 50s is too old to do a phd - lots of people wait and do them later on.

I'm not sure about your friend - just because the humanities are not as competitive as some areas, doesn't mean you need to take the approach that they only want you due to free spaces/money. If its a subject you love, and a good uni, why not just be happy and positive about the opportunity?

I don't know loads about jobs in that area but I would imagine that the phd would mean you could quite easily apply for lecturing jobs? Is that something you could happily do - be a professor? Or some other work at a university? And I guess publishing your own stuff?

I'm 30 and about to do my post grad in the humanities. In many ways this is a huge leap in the dark, I've had pretty massive health and other major life problems, including patchy employment the past few years, and my health is still very much an ongoing problem. However, because of my struggles with illness I thought a lot about what I would regret if I was no longer here (sorry to be morbid!), and the no.1 thing would be that I didn't go back to university. I know that pain you talk about when you hear about unis, it really hurt me for years and it didn't go away. So I'm going for it. Which is stressful but also given me more hope that I have felt in years.

I hope to go onto do a phd, but if not to go back to what I used to do (which you could still do too) with the added benefit of having a Masters, or perhaps work for a uni.

The thing about universities is that they can open up a whole range of opportunities. They usually have a careers service, which you can often use up to a couple of years after graduating. They have internal jobs you can apply for at the uni. And all the alumni and networking type opportunities.

I don't know about Canada, but in the UK having an Anxiety disorder can mean that you are entitled to extra financial help and also help to make your studies easier and more accessible. There are also grants and funding available.

I would be really surprised if it was held against you not having a BA in your subject if you already have a BA and then went onto do a Masters and PhD. The Masters I'm doing is not totally relevant to my undergrad but I was fine getting in, demonstrating the links there were and also interest from my career.

It sounds like you really want to do this but are just worried about the future, which I get, I find taking risks really scary, knowing how far there is to fall. But all that uncertainity is still there anyway whether you take this chance or not. If you have a chance to be happy, if you've found something you feel you're meant to do, that's pretty priceless, I'd say take it. Good luck!