r/AskAcademia•
Twity

Going back to school for another degree

So reddit, I have an undergraduate degree in Psychology, I graduated in the spring of 2010. During my senior year I worked in a neuropsych lab and loved it. I got to go to conferences, and actually do some actual science. However I had a pretty strict line of classes I had to take to graduate (poor planning) and so I never got to do anything other then the basic neuropsych course offered. Also my GPA was nothing stellar, sitting just under a 3.0 (I'm a little ashamed of it, I could of done better easily).

Shortly after graduating I got a job at a major university working in a vocational program with Autistic Adults. Now comes the part where I could use some advice.

I love my job, and am in no hurry to move onto something else. That being said I don't want to do it forever, my real dream being to go back to graduate school for Neuropsych. I get to take free classes through the school, and can go anywhere in state. There is a high concentration of very good schools nearby, so I can take pretty much anything I could ever want. It should also be said that I loved going to college, though not really for the same reasons as everybody. I genuinely love going to class and learning things.

I have a supportive family, and no debt. Should I take classes on the side to try and line up a second major (my credits from my first undergraduate program will transfer)? Should I work for a few more years and then try to go back to school full time? Should I just try applying for masters and PhD programs? I could apply for lab positions at the university to get more experience, but would that be worth leaving my very enjoyable job that I have right now?

I am sorry for any spelling or formatting issues, I am not an experienced poster.

Posted Sep 27, 2011, 9:34 PM UTC

12
[deleted]•

[deleted]

1
omi_palone•

Graduate school debt can be seriously burdensome. Follow Ranvier's advice and take your time doing whatever you can for free for the time being,and start looking for fellowships, programs and faculty who are doing work you'd like to do. Get in touch with them, find out what you'd need to work with them, correspond with students in those departments and generally get to know the lay of the land before you commit to a new program.

1