going back to college in your 30’s?

Complex question. I went back to college when I was 26, because I wasted the time I spent in college right out of high school my return to college later meant starting from scratch. One thing your friends have to check, depending on their situation, is if the credits they have already earned are still valid. Depending on the school being applied to credits that are too old (usually between 5 and 10 years, check with the school) will not transfer at all and must be retaken.

The decision between community college and a 4-year college is a very individual one. The best recommendation I can make for that is to talk to an academic advisor at either a college or a community college. In general, community colleges are cheaper than 4-year institutions and provide a more flexible schedule so they tend to be good for people that are not quite ready to quit their jobs to go back to school.

The climb up the corporate ladder all depends on their work experience and what kind of change they are making. If they are staying in their present field or profession then the answer is usually no, they don’t have to start from the bottom again. However, if they are changing to a completely different field (say, as an example, going from being a HVAC technician to teaching high school theatre) then they will usually have to start from the ground up again.

Its a decision that bears a lot of thinking and research. I can tell you that starting a bachelors from scratch feels strange and unless the person doing it has a strong support group in their family and friends it can be a very lonely and alienating experience. Although the demographics are slowly changing most college students are still between 18 and 22 years old which makes it difficult for the typical thirty-something to make a social connection with them. But going back to college in that situation can be done, I’m proof of that.

It can be done. I got a Bachelor’s right out of high school and went back to college in my 30’s to get another degree in something I was more interested in. I found it a lot easier the second time because I was a lot more mature and able to focus on what I needed to do. It was definitely a killer as far as time, never seemed to get enough sleep. But it is definitely worth at least trying. If it doesn’t work out, whatever you learned is still yours to keep.