Sunday, January 22, 2017

What are some experiences of people who pursued a PhD later in life?

One of my girlfriends decided in her 30s that she wanted to get her Ph.D. in biomedical nanotech. At the time she didn't even have an undergraduate degree. She went to school and threw herself into it with a voracious passion that was absolutely awe-inspiring to watch.

She picked up two Masters degrees, one in bioinformatics with a minor in pure mathematics (because she discovered, quite by accident, that mathematics turns her on--as in literally causes her to be sexually aroused) and one in neurobiology, then ended up in a Ph.D. program in neurobiology rather than nanotech. Today she works in a lab doing pure research on the brain's proteome, with the goal of seeking to reverse aging-related brain degeneration.

It has been amazing to watch. When she made the choice to do it, she pursued it with a passion and zeal I have never seen before or since. It is absolutely incredible how she has allowed nothing to stand in her way. She decided she wanted to make a difference in the world and she has allowed nothing to stop her.

I wrote an essay about it some years ago when she went back to school, if you're interested. It's called I am in Love with a Dragonslayer, and you can read it here:

http://ift.tt/2jPqkPx...


Read other answers by Franklin Veaux on Quora: Read more answers on Quora.

from Quora http://ift.tt/2kgSoM2

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