Monday, February 18, 2013

The fuss about grad school


The reaction is basically the same, “What!? You aren’t planning on going to graduate school next year?” When I break the news that my plans have changed the first reaction tends to be the same, surprise. Then there is a wealth of second reactions, ranging from the popular, “You’re never going to go back” to the also popular, “What are you going to do for a year before you do go?”

It is probably my fault that these are the reactions I have gotten. For the past two years I have said over and over that I was headed to graduate school to study primates. But I had an eye opening experience in Indonesia and I want to make sure I will be happy going to grad school and more importantly happy with the career I end up with after. If not, what is the point?

Let me drive this point home, if the reason I go to grad school is because that is seen as the obvious next step after undergrad and there isn’t a better reason like, it will help me get a job I want, then I don’t see a reason to go now. School is tough; I am a perfectionist so anything less than 4.0 doesn’t satisfy me.  Although when I want something I don’t mind working hard for it. But when I don’t care about a subject, like chemistry, it is painful to drag myself through the material. So it seems clear to me that if in this time I am taking off I find a good reason to go to grad school then I will go and I am certain I will do an amazing job. If I don’t happen to find a good reason to go and I just go because that is “the next step” I see myself being unhappy as I drag myself through the years it will take to finish. In the later scenario if I don’t have a reason to attend more schooling then what will be the big difference when I am done if I don’t need it for a particular job that I want, yes I will be qualified for more jobs but ones I don’t want to do…does that make sense?