Physical Therapy: Going back to school at 39 years old.?
Posted by admin on Jan 4, 2009
Ok, So 2nd Q. I'm 39 years old. I'm a licensed massage therapist in NYC and would like to go to school for PT. I don't have my undergrad degree. I have a 1.5925 GPA with 33 hrs that are passing out of 54 hours from when I tried to get my undergrad at UT Texas in Austin in 95. My undergrad major was deaf education. So now I have been an LMT for the past 4 years, since 2001. Have 1500 hours of massage training from Swedish Institue in NYC and Austin Massage school in TX combined. Reason to go back to school is to get a secure job that will give job security and health benefits in the work force. Questions: Should I go back to school when it will take me about 7-9 years for this degree, I'll be 50. Should I just continue in massage knowing well I won't be able to do this in my later years? What do I need to do to start the process in going back to school? I'm in NYC and looking at the San Francisco (UCSF/SFSU) or Texas State in San Marcos. All feed back would be appreciated.
First of all, you are never to old to go back to school. It really has everything to do with motivation. If you have the desire, then do it. If not, dont waste your time because you wont do well. You will have to do it for yourself and to be totally truthful with you, you have to do it for internal reasons not external ones like money. External reasons for behavior do not, in most cases, have long term success rates. Things that relate to your value system and desires are more stable and tend to remain the same.
To answer you other question about how to get back into school. Personally what I would do is talk to some local physical therapists and ask them where they went to school and if there are any local programs available. Also ask them for requirements needed to get into the program. I'll be honest with you, a 1.59 GPA is not going to cut it in any program. (Not saying this to put you down by the way) Hopefully with age and maturity you'll do better than that. Most older student do do better after going back to school by the way… they have different standards, needs and values.
Good luck with you,
Daniel
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Well if it will make you feel happy and complete, go for it! I understand why you don't want to do massage therapy when you are older. Don't worry about what age you will be when you are done. Some people don't know what they want to do in their lives untill later. The wait is well worth it though. When you find your dream job life gets better.
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yes you should. it would give you a solid foundation for your later years of life. If you have kids, it would also help build their lives as well but most of all you have to do this for you and your future. If i was you, i would do it
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Check out the Universities in your area at collegeboard.com A lot of schools now offer a 5 year Master's program in PT. I know the Texas Women's University does. If you could get into one of the 5 year programs, you could graduate at the age of 45, you could still put in 20-25 years on a job, get your retirement and the whole 9 yards. Check into it! It will be worth it.
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http://www.collegeboard.com
Is this your dream? Are you truly motivated? Excited? If so, go for it. If you don't, when you are 50, you will wish you had.
You can use your Massage Therapy work to help you fund your education. Start with a couple of night classes at your local junior college. Won't be that expensive, you can work during the day and you can 'test the waters' to see if you really want to do it.
Best wishes and good luck!
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Hey girl, welcome to the party. I went to college to get my executive assistant diploma when I was raising my two sons alone. Now that I am 56, no offices will hire me because they want young girls in the office. Now, I am in the process of going for my life insurance license. So my answer to you is: Yes, go back to school and do something that will take you into your latter years. Don't ever give up on educating yourself. If you can afford it, go do it and good luck in your new chosen profession. Thank you for your question.
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First of all, you are never to old to go back to school. It really has everything to do with motivation. If you have the desire, then do it. If not, dont waste your time because you wont do well. You will have to do it for yourself and to be totally truthful with you, you have to do it for internal reasons not external ones like money. External reasons for behavior do not, in most cases, have long term success rates. Things that relate to your value system and desires are more stable and tend to remain the same.
To answer you other question about how to get back into school. Personally what I would do is talk to some local physical therapists and ask them where they went to school and if there are any local programs available. Also ask them for requirements needed to get into the program. I'll be honest with you, a 1.59 GPA is not going to cut it in any program. (Not saying this to put you down by the way) Hopefully with age and maturity you'll do better than that. Most older student do do better after going back to school by the way… they have different standards, needs and values.
Good luck with you,
Daniel
References :