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Originally Posted by rainboots87
I got my bachelor's degree nearly 5 years ago. I did a year of post-bac work for a master's program, which i did full time then part time for 3 years before officially calling it quits. I almost immediately (after a summer working) went into a new grad program (different field) with a full fellowship. Now, here I am 7 months later and I'm incredibly miserable. i hate it here so much and I don't care about what I'm studying anymore. I want to make a difference in someone's life, not study random little things, read long boring articles, and write my own stupid papers.
But I did about 75-80% of my last grad program with above a 3.7 GPA and I'm about halfway through this one with above a 3.8 GPA (I'd actually have just 2 classes and my thesis for all of the next school year). I feel like I should just push through, get my degree, and get out, especially since I'm doing quite well. It's been a major goal of mine for years to get a master's degree, but I clearly haven't figured out what field that should be in 'cause it's not this one.
If I quit, how could I get a job or even go back to school down the line (when I figure a specific career I want, not just this humanities crap) when I keep quitting. In fact, even for my BA, I spent my entire first year in a completely unrelated major before switching and getting my degree in something else. Now I'm 1000 miles from family and even further from friends in my 1st grad school city, so i don't even really have support here. I started seeing a therapist last month and recently started meds again, but I'm depressed everywhere I live regardless of grad school experiences. Help!?
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I can totally relate to your situation because guess what, I nearly did the same thing. The first masters program I completed 2 years of required coursework but my student teaching component was stymied by my advisor who was, for lack of a better word, a horses behind, in that he refused to sign-off on the form that would have allowed me to student teach. He was mad at me for going to administration to complain about him, so he refused to sign. The academic dean of my program told me I would regret leaving before she made her decision. Well, hindsight is 20/20. I do regret it because I spent these past 3 years in the same masters program at a different university, hoping for a different outcome. Well I'll graduate with a masters degree finally but after wasting 3 extra years repeating the same coursework. Pretty dumb.
Don't quit your post-doc program if you're only 2 classes and your thesis. Yes, you're miserable because you are burnt out. Post-doc work is not a fun existence which is why most people either drop out early. At least you were smart enough the second time to do a completely different subject, which isn't what I did. You will feel so much better about yourself if you see this grad program through to the end.
I know it's hard to be away from your family and friends who are your support system too. Maybe you could take a semester off to go back home for 3 months. Spend that time with your family and friends who (if you have good relationships with them) will act as a temporary respite away from the stress of grad school. Or if that's not possible for you financially, then try to include some exercise time into your schedule. Whatever it may be. 5 minutes of walking each day, or whatever. Physical activity raises the body's Dopamine levels which improves the mood.