Quote:
Originally Posted by lizardlady
hmmm, it was a donkey's age since I was an undergrad. My grad school experiences might be a bit different than is typical.
I put myself through both undergrad and grad schools. As a result I was more serious about school than some others. I remember a lot of people in undergrad who majored in partying. They were more interested in the social aspect of college life than getting a degree. I worked while I was taking classes so I was kind of a grind, but did some minor partying on weekends.
I was in my 40s when I went to grad school. It was the beginning of a MAJOR career change for me. Again, I was working and supporting myself while I went to school. I found most of the older students in the program were more focused on earning their degree than in partying. The people I knew who were into the social aspect of school in grad school tended to be younger students who had just gotten their undergrad degree and went straight on to grad school. Interestingly those folks did not stay in the field long after they graduated. I had little to no social life while in grad school. I worked, went to classes and studied my but off.
As some others commented, profs don't hold your hand in grad classes. You either learn or you sink. I did find that grad profs were more open to students who sought information. Someone mentioned that the material in grad classes is aimed so that you get either As or Bs. That was not my experience. The program I was in reguired that you maintain at least a 3.0 GPA (B average) but the profs did not make it easy to earn those As and Bs. Like I said, I studied my but off and earned a 4.0. But I had classmates who did not put in the work they should have and they got Cs. The program had a policy to call in students who were earning Ds or Fs to counsel them. Some were put on academic probation pending better grades.
I will say that even though I did not have much time to socialize in grad school I developed some long lasting relationships with fellow students. I'm still friends with a couple of them. The friendships developed through study groups and grabbing meals between classes.
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That is good, makes sense.
And I'm glad professors make it so you get A's and B's.