grad school and the age question

bferamics30
Tue, 17 Jan 2012 12:03:11 +0000

This topic isn’t actually for me, but for an older cousin of mine who desperately wants to pursue grad school after years of being in the work force…but due to insecurities and fears he finds it hard to actually get it going. He’s 28 this year and is afraid since he’s a bit “older” he’ll be less competitive as opposed to most grad students who are entering at 21, 22.

I was so sure that while age can play a factor, late 20’s to early 30’s is still relatively “young” and likely won’t have THAT much of a negative effect on admissions as long as your application is strong (grades, gre’s, whatever you’ve been doing besides school)?

Am I right? Can anyone else help to counter his fears/worries?
Don’t get me wrong of course, I know people even in their 40’s and 50’s pursue grad school all the time, but I have heard that in many programs age does become an issue at a certain point.

Even if his fears are true, I feel like if he continues to wait…it’ll just get worse anyway