How to handle Grad school, work, and a child

Graduate School
1

I’m feeling very overwhelmed with how to make my dream of becoming a college English Professor possible. I know the job market is fierce and that tenure track jobs are extremely difficult to obtain. I am prepared to move anywhere for a job and my fiancé is on board with that as well because his profession also has that capability.

I recently graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s degree in English at Florida Atlantic University at the age of 38. There have been numerous setbacks in my life that kept me from graduating earlier but I never gave up. I work full time as a server and took classes at the same time (usually 2 classes, but occasionally 3). I also had a baby a little over a year ago and while I had to take one semester off for the actual labor, delivery, and care for my newborn son, I was able to continue classes the next semester with a 3 month old at home.

I am extremely hardworking and am passionate about teaching at the college level. I thought I had everything figured out when I discussed my career plans with the graduate director at FAU (also a former professor of mine) and she told me about graduate assistantships. My tuition would be completely covered with a stipend of $4000 per semester. My former professor thinks I have an excellent chance at receiving this opportunity. But I found out that you have to go to school full time (3 classes) and teach 2 classes in order to fulfill the GA requirements and receive full funding plus the stipend. Because of my financial obligations I don’t know how I could survive financially if I couldn’t work a little. But it seems any other type of job is highly discouraged because it is a heavy workload between taking and teaching classes.

I already have a large amount of student debt and really wanted to complete graduate school (masters and PhD) without going into further debt. But I don’t know how to do that and still pay my bills. While my fiancé is supportive of my career goals, he still expects me to pay my half of the bills.

Has anyone had any sort of similar experience with working during grad school and an assistantship, with or without a child, or any experience or advice that could be helpful? I don’t want to give up my dream and settle for some random job where I’ll be miserable and resent the fact I didn’t pursue my real passion. If I were younger I would consider taking a couple of years off to save money but I hate any further delays. As it is, I can’t apply for this spring term because of these issues but feel it might be possible to apply for the Fall 2019 term after working and saving money while applying for scholarships. I’m at a loss as to what to do with no family or other means to fund my degree other than myself, an assistantship, or further loans. Thank you to anyone who can help or advise!

mod note - edited text only to break up text into paragraphs. - juillet

2

What kind of degree are you looking for first? Technically, you don’t need an MA in English to get into a PhD program. In practice, you personally might benefit from an MA first depending on your current qualifications - do you have reading knowledge of at least one foreign language you need for English literature scholarship? have you done any scholarly research in literature?

I say that because while a $4,000/semester stipend is pretty good for an MA program, it’s actually on the really really low end for a PhD program. A good PhD program in English will cover your tuition and fees and pay you a living stipend - usually somewhere in the $20-30K range, depending on the program itself. You’d probably have to go further into debt if you got an MA, since most MAs in English are not funded and the ones that are generally don’t pay enough for you to live on. There also aren’t many scholarships for these types of programs. But if you were prepared to go straight into a PhD program, that may allow you to minimize or completely eliminate your reliance on student loans for your graduate degree. Ask your professors at FIU if you are competitive to go directly into a PhD program.

I have lots of friends who did PhDs while raising a child or children. That’s quite possible. In that sense, a PhD is really like a demanding career - think high-powered lawyer or consultant, except with WAY less pay. The “way less pay” part is actually relevant, since you have less available funds to pay for help (childcare, housekeeping, etc.) But I know some PhD candidate parents who basically made their PhD work like a 9-5 job (or a 7-5 job, or whatever) and found childcare during the day. Some have said that they felt this made them more productive, since they were forced to compress their work and get stuff done so they could care for their children in the evenings (or whenever).

3

The first step is to talk to your prospective schools and find out their actual funding opportunities. Assistantship and fellowship opportunities vary wildly between schools and even within departments, particularly masters vs PhD. As @juillet already mentioned, you probably don’t need a masters and may have better luck going straight to PhD.

Make sure to talk to them about additional work opportunities as well - my wife’s program, for example, allows assistantship recipients to work up to 10 hours a week in addition. Two shifts a week at a restaurant would be permissible, and they don’t really monitor it anyway.

Second, you are in a tough spot with no great solutions. Your chosen field has relatively sparse funding and few spots and getting a good job with a PhD is not easy either. You will need to decide for yourself if the sacrifices are going to be worthwhile.

4

Ugh, you really have picked a tough field to get into. I have a friend with a PhD and many years of teaching experience who is working as an adjunct English professor at a community college. It’s a crappy job - they often pull a course out from under her at the last second so she loses pay she was counting on. She’s determined to stay in the field, because she loves teaching college students, but she is not sure she will be able to continue to support herself (she has no husband or kids).

5

I have a couple of thoughts. I’ll put them in groups

  1. Taking 3 classes and teaching 2 => 60 hours per week, the typical funded PhD student work schedule in any field. Both of my kids are currently funded PhD students in other fields, and this is how hard they are expected to work.
  2. English Professor: Very difficult to get permanent position. Academia likes to hire from schools higher ranked than PhD school. Most people do adjunct - low salary, no benefits, no job security.
  3. OP has significant loans.
  4. OP has kids

From what I’ve seen, a much more lucrative and potentially as satisfying direction is to become a secondary school English teacher. You get a position that in many places becomes permanent in 3 years. You get guaranteed union raises and you can get additional permanent raises by getting higher degrees. You can certainly get your masters part time because you will be making enough money to pay for it. You may even be able to get your self-funded PhD part-time too. This is a career path that will allow you to spend your time studying great literature (by taking one class per semester), teaching and imparting your love of English to students, allow you to be the parent that you want to be and that your kids need, and allow you to pay back your substantial loans.

The college professor route seems horrible when the high school English teacher option is staring you in the face.

6

I found this on the internet – “According to the Florida Department of Education, the average median salary for a teacher in Florida is $48,179. Salaries vary widely by school district, with the $56,799 average in Broward landing much higher than the average $33,202 in Holmes”

At the Benjamin School, a private school, according to Glassdoor the average is about $50k-$55K.

If you decide to enter administration in the school system a principal can make $93K.

College professors make shockingly little money, with rare exceptions of those who manage to find a tenure-track position. . The most common position is as an adjunct and a person may adjunct at several schools at once. Adjuncts get about $4K per class – no benefits, not even an office or a desk sometimes. In other words, it’s possible (and I’ve known people) who have taught at three schools, commuting among them by car, prepping for the different classes, grading papers, – lots of hours of work – and they are making $12K per semester before taxes. Shocking but true. The spouse is supporting one person I know who is extremely talented and dedicated person, but just can’t get a permanent job in academia. It’s very difficult. Other adjuncts have resorted to living out of cars, etc. I’m not joking. The lack of money can be very stressful on a marriage.

It’s possible to support a love of teaching as an adjunct if you have some sort of day job, like data visualization, or get an EMT certificate, or CompIT A+ certification and work as a help desk person for computers, or a side position on a campus in the library or in the computer lab – yes professors and lecturers do this. But it’s very hard to get a position as a tenured professor (or even on tenured but regularly employed lecturer) in English especially from a lower-ranked school.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/01/08/economist-offers-critique-job-market-phds-english

7

The OP could work in the summer as graduate students may not be fully funded then. I want to mention that a schedule of 3 graduate English classes represents a lot of work so studying and TAing will take up quite a bit of time.

8

The OP and fiance should sit down with a counselor and get help sorting through the time, emotional, and financial aspects of grad school. Why is the OP expected to cover half of the living expenses? Is that a variable that can change? Why is the fiance a fiance, rather than a spouse? Would marriage chance the finances in any way (family coverage for health insurance, access to married student housing at a university campus, etc.) that could make life cheaper for everyone? What childcare arrangements are feasible?

9

First of all, I want to thank everyone for all of their thoughts, advice, and research for my difficult decision. We’ve been extremely busy at work so I had mentally shelved my decision for the past few weeks and it was wonderful to see all these helpful comments.

@julliet I did not realize it is possible to skip the MA and go straight into the PhD so that is definitely something I need to talk to my advisor about. I have working knowledge of Spanish but only the minimum requirement needed for my undergraduate degree. I was planning on taking the history of the English language class instead of Spanish 3 for my MA because I felt that would be more beneficial for my future. I do have experience with scholarly research in literature from the Honors seminar and thesis course I took at FAU. I will need to find out if my advisor thinks I would be competitive enough for the PhD program and the difference of funding available.

@cosmicfish You pose a good question. Is the sacrifice worth it? That’s probably my biggest question. If I could read the future and know I would someday get the tenure track job I desire, then yes, it would be. But since I have the responsibility of helping to provide for my family; I don’t know if the sacrifice would be worth it if it put us in a harder position in the end. I would still be able to work in the summer as FAU does not offer funding during that term. Unfortunately, the summer is off season, so I would not make the same amount of money as I would the rest of the year. While I think I could get away with working 1-2 shifts per week while in the program, I don’t know if I could handle it mentally or be as present as I should be for my family.

@MaineLonghorn I definitely would not be able to support myself or my family as an adjunct without some other form of income. While I’m sure it would fulfill my passion for teaching at the college level, it would not make sense financially.

@ClassicRockerDad You make so many good points and have hit the nail on the head. I have considered secondary school teaching. It does make the most sense financially and would give me a more stable work schedule, giving me the opportunity to save money on childcare by taking advantage of daycare instead of expensive babysitting. I have a few reasons for not pursuing it so far. First, I wasn’t sure I would have time to take classes while teaching high school. My sister teaches middle school and told me the amount of at home work is significant and she believed I wouldn’t have much time for my family if I were also taking graduate courses. Second, I don’t have any teaching experience. One of the reasons I was so excited for the assistantship was to gain experience with that. Lastly, and this is more a personal issue, I did not have a good high school experience. I was bullied and felt very lonely throughout my years in high school. This may just be a stigma I would need to overcome, but I always thought that high school students would be difficult to teach because there never seemed to be many students who actually cared about literature in my classes. I guess I was really drawn to the college professor route more because I want to teach students who want to learn and have a passion like I do. I’m realistic that there will still be students in college who don’t share this passion, but I have always considered that there would be a lot less in high school vs college.

@Dustyfeathers Thank you for the research. I agree, it’s a gamble to try for a tenure track position and possibly have to settle for an adjunct position. And it’s a gamble I don’t know if I can afford to make :frowning:

@happymomof1 You raise an issue that is one of my biggest struggles in my relationship and more complicated than I can go into now. To keep it simple, I need to pay my half of the bills because my fiancé doesn’t make enough money to pay for most or all of them. We have been engaged for over 5 years now and have considered eloping because we don’t have the money to do a full wedding. He has a small trust fund he will have access to next year that could, in theory, cover my part of the bills while in school, but he is unwilling to do that because he wants to use that for a house or some other kind of investment. I don’t think he feels it would be an investment in my career because of how difficult it is to get a well paying job as a college professor and because of how many years it will take me to complete grad school. Which hurts, to say the least. But I understand and have never expected anyone to support me in the past, as I have always had to rely on myself. Childcare arrangements have been a trusted babysitter, which is way more expensive than daycare. But since I work at night we have to use a sitter and I stay home during the day with my son. I would not make as much money during the day, even with the difference in child care.

Thanks again to everyone who took the time to respond. You’ve given me a lot to think about! I look forward to reading anyone’s additional thoughts, based on my reply tonight.

10

I agree with the high school teaching. Higher ed is a mess. Just think, you could impact a student who struggles like you did. Also, having the same ‘schedule’ as your child in 5 years for the next 12 years is PRICELESS. I got my master’s at 47, you still have plenty of time!

11

A PhD is English is not a good risk, especially for someone with a child, and from a low ranked school. The odds are not in your favor. I know too many English PhDs from top-ranked schools that are adjuncts many years after graduating. I’d recommend a hard pass on that route.

12

You really need to get realistic about your life plans.
You are 38 with a kid, no real goals and student debt. You have a 5 year fiance who sounds like he’s loyal (and must love you) but for good reasons isn’t willing to put money into your dreams. You should listen to him. Don’t be hurt by truth just because you don’t want to hear it.

Getting extra degrees that won’t further a life plan or increase your standard of living plus adding to debt is not an acceptable goal. That’s burying your head in the sand.
It’s time to pick a direction that gives you an acceptable income and you should do it immediately.
Do it for your kid if not for you.

As far as I can tell from your post you haven’t even taught a class. Is that right?

Imagining a life and doing it are two different things. Go get a job teaching (you got quite a few suggestions on where to start). See what your strengths are in a classroom and go forward from there.

13

If it helps, then flip this on its end: the odds are actually against you getting the tenure-track job you desire. English literature is fiercely competitive; half of students don’t even finish the degree, and only one in five of the students who do finish a PhD in English literature will have a tenure-track job. I do not remember where that statistic came from; I’ve seen it repeated often by English/humanities professors, but a simple search of the job situation in humanities academia will confirm.

So assume that the odds are good you will not get a tenure-track job as a professor of English. Would you think a PhD in English literature would be worth it then? What if you ended up teaching secondary literature at a private/independent school (or a public one)? What if you ended up as a technical writer for some company? Would that make it worth it?

Depends on where you teach. I don’t know if you’ve been following higher ed news recently, but the humanities are suffering a contraction right now. Even if you did land a TT job, fewer people are majoring in literature and such fields in favor of STEM and business fields. While it’s likely that this is part of the regular long-cycle swing between fields, there’s no telling how long it’ll last. So you may actually find yourself mostly teaching large service classes - like freshman composition and required writing courses - rather than teaching small seminars on literature with a bunch of passionate college students. This is especially true if you end up at a lower-tier university/college, or a community college - particularly if the students are lower-income and have not-as-good preparation in English, language, and literature before coming to college.

Remember that the students who become professors are the nerds. The vast majority of the students you teach will not be the nerds. They will be the ones who are kind of bored and who don’t really want to take this class but need it to fill a requirement. Most students will not have the same passion and fire for literature as you. Does getting a PhD and making the sacrifices feel as worth it if you imagine yourself teaching 4 sections of mostly bored freshmen taking introductory writing courses?

On the other hand, lots of motivated high school students - especially at high-end public and top private/independent schools - are basically not very different from college freshmen and sophomores. And the classes you teach honestly may be more interesting in the long-run. As a professor of English, at least in the beginning, you’ll be stuck teaching freshman composition and writing service courses. If you are an adjunct, you’ll be doing that indefinitely. A high school English teacher usually at least gets to teach some literature, and for juniors and seniors in HS, you’ll probably be teaching some of the same novels that college English majors in their early years would read in courses (especially if you teach at a top HS). The difference is that for the former you’ll have spent 7 years in grad school for the privilege of doing so.

14

I think you should take a shot at high school teaching. See how it goes. You said you can’t take classes and teach full time. Correct. Forget the classes for now.

15

Thank you again to those of you who offered constructive advice. I’ve been doing some research into teaching high school and have found I would need to either get a teaching certificate or an additional degree in Education. My fiancé has suggested an MA in Education but I would prefer a certificate if only to speed up the process. But I’m not sure if a certificate would make me less desirable as a candidate for a job teaching high school English? Any advice on this aspect? Are online certificates looked down upon as much as an online BA or MA in English Lit is?

I have also talked to my sister who teaches middle school and another friend who works in a high school and they both indicated that schools are much more focused on standardized testing over writing and literature. Ideally, after gaining experience and if I proved successful in this field, I think I would find teaching AP or honors English as fulfilling as teaching at the college level. Not to say I wouldn’t find fulfillment teaching other English classes, but I do realize that some of the same texts which are taught in those classes are also taught at the college level.

The idea of sharing a similar schedule with my son also sounds wonderful, and I thank those of you who brought that up and illuminated how difficult getting a tenure track position really is.

@gouf78 I am not quite sure how to respond to your reply, which seems so at odds with the other posts who all offered constructive and useful advice. You say I’m not realistic about my life plans, I have no real goals, I’m hurt by the truth because I don’t want to hear it, and that adding additional degrees will not provide an acceptable income. I came to this forum to find out how realistic my life plans actually are and how it could be possible without incurring additional student debt. No real goals? Do you honestly think that I would start 6 plus years of graduate school if I didn’t have a goal? It’s a goal that I truly hoped would be worth the time and risk. Yes, I am “38 with a kid” but obviously I’m not afraid to hear the truth when I’ve literally asked for it in the form of advice on a forum dedicated to the profession I desire. The truth that my fiancé (who absolutely loves me very much or I wouldn’t still be engaged to him) won’t invest in my dreams doesn’t hurt because I “don’t want to hear it” but because I have both financially and emotionally supported him in the past for his dreams. What may seem like “good reasons” to you, feels like a slap in the face to me when I pushed those same “good reasons” aside to allow him the opportunity for the education and career he desired.

I came to this forum because I absolutely did not want to put myself or my family into further student debt. Through my academic achievement, I have the opportunity for an assistantship which would cover my tuition and a small stipend for living expenses. Because I do put my “kid” first, I recognize that this isn’t enough to make sure my son has everything he needs. What may be possible to some, those who have better financial opportunities in life or parents willing to foot the bill and let their adult son or daughter live rent free while they get their MA and PhD, is not possible for me. Does that mean I have to completely give up my dreams after finally completing the bachelor’s degree I struggled and worked hard for, all while also working full time and taking care of my family? Maybe. Or maybe I can adjust those dreams and still find something fulfilling that won’t make me feel like all my hard work was for nothing more than a piece of paper.

Yes, as you rather condescendingly point out, I have never taught a class before. That’s one of the main reasons I wanted to pursue the assistantship to see how I like it and how well I do with the job. “Imagining a life and doing it are two different things. Go get a job teaching…” Either way, whether I end up teaching college or high school, I have to gain an additional degree or teaching certificate (more student debt, oh my!) and “imagine” what the job will be like before I do it.

I have been very touched by those who gave advice and encouragement, as well as those who reached out to me with links to further information and otherwise gave constructive advice. I am probably taking this reply too personally by letting it upset me, but every other response has been incredibly helpful and empathetic up to this point. If all you have to contribute is patronizing and presumptuous feedback, perhaps next time you should just keep scrolling instead of belittling a person who is doing her best to make an informed decision regarding her future.

16

There are some high schools that still value literature teachers. Way back when, I moved when I was a senior in high school. My old school was good, but offered Writer’s Workshop rather than English 3 for those of us going to college. The new school, which was twice the size and much more affluent, had dozens of Comparative lit, World lit, poetry classes - and still does! I was in heaven.

There are boarding schools that hire good teachers and could provide housing too (and maybe tuition for your son).

17

" I’ve been doing some research into teaching high school and have found I would need to either get a teaching certificate or an additional degree in Education. My fiancé has suggested an MA in Education but I would prefer a certificate if only to speed up the process. But I’mt not sure if a certificate would make me less desirable as a candidate for a job teaching high school English? Any advice on this aspect

I don’t know about other states but FL has many alternate routes to teaching certification without requiring a master’s or education degree. This route will keep you working without having to need more dollars or time for additional degrees.

The main requirement is having a degree in a specified field. (Which you have).

You need to take a proficiency exam for the desired subject. (Which you can take immediately).
Also a general knowledge exam (which I think you take immediately also)
Now you need a job (or get the job first). Because the third part is taking on-line courses while you are teaching.
You need to complete two years of teaching (full time) to gain your final certification.

Look up:
Florida’s Professional Development Certification Program (PDCP) is competency-based, on-the-job training in professional education competencies (the Florida Educator Accomplished Practices) that prepares high quality teachers for Florida’s public school districts. It is authorized by section 1012.56(8), Florida Statutes.

This is the route my DIL followed. She was a history major who got a job at a private school (she taught HS AP classes). She lacked the teaching certificate. She took the exams (subject, general knowledge), finished the on-line courses fairly quickly and then continued working for two years. At the end of the two years she had her teacher certification. Over 45 states have reciprocity with FL.

18

@gouf78 Thank you very much for the helpful information. I appreciate your response and will definitely look into the alternate routes so I can work while I earn the certification. I did see that was possible in my research, but I wasn’t sure how many schools would actually allow me to start teaching right away (after taking the other exams of course). It’s good to know that your DIL was able to do this (and at a top school!)

Thank you again and also a big thank you to everyone who has helped me with this difficult decision. I am feeling a bit down about giving up my original plans, but I know in my heart this is the correct path for myself and my family. I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!

19

You know, sometimes dreams have to change. You decided to have a child. When you were single and childless, you could make decisions like living on the $4k stipend, renting a room and eating mac and cheese every day. Now you need a job to support yourself and your child. You can’t work 15 hours a day because your child needs you and you can’t just move to the middle of nowhere because you have a partner to consider.

20

Sometimes private schools have less strict credentialling requirements, too. Also, sometimes people start out substitute teaching to get a foot in the door.