<p>The school I’m wanting to transfer to offers a 4+1 program where undergraduate engineering students can obtain a M.S. in only 5 years (compared to six). The prospective student simply takes more difficult courses their senior year, graduate with a bachelors, and continues as a full time student for another year and receive their Master’s.</p>
<p>While finishing up my Master’s, I want to apply to law school (a full-time program consisting of 3 years) to initiate my career as a patent attorney. All this schooling will take about seven years, and I’m slightly discouraged because I won’t be making any REAL money during this length of time (until I turn 31 years old).</p>
<p>What could I do while I’m still schooling to keep myself afloat financially?</p>
<p>Join the Army National Guard? That’s what I did and it’s working out real well.</p>
<p>I’m 22 and I’m getting my PharmD for free. After I graduate, I plan to pursue a MS ChemE at a public school for 2 years part-time (which would be free again) while working full-time as a pharmacist. Then I would apply to a public law school for a 4 year part time JD program while working full time.</p>
<p>The military has great educational benefits and if you take advantage of it you could really get ahead in life. You could get all that schooling for free.</p>
<p>Well, I’m not so concerned with paying back the loans, it’s just being able to survive while I’m schooling. I’ll have to think of something to keep me until I finish with law school (seven years away).</p>
<p>Military would have been a great option if I were just coming out of high school, but I’m 24 and yet without at least an undergraduate degree. I’m way behind in life. Unfortunately, I don’t have another four years to give to the military.</p>
You don’t need a bachelor’s to be in the military or at least commission in the Army National Guard. I don’t have a BS degree because I was admitted to a PharmD program from HS. However, you will need at least a BS degree 4 years after you commission to promote to Captain. You just need at least 60 credits to enter the OCS program and at least 90 credits to commission.
As far as being behind in life, you’re not really “way” behind in life. But as I said, the military offers you a really good way at getting ahead in life and the commitment is usually 6 years part-time.</p>
<p>Actually, I was referring to not being able to go into the military because I’m already 24 with no degree, and I don’t have another four years to allocate to something that won’t provide me with an education and get my feet on the ground, financially-speaking. Going to the military would only put me further behind, reversing my progress so far.</p>