40 Y.O. Has Multiple Degrees After Being In University For 20 Years, His Wife Asks If It’s A Red Flag
Interview
There are two kinds of people (of course more, but now let’s imagine these 2) – ones who really like to study. Their favorite time was in university or school and they wish they could always just study, prepare for lectures, take exams and then have holidays. But also there is another type of people who have completely opposite opinions about this. They don’t like to listen to lectures, do homework or study for exams. They couldn’t wait to finally finish school and university so they could work, earn money and not worry about preparing for the next exam.
But now let’s see – what if you are studying in a university and getting paid for it?
More info: Reddit
Man calls himself ‘a career student’ and gets paid around $40K per year for studying in university
Image credits: Tima Miroshnichenko (not the actual photo)
Woman ponders if it’s a red flag that her husband has been in university for around 20 years
Image credits: u/Prize-Report6742
Image credits: Pixabay (not the actual photo)
He loves being in school, has several degrees and his wife says that he is the smartest person that she knows
Image credits: u/Prize-Report6742
They live comfortably, debt free, but the woman would like to see him apply himself somewhere outside a school
A few days ago, a slightly concerned wife took her story to one of the Reddit communities wondering if the fact that her husband has been in university for around 20 years should be a red flag. The story went viral immediately and in 4 days it had more than 53K upvotes and almost 14K comments.
The author starts her story by saying that her husband gets paid to study, which is approximately $40K per year. The university offers a bursary for aboriginal students, he also gets age-based grants and nothing needs to be paid back. He calls himself ‘a career student’ as he enjoys being in school. OP mentioned that he has several degrees and he is the smartest person she knows.
So basically, learning and staying in school is his hobby and additionally he is getting paid quite a sum as the author highlights that they are completely debt-free. Who wouldn’t like that? However, OP admits that she is keeping a little secret from her friends that it’s her husband’s only income and would like for him to apply himself somewhere outside of school.
The community members didn’t see a red flag in this situation, more like they wished they had this option. “He has found the ultimate life hack and I’m so, so jealous,” one user wrote. However, there were a few folks that were a little bit mad: “Imagine thinking you’re paying for a program to help a disadvantaged community that lacks access to higher education and it turns out it’s really a program to help this one guy avoid ever getting a job.”
Image credits: Fa Barboza (not the actual photo)
Bored Panda got in touch with Lisa McLendon, Ph.D., who is the William Allen White Professor of Journalism and Mass Communications, and she kindly agreed to share her insights regarding such career students.
Speaking about if there are in fact many students like this, Lisa says: “One hears stories, but I think the number is really quite small, though I know lots of people who would probably consider that if it were workable.”
“The biggest challenge is money – university (in the US, anyway) isn’t free and even if someone doesn’t have to pay tuition or even receives a stipend through a graduate fellowship/assistantship, there are still living expenses, and if someone has a family to support, that’s not really sustainable. Most people don’t get paid $40K a year to go to school,” she emphasized.
Now, you may wonder what impact career students have on the overall academic environment and the learning experiences of other students, to which the expert says that it’s a really rare situation and there isn’t really much of an impact. “However, I have heard from my own traditional-age (18-21-year-old) students that having older people in class is good, because they bring a different perspective based on their own experiences, and they model good study habits.”
Image credits: Ben White (not the actual photo)
Moreover, Emily Malamet, who is a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist, agreed to share her views with Bored Panda looking at this situation from a psychological perspective.
“Being a full-time career student can be challenging, even when it’s bringing one financial gain,” Emily started. “Certain research indicates that students who are persisting through college have had positive experiences and interactions with both their social friend groups outside of university and academic social settings. Findings also showed that these positive relationships in turn influenced their decisions to persist in university.”
Speaking about the support that one’s partner should provide in this situation, the psychologist says: “It seems important to avoid judging one’s partner: we can all have ideas on how someone can or should be running their life and life decisions, but to take a step back and remember that at the end of the day it is their life and it is their responsibility to drive it how they see fit.”
“Its okay if that’s not what we want, and that might be important concerning compatibility discussions with our partner. However, if we choose to be with this person and we want to continue to be with this person, it may be a work of acceptance of their job path and the time constraints that implies.”
Moreover, analyzing non-traditional career paths, such as in this story, Emily emphasizes that “It is important to indicate that research shows that individuals who choose their career by themselves, and not based upon what others want for them, are more successful academically and have higher levels of satisfaction and confidence within their academics. Therefore, research also shows a demonstration of high self-esteem and less stress and frustration if the career choice was personal and had personal importance.”
“We can hypothesize that it may be possible that if an individual chooses to be a full-time student, and this has personal importance to them, they may have more academic success, satisfaction, and higher confidence levels. However, this would need to be studied in further research before any conclusions could be drawn,” the expert shared.
And finally, don’t forget to check out Emily’s website and Paris Psychology Center, where you can find her!
Folks in the comments discussed that the man is living a dream of many and it’s not a red flag
Red flag???!!! The man is living the dream. I don't know about y'all, but to enrich your mind and soul without financial worries is my dream. Thus far I've only gotten 1 college degree and that doesn't even feel like much either...
Zero sum mentality. He is having fun so she feels she is losing out somehow.
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I think he just doesn't want to get a job. He is getting paid $40,000 a year to go to school 10 hours a week! I think I would stay in school too!
Nothing wrong with that. We don't live to work.
Load More Replies... While I would love to be have been able to keep studying without having to run up debts or work for an income, there is a point where you need to think about where it is leading. If he is getting a bursary to study because he is the only applicant, what is he going to do if someone else applies and gets it? No savings or other sources of income means he will have to stop studying, and a man who is in his 40s and never worked is going to find it very difficult to find a job. Even with the degrees he has, the ones he got 10 or 15 years ago are going to be outdated now, without experience, employers are going to go for the recent graduates who have the most up to date teaching. It's a good situation which works for these people, but they need to have a plan B for when it ends.
Red flag???!!! The man is living the dream. I don't know about y'all, but to enrich your mind and soul without financial worries is my dream. Thus far I've only gotten 1 college degree and that doesn't even feel like much either...
Zero sum mentality. He is having fun so she feels she is losing out somehow.
Load More Replies... I think he just doesn't want to get a job. He is getting paid $40,000 a year to go to school 10 hours a week! I think I would stay in school too!
Nothing wrong with that. We don't live to work.
Load More Replies... While I would love to be have been able to keep studying without having to run up debts or work for an income, there is a point where you need to think about where it is leading. If he is getting a bursary to study because he is the only applicant, what is he going to do if someone else applies and gets it? No savings or other sources of income means he will have to stop studying, and a man who is in his 40s and never worked is going to find it very difficult to find a job. Even with the degrees he has, the ones he got 10 or 15 years ago are going to be outdated now, without experience, employers are going to go for the recent graduates who have the most up to date teaching. It's a good situation which works for these people, but they need to have a plan B for when it ends.
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