[freudling]

So, I am graduating with a Masters Degree in a few weeks, and I am very sad. It is a very empty feeling. I have worked all of my twenties for this, made big sacrifices, and now I can't believe it is all over. So anti-climatic.

I know it marks the end of one chapter and the opening of a new one, but that does not make it any easier. Yes, I know, I will end up missing the studying, etc., but right now it is depressing. I think I have cried everyday for the past week.

[Atomic Rooster]

My saddest point was graduating from high school. But I won't go on about it. It was just the loneliest for me. It was many many years ago but my high school days were the best and then they were gone.

[peeb]

Think of it like breaking up with your old girlfriend - sure, it sucked at the time, but the woman you're doing now is much hotter, no? Erm, seriously, it's normal to be unsettled by change, but you will find a new groove, and you won't be depressed for long.

[peeb]

Originally Posted by Atomic Rooster 

My saddest point was graduating from high school. But I won't go on about it. It was just the loneliest for me. It was many many years ago but my high school days were the best and then they were gone.

Really? I have a hard time with that, I mean, surely your best days are the ones you're having now - what did you love about high school that isn't better when you're not a teenager?

[Zeeb]

The whole idea that high school/college are the best days of your life are kinda silly. It doesn't have to be that way. If you want to keep studying there's nothing stopping you.

[freudling]

Zeeb:

I agree.

[kikkoman]

Zeeb is right. It does not have to end. It took me nine years to finish my BSEE degree. Then I didn't bother going to the ceremony. I picked up my diploma three years after graduating. Yeah I didn't want it to end or maybe I'm just a slacker.

[@pplejaxkz]

Originally Posted by kikkoman 

Zeeb is right. It does not have to end. It took me nine years to finish my BSEE degree. Then I didn't bother going to the ceremony. I picked up my diploma three years after graduating. Yeah I didn't want it to end or maybe I'm just a slacker.

There isn't anything wrong with being a slacker

[ghporter]

I'm about a year from graduation, but we're all about to disperse to the four corners of the earth to do our clinical work. I will definitely be upset at that point. I've found a group of like-minded individuals who are smart, interesting, and fun to be with in my program, and I'll miss them. I (gasp) actually got into Facebook for a tool to keep in touch with them.

But more importantly, we're all facing "the real world" in much too brief a time. We've been a support system for each other, not just educationally but personally, and that's something I am not going to want to lose. Our clinical work will be hard and high-pressure, and at this point we'll be on our own, without the sounding boards and "cheering sections" we've come to rely on, so it will be harder and more pressured still. I'll bet that freudling is going to miss the camaraderie of his fellows on campus, and that's what's getting him down. I can relate to that!

[freudling]

ghporter:

Thanks for your warm words, I appreciate it. Actually, I did my Masters completely online, and never have I met any of my Professors or classmates. I did it through a well respected University here in Canada, and it was incredibly difficult to do. 12 full credit courses. It took me 1 year and 8 months full-time. Very challenging, but worth it since I feel like I can contribute something to whatever job I head into.

At any rate, I guess the biggest thing that is getting me down is a loss of identity, since I am no longer working within the confines of academia toward a goal of getting a Masters. Now that that is complete, I feel like a piece of my existence has been stripped from me.

[ghporter]

Your title is going to change from "student" to "job seeker." That can be scary enough-I know the prospect of it scares the doo out of me. And you're transitioning from something that was well structured to something (the "real world") that is not at all structured. For me, the problem on graduation will be "oh crap! Now I have to really perform!" Not that I think it'll be a problem, just that this realization is a bit scary.

Once you move into the phase of sending résumés out to everyone on the planet, you'll find new structure and that will help. That's what my faculty tells me anyway.

[alligator]

Time heals all wounds, but some take longer than others. Try to find and keep a good support network of friends and you will never face an issue like this alone.

[dcmacdaddy]

I understand your feelings but take Glenn's advice and use this time as an opportunity to prepare yourself to become a "job-seeker". It does not mean you can't be sad about what you feel you have lost from finally being done but it does mean you should be sad *and* be focused on the next step at the same time. Don't let yourself get caught up in the feelings of the moment without looking toward the future. If you did all this work to get a masters degree then you must have a plan for what you want to do with it. So, give yourself time to "mourn" your sense of loss but be aware as well that their are opportunities out there for you **because** you now have a masters degree.


As for me, I have had my share of graduate-school-related misery but I have decided to stick with it. I left my job in NYC--during what looks to be one of the worst recessions since the early 80s--and returned to the Washington, DC area so I could finish the part-time masters degree I started in 2000. I am spending my Summer researching and writing my thesis with the hopes of being done by October or November. It feels like drudgery at times but I want it to be done so I can put it behind me . . . forever. So, give yourself a pat on the back and feel a sense of accomplishment for having done it and look forward to the next phase of your life.


Good Luck!

[freudling]

dcmacdaddy:

Thank you for your support, I appreciate it. The funny thing is I run my own company, and have been throughout my entire program. It has been very hard working 70 hour weeks for almost 2 years, but that is over now. I still want my company to exist and thrive, but am looking for a "day job" for stability in my field.

dcmacdaddy, I have a comment about:

I am spending my Summer researching and writing my thesis with the hopes of being done by October or November.

I have not read your background on this matter, but, I have to say, this seems very ambitious. If you don't finish it by November, don't worry. However, all the support to you, you can do anything you want. If you want to finish by November, then keep the pedal down all the way, everyday, and put in 8 hard hours of research each day, 7 days a week. If you really want to finish by November, then you have to tell yourself - convince yourself - that you will be done by then. There is no half way.

[finboy]

Originally Posted by freudling 

dcmacdaddy:

Thank you for your support, I appreciate it. The funny thing is I run my own company, and have been throughout my entire program. It has been very hard working 70 hour weeks for almost 2 years, but that is over now. I still want my company to exist and thrive, but am looking for a "day job" for stability in my field.

dcmacdaddy, I have a comment about:

I am spending my Summer researching and writing my thesis with the hopes of being done by October or November.

I have not read your background on this matter, but, I have to say, this seems very ambitious. If you don't finish it by November, don't worry. However, all the support to you, you can do anything you want. If you want to finish by November, then keep the pedal down all the way, everyday, and put in 8 hard hours of research each day, 7 days a week. If you really want to finish by November, then you have to tell yourself - convince yourself - that you will be done by then. There is no half way.

Not so ambitious for a masters thesis, really. But I guess it depends upon the field. My masters thesis took about a year of research for the story and a summer to write, more or less.

My doctoral dissertation took a good year of data collection, but I was working full-time as well. I have a colleague that complains that she wasted an entire Christmas break writing her dissertation (she's in a different field, obviously).

As for the let-down, I'd imagine that a lot of folks suffer a big let-down when they graduate with a masters in psych or social work or something like that and realize that most of the jobs for those folks pay little to nothing, but they're rewarded instead by long hours and huge caseloads. Welcome to the suck.

[cenutrio]

Well, I remember being down after getting my PhD.

Also, a month ago, I was quite down when I decided to finally stop pursuing a scientific career, and declined the extension of my Marie Curie postdoc in the Netherlands.

So, I can understand you.

It gets better over time.

[Doofy]

Originally Posted by freudling 

I think I have cried everyday for the past week.

Dude, having to find a job isn't that bad.

[freudling]

Not so ambitious for a masters thesis, really. But I guess it depends upon the field. My masters thesis took about a year of research for the story and a summer to write, more or less.

Not sure what you are thinking here... so it took you 1 year of research for the story and another summer to write, so 1 year and 4 months. dcmacdaddy is starting his research again this summer and wants to finish by November, which really only allows for 6 months. That is what is pushing it.

[KeriVit]

They expect us to finish our thesis in 10 weeks at my school. Ridiculous. However, you have 5 year extension to actually get the thing done.

Freudling, I feel your pain. I am in a similar situation. I graduate in 5 weeks (except for the thesis) Honestly, I'm scared. My depression does not end up at crying, but anxiety. I have made many sacrifices. I will probably start ast $20K less than I was making before I started. But, I know I will advance quickly. I really don't know where I am going, what to do next or what I will do with my time. It's strange.

Not only that I will be moving to a new area and leaving all that is secure.

I have found a light anti-anxiety med (prescribed) has calmed me and help me focus.

[dcmacdaddy]

Originally Posted by freudling 

dcmacdaddy:

Thank you for your support, I appreciate it. The funny thing is I run my own company, and have been throughout my entire program. It has been very hard working 70 hour weeks for almost 2 years, but that is over now. I still want my company to exist and thrive, but am looking for a "day job" for stability in my field.

dcmacdaddy, I have a comment about:

I am spending my Summer researching and writing my thesis with the hopes of being done by October or November.

I have not read your background on this matter, but, I have to say, this seems very ambitious. If you don't finish it by November, don't worry. However, all the support to you, you can do anything you want. If you want to finish by November, then keep the pedal down all the way, everyday, and put in 8 hard hours of research each day, 7 days a week. If you really want to finish by November, then you have to tell yourself - convince yourself - that you will be done by then. There is no half way.

Originally Posted by finboy 

Not so ambitious for a masters thesis, really. But I guess it depends upon the field. My masters thesis took about a year of research for the story and a summer to write, more or less.

My doctoral dissertation took a good year of data collection, but I was working full-time as well. I have a colleague that complains that she wasted an entire Christmas break writing her dissertation (she's in a different field, obviously).

As for the let-down, I'd imagine that a lot of folks suffer a big let-down when they graduate with a masters in psych or social work or something like that and realize that most of the jobs for those folks pay little to nothing, but they're rewarded instead by long hours and huge caseloads. Welcome to the suck.

I should correct this to say that much of my research is done as the thesis topic is an extension of the independent study course I am doing now. Over the summer I will be refining my research as I write the thesis. Remember, I am un-employed so I have more than sufficient time to write this thing. Besides, I am getting my masters degree for personal interest/enrichment. The subject matter is medieval literature with my thesis topic being late-medieval female, religious pilgrim practices. Once I am done with this I am going to move back to NYC and return to the world of IT operations at a federal government agency. So, for me, it has never been critical that my masters degree advance my professional career. My masters will be from a small, private university that is not as arduous as more major universities. My thesis only has to be about 75 typed pages which is not that big a deal compared to some of my friends or family with masters degree. (By comparison, my older sister's masters thesis was easily twice that length and her doctoral dissertation was well over 400 pages long. Of course, she graduated near the top of her class from Yale, both M.A. and Ph.D., and is a well-regarded professor at a large midwestern university.)