A Degree in Hope: How to Master the Arts & Sciences of Returning to Grad School at 50+

By Hope Katz Gibbs, c2019

Illustration by Michael Gibbs

After you’ve raised your kids, left your 25-year marriage, seen your business and industry change, morph and no longer interest you … what do you do? For many 50somethings, they think about going back to school.

Perhaps higher education represents a place of ideas and endless possibilities. Maybe it reminds them of a time in their younger lives where everything lied ahead. Or, they just want to go back to school to learn something new.

In this book project, which I’m beginning as a term paper for a psychology class called Good Work, I’ll take you through my journey of Finding Hope at Claremont Graduate University.

As the book develops, I’ll craft chapters that provide tangible ideas to help returning learners achieve mastery, based on basic and applied research being conducted in the psychology department at CGU, and other universities, to help guide my fellow 50somethings along their path to success in higher ed 2.0. Sections will include:

Finding Peace in Transition

  • Accessing Positive Aging
  • Dealing with Depression
  • Finding Purpose
  • Mastering your Mind
  • Developing a Growth Mindset
  • And more …

Practically Speaking

  • Studying Smart
  • Bridging the Generation Gap with Respect
  • Harnessing Positive Sexuality
  • And more …

Welcome to the SOUL Lab: Support Our Under-served Learners

Going back to school at 50+ is not just a courageous leap that is pricey and time consuming, it can be one that many experienced professionals aren’t prepared for. Studying for school is different than preparing for a meeting or conference.

Finding yourself surrounded by super-smart 20somethings that just graduated from college can also be daunting. Plus, your laptop may not have the right software. And that’s just some of the challenges you’ll face in the first week of graduate school. That’s where The SOUL Lab comes in. In this program, a seasoned team of professors, fellow students, administrators, and other guides will help you find your way through the challenge.

Services include: Tech update 101, study techniques, small study groups with older TAs, social outings to local events (speakers, movies, music, local sights), group therapy sessions, speaker series with professors, and that’s just for starters!

Questions, ideas? Send Hope an email.

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