I'm back in college at an advanced age and let me tell you, I'm studying after I put the household and my disabled father to bed. I study in the dim light and that's the best part of my whole day.

worked nights as a nurse and took premed courses during the day. Entered med school with no debt

I completed my degree relatively late in life, 35, and the last couple of years were pretty intense. I was working full time plus OT, quite often, and going to school almost full time. And I had a new baby, my beautiful little girl. My work commute was about 40 minutes each way, and we had recently moved into a brand new house. It was a lot to contend with.

And don't forget, this was before PC's and laptop computers. All we had were word processors; if we were lucky.

I didn’t really study as much as I did a constant stream of ever harder mathematical problems...Engineer

College the best time of my life... Started to work right away only to find out that I needed to know more so went back again to get a master's degree. It was a lot more pleasant being a lot better planning my time. I wasn't satisfied at all so I wanted a PhD but then life happens. Married with children takes up all your time. Now that I am an empty nester and separated, I have the time and resources to go back get a PhD, I just don't have the energy. Anyhow, agree with you, those long night are now treasured memories

I got my master degree while working more than full time as a YMCA Program Director, including 27 weekends a year. I was able to do about 80% of the required reading. This was before computers. I paid a YMCA secretary $1/page to type my thesis.

Each week for a Finance class (hate math), students were required to write a 10-page paper, analyzing and fixing the budget of a major city: New York, Los Angeles, Miami. And present our paper to the class. I got behind by two papers. To catch up, I spent a weekend- 48 hours awake- writing two, 10-page papers.

To present, other students read aloud their papers. Boring. I got New York City. On a large roll of butcher paper, I drew the inside of a subway car, with hanging straps and colorful graffiti by different minority groups. Taped it to the classroom blackboard. Starting on the left, I pretended to hang onto a strap. I read aloud graffiti, described the problem and how I would fix it. A big hit.

The torture wasn't finished. For the same class, students were required to subscribe to a boring national business journal. I tossed the weekly journals into my car trunk without reading them. No time.

Final exam: I arrived early at the University of Washington, parking under a light. Opening the trunk, I scanned headlines. If a story continued for several weeks, I read the article. To my surprise, I aced the final exam and got a 4.0 grade in Finance class. A miracle.

Simultaneously I was taking a difficult Quantitative Analysis class. After that quarter ended, I dropped out for a year and a half. "If I died during that last quarter, I would have bitterly regretted my last nine weeks of life," I said. Now wonder I got sick after final exams.

But my goal was to get a master degree by age 30. I re-enrolled, redoubled my efforts, and graduated three weeks before I turned 30.

I was in college at 17 and earned my first BS at age 20. Then 2 more Bachelor degrees, a Masters, and a Doctorate. I always had employment on the side and/or ran my own business. I even taught college for a while. Never wanted sex trophies and felt pity for those that did. They seemed like an awful burden and waste of money as well as interfering with career options. Furry children always made more sense. I have had the pleasure of having the greatest cats, dogs, and now rattie. All told I spent 11 years going to college. If I ever won the lottery, I would go get probably 10 more degrees.

I got my second degree while I was in the military. So, weekends, plane trips, late nights, marathon study sessions....whenever I could get the time.

My degrees are in Mathematics and Computer Science. I had many a late nights of doing mathematical calculations and also of writing code for the class programming assignments.

I started nursing school when my kids were 23 and 11 months old. I needed day care, so I had a job at a grocery store deli 4-5 evenings a week. On my breaks, I’d sit in the deli and study, also at night after it got quiet. I was highly organized back then! On Sunday nights, I’d have everything laid out and ready for the week.
It was tough, but no regrets. I made it through.

I got my last two degrees in my thirties. It was a lot harder that time around.

I started my education AFTER I got out of the Army (I was 30). I went to night school only and I'm now 45 and I'm ALMOST finished with my Masters degree. One and two classes at a time, chipping away at it. 7 kids. Married. Very busy...but it's important, so I've been doing it since age 30. (I took a 2 year haitus after my AA, and a 5 year break after my BS.) 5 courses to go to be finished with the Masters, but I'm in no rush...don't really need it in my current position, but I'm currently enrolled in 2 classes (full time student) anyway.

I got an Associates Degree at Northern Montana in electronic 1972 then 27 years later a BA in Liberal Arts from the Salt Lake Community College in 1999. I worked as an electrician so I didn't really use the Electronics degree or the Liberal Arts Degree. I taught Electrical Theory in the Electrician Apprenticeship program through the Dept of Labor and taught at a Trade Tech High School. The students were great. I had a better relationship with them then the parents.

I wish I had learned plumbing instead of optical engineering.

I began putting myself through college , after I separated from my husband ( mother-in-law ) , with a full time job , two small children , a house , and a car to take care of . Earned my BS in Information Systems Management . First in my family to earn a college degree .

I missed a 2 year college degree credit by 12 points. I could have retaken the test but to do so I would also have had to re-up because of the time limit.

Is there any other way?

I got my BA (Hons) In archaeology while doing a fulltime job, dealing with a then pregnant girlfriend who was also studying at the same time as me at the same college doing the same degree......and dealing with two elderly parents who's health was declining. Studying kept me sane to be honest

I was a plasterer in Liverpool when I went to Liverpool uni (it was handy for extra cash to help out as i had two children 13 and 14 ) (expensive age). I was already a plasterer before I went to uni and also filmmaker and head of the workers co-operative in Liverpool - I think the maths floored me more that anything else I have said elsewhere I went to a free school and never was interested in Maths but you have to have some grasp on it I sailed though everything except the hated maths.

I still occasionally wake up in a panic because in my dream, time is short and work is long.

Many many long hours

We all deserve to give ourselves a huge pat on the back. It takes so much drive, determination and pure guts to do what we've done. We all saw the importance of a college degree, whether you went to an Ivy League University or a local Community College. The character behind the effort is the same! All the work and sacrifice is really an investment in your future and even more importantly, the future of your family - your children. There's nothing more noble!! BRAVO!!