going back to school...again

[GeogPlanner]

has anyone gone back to school for a field related to planning after being a planner? there are always those who go back to be planners, but i just wanted to hear people's thoughts about planners going back to school...say for law or architecture or other related areas.

i myself have considered going back for a second masters in another field.

 

[Repo Man]

I often think about going to Law School, but then I think of the hard work and the cost of tuition, and come to my senses. I think I will eventually go (probably part-time) but not for a while. I would probably like to to into Land Use Law, but sports law also sounds interesting.

 

[Chet]

I thought about Law School too, but the time commitment was too much while still working full time. I ended up with a Masters in Public Administration, and it's served me well.

 

[Planderella]

I went into planning school to avoid law school. My long term goal is to eventually go back to school to get my PhD in English and teach literature to hung-over college students.

 

[Cardinal]

I keep saying I'm going to go back for a PhD, probably in planning or landscape architecture. I just can't seem to find the time and I'm not going to quit working to be a student.

 

[yaff]

I did it Visa Versa. I went to law school first, when I was young, idealistic, single, not in debt, etc. I was interested in land use law and environmental law and went to a school with a well respected program in environmental law. When I got out of school and passed the bar in 1993 I had trouble finding opportunities to practice in land use law or do the kind of things I was interested in. I ended up working for state government in the Department of Health and Social Services. I ended up leaving that job in 1998 to go back to school in Urban Planning. I graduated in 2000 and am currently working for an urban county as a planner. I still need to decide whether to take the bar exam in the state I am in now and try to get into land use law practice.

 

[Planderella]

My graduate school at the University of New Orleans had a joint degree program with Loyola University Law School - J.D./Masters in Urban and Regional Planning. I was too tramatized from my first encounter with the LSAT to give the joint program a try so I settled on just the MURP.

Those I know with the two degrees are either working as consultants or at law firms.

 

[Bullwinkle]

What about a Masters in Public Administration? Does anybody have one of those, or is anybody thinking about one? I have been toying with the idea for a year or two and I'd like to hear the opinions of others. I have been thinking about moving into municipal management in a few years, and I think that the MPA would be valuable to me.

 

[nerudite]

I think the Public Administration degree is an awesome choice if you are going to go back... I have taken a few course and I have learned so much. I'm considering going back for an M.A.... I just have to get my permanent residency here so I'll be able to afford it.

 

[ten]

2nd, 3rd masters, Phd...wow...

i'm not yet even through with my MA in arch. i'm already thinking of pursuing Law subsequently!

my other (more realistic) option is to specialize in regional development planning, emphasizing on rural areas.

 

[troy]

I had originally considered a dual Masters in Planning and Public Admin, but it would have cost me an extra two years going to classes part time in the evenings.

It might be fun to go back to school for a second Masters...I enjoy being around other students, sitting in lectures, discussing interesting topics, and learning new things. I would consider Law, Civil Engineering, or Public Admin for my own interests.

However, I don't miss having to work on projects during my liesure time. I don't miss spending a couple of nights a week on campus, away from my wife (and now my child). I don't miss having to pay tuition with an already tight budget. I don't miss having a long term committment to continuing a course of study that will invariably involve a course or two I really don't care about.

As long as I am able to make ends meet in my own field, using the education I already possess, I am unlikely to return to school before I retire.

If I were to go back sooner than that, it would be in order to completely change career paths... perhaps Agricultural Sciences with the accompanying purchase of some farmland...

Anyway, that's my take on the subject. It's fun to learn new things, but for me, the cost of an additional degree is way too high right now.

 

[Jen]

However, I don't miss having to work on projects during my liesure time. I don't miss spending a couple of nights a week on campus, away from my wife (and now my child). I don't miss having to pay tuition with an already tight budget. I don't miss having a long term committment to continuing a course of study that will invariably involve a course or two I really don't care about.

Hoo boy, do I feel the same way too, and I am just starting school again this fall after a year off.

But seeing as I've been a SAHM* for six and a half years I'm anxious to turn tuition outlay into incoming revenue right quick!












* stay at home mom