To keep working or to stop working - help!

[rap15]

Hi everyone - as the next application cycle approaches, I know I will have some tough decisions to make. The main one being - do I do an online or local program and keep working full time, or do I pack up everything to be a full time student for two years?

I am currently working in healthcare consulting in the DC area. If I want to keep working at my job, I could either go to GW part time (as their classes are in the evening), go to George Mason University part time (and get in-state tuition) or start an online part time program (mostly looking at Temple, University of Maryland, or maybe UNC). Or, I could stop working and be a full time student (looking at Brown MPH or Hopkins MSPH). Generally, the online programs are cheaper than in-person programs.

I am interested in women's health policy/reproductive rights. Therefore, I'm hoping to go to a program that has both health policy and maternal/child health concentrations, or at least a program with a health policy concentration and some MCH courses.

Healthcare consulting is not what I want to do forever (I'd rather work at a nonprofit or health department). I know that logically, continuing to work and going to a cheaper program is the best financial decision, but I've always imagined myself being a full time student again. There's also the factor that an in-person program would take about 2 years and an online or part-time program would take about 3 years.

If you've been in this situation and have any advice, please respond - I'm very conflicted!

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[seehunde]

If you do choose to keep working, you're lucky to be in such a great area with great institutions to do so! I considered it too, and while the program near me is CEPH-certified, it's pretty low-ranked and not a good fit for me. So jealous! Anyway, for what it's worth, I talked to my dad about it for awhile because he got a law degree while working awhile back, and he said he would go back and do it as a full time student instead in a heartbeat if he could-- also part of the reason I chose not to apply to this smaller university. He said it was adequate to get him where he wanted, but obviously there's not as much time to devote and truly LEARN from your classes to your full capacity because you're tired, have other priorities and deadlines, etc. My vote would be full time, especially if you like the idea of doing that again! Take out some loans if you have to, but don't hold yourself back.

 

[LookForZebras]

I don't think you can go wrong either way. But it sounds like you know you enjoy going "all in" as a student. Given this, I bet you'd be able to get more out a program if you're able to dedicate your time to it 100%. If you do that, then you're more likely to be able to identify and land a dream job that may make up for what you lost in income while you were a student.