PGALer with a ?...Any SAHMs that have advanced degrees?

HadleyS · April 2011

Sorry to barge in, I know I am total stranger, but I was just curious about how many of you have chosen to become a SAHM after having completed some kind of graduate degree?

I am finishing my master's in public health right now, and had always originally planned on working while raising a family. But after we got pregnant, lost our LO, and are now pregnant again, I have an overwhelming urge to soak up every bit of motherhood I can get and stay home with this LO, and any future LOs for at least a few years. We would be financially able to do this, but I really feel like DH is pressuring me to go back to work because I have spent all of this time and money on my education. I know that we have a lonnnnng time to discuss this, and I am trying not to think about it this early, but my mind constantly continues to wonder back to the subject of being a SAHM.

Ah, sorry for my drama story, I will just happily take some yes/no answers from readers out there. Thank you so much.

ETA: I graduate next Month!

Stacyc625 · April 2011

Congrats on graduating and your pregnancy.

there are PLENTY of women on this board with grad degress including myself!

My best suggestion- really sit down and plan it out. Have an open line of communication with your DH and a financial plan set in place.

HadleyS · April 2011

Thanks, we might have to look at a financial plan in the coming months (ETA: "coming months" as in when we get closer to the baby's due date and more firm the desire to stay/not stay at home), but starting July 1, DH will be making more than the what the two of us make combined right now, so we know that we will have a cushion. We just won't go out and buy a couple of Audis, as he likes to say.

mrsfirefly · April 2011

Yes, masters and love being a SAHM!

EnglishMajor03 · April 2011

DH has his MPH too! Where are you at school? DH went to BU....

Andrewsgal · April 2011

Yep Masters and BCBA.

HadleyS · April 2011

EnglishMajor03:
DH has his MPH too! Where are you at school? DH went to BU....

Well, we are in Boston, but I have done all of my degree at UAMS in Arkansas. I have been finishing up this last year (only two classes) long-distance. We only came to Boston this past July and will be back in Arkansas this June. We came up here so that DH could complete a fellowship, and now he's almost done!

ktsnshn · April 2011

I have a Master's Degree. I always knew I wanted to stay home, but I loved my career and wanted to go as far as I could while I was working. I will continue to take graduate level classes to keep my teaching license current while I stay home so that I can return to teaching if I want after I am done staying at home. I am a firm believer that you have to do what is best for your family and if that means staying at home after finishing a grad degree then that is what you should do. Good luck with your decision.

EnglishMajor03 · April 2011

HadleyS:
EnglishMajor03:
DH has his MPH too! Where are you at school? DH went to BU....
Well, we are in Boston, but I have done all of my degree at UAMS in Arkansas. I have been finishing up this last year (only two classes) long-distance. We only came to Boston this past July and will be back in Arkansas this June. We came up here so that DH could complete a fellowship, and now he's almost done!

Sounds like you guys are busy! GL finishing up and to your DH!

EJDIII · April 2011

mrsfirefly:
Yes, masters and love being a SAHM!

Same here! I will go back into my field on a part-time basis in the next year or so.

lcap · April 2011

I have a master's degree. I SAH because we can afford it and I like it more than working. I don't feel that I'm "wasting" my education either. Going to grad school was the right thing for me to do five years ago and SAH is the right thing now.

I'm sure things will change again in another 5-10 years and I'll either re-enter the paying workforce or find a volunteer job. Things change. That's life.

HadleyS · April 2011

Thank you all for your input. It just helps to put my mind at ease a little to know that there are other women out there who feel the same way.

Dh and I will just keep discussing this from time to time once we actually get closer to the point when a decision really has to be made. I know that my feelings about this are likely to fluctuate throughout the remainder of this pregnancy and even once LO is born!

EJChapman123 · April 2011

The decision to stay home really has nothing to do with how much school you have gone through. I have an MBA and I am working on my CPA license and I have been home my entire pregnancy (Im due next month) and have no plans to go back anytime soon. Your education is never a waste, and if staying home is what works best for your family, then do it. If anything, its comforting to know that in a worse case scenario, I can always go find a job if DH loses his, and my salary could pay our bills until he found something else.

JOEBunny · April 2011

I have an MBA. I graduated when I was 23, worked for 10 years after I got that degree and stopped working at 34, so a bit different situation. I have a lot of friends who went later, who would like to SAH, but are still paying off student loans.

Squirrel29 · April 2011

I have a JD - I am still working 15 hours a week and keeping my license active but I'm mostly a SAHM.

ericanandy · April 2011

mrsfirefly:
Yes, masters and love being a SAHM!

This! Wouldn't change it for the world!

Hope*Always · April 2011

My grad degree is in HR and I became a SAHM due to layoff. However, am now a WAHM in a completely different field. I love being home with the kids and do not feel it was a waste of $ or my degrees.

bim38106 · April 2011

I have always known that I wanted to be a SAHM when I had kids. DH felt the same way.

I have a masters and got PG a month before I graduated. I enjoy going to school and I like that I have my degree to fall back on if I ever need to, and just that I got the experience and the education. That said, I plan on being a SAHM for a very long time. I'd like to be at home while my kids are in school and be able to volunteer in the classroom, and even later for when they get home from HS... Honestly, I'm not sure I'll ever go back to work...and if I do, I don't think I want to go back into the field I got my degrees in (teaching).

myantonia · April 2011

mrsfirefly:
Yes, masters and love being a SAHM!

This!

sunnybrook. · April 2011

I have two advanced degrees - a Masters and a JD. I couldn't imagine being anywhere but home with my LOs right now. I couldn't be happier! My DH is completely supportive of me SAH and we have the finances to allow it both of which are necessary.

alli2672 · April 2011

I have an MD (sounds like your husband does too...I don't know many fields where you suddenly start making 5 times your income on July 1). I work very part time right now, am taking my boards, and plan to continue to keep up my license.

I plan to go back to working FT when my nest starts to empty, as a lot of the women in my family did. I had my children fairly young, so I will still have 20+ years to work on my career.

At first I felt guilty that I took a spot in med school that could have gone to someone else who would have practiced their entire lives. Then I thought about it, and I have a lot to offer to my patients as a mom, and my med school had no problem accepting non-trad students in their 30's who wouldn't start practicing until their mid-40's either. I do think it's good to use your degree and work for your community, but I see no reason that you have to dedicate your entire life to it. It's also good to take some time for you and your family.

babypuplove · April 2011

Yep, Master's in Education.

jcsumm0 · April 2011

Also a lurker...I'll be staying home w/our LO come June. I have a Master's in teaching and was a high school English teacher for 6 years. I think once our kid(s) are in school, I'll go back for a different degree...I liked teaching but it wasn't the best fit for me.

almostjennifer · April 2011

Another law degree here.

cooperme2871 · April 2011

babypuplove:
Yep, Master's in Education.

This is me too!

Emcat1980@yahoo.com · April 2011

I have an MD. I finished residency last summer and took both my boards this fall (med/peds) but haven't gone to work yet. DH is a fellow this year in a demanding field, so between that and a cross country move for this 1 yr, I figured I'd just stay home with DS and enjoy it. And I have! Of course now I'm due with #2 right at the time we move home and he enters private practice. I'll go back part time (I'm aiming for about 12-15 hrs/week) when baby #2 is about 6 months old. I don't plan on working more than part time ever (at least when we have kids still at home, and maybe not even after that, but I'll see as the years go by what our family needs and what my wants are professionally). I feel totally sucked dry after so many years in school/training and I want the time to enjoy other things and be a wife/mama. Of course I am very fortunate that we're in a position financially for me to make such a decision. This is what works for our family.

Bubbles1022 · April 2011

lcap:

I have a master's degree. I SAH because we can afford it and I like it more than working. I don't feel that I'm "wasting" my education either. Going to grad school was the right thing for me to do five years ago and SAH is the right thing now.

I'm sure things will change again in another 5-10 years and I'll either re-enter the paying workforce or find a volunteer job. Things change. That's life.

Exactly this!!

susanmosley · April 2011

I have a master of science in communication disorders. I vary between being a SAHM and working PT and think that will be the way it is for 15-20 more years.

mandymack · April 2011

Hi and welcome to the board!!!

I have my MBA (Accounting & Finance double major Undergrad) and had my CPA, practicing in Big 4 Public Accounting before quitting my job as an Auditor. Very simply, I was unsatisfied in the job and the little life balance it gave me so, DH encouraged me to quit so I could evaluate where in my career I really wanted to go. Coincidentally, I was 11 weeks pregnant and never ended up going back to work. Then, we moved to another state and my CPA license was no longer valid and because I was so happy at home, just weeks before Emily was born, I never resat for the exam. That was over 5 years ago and I've never been happier.

My years in college and work experience helped make me who I am, I don't regret a second even though I have no plans to ever return to work.

Good luck in your decision, it's a very personal decision that only you can make, just try not to doubt what your heart is telling you, especially since it appears you have all the logistics covered.

juliane2004 · April 2011

I think education is important if you NEED to go back to work (like if, God forbid, you lose your husband). And going to University wasn't really a question for me, it was just a given. Not that I was forced in to it, just that it was the next step in schooling.

I loved the University experience and wouldn't have chosen to NOT have it if I knew I was going to be a SAHM. Plus, I much prefer being a SAHM than working a full time out-of-the-home job. I hated working.

I didn't go to school to work, I went to school to learn and for the experience. I'm so glad I went to school, but I am also so glad I am a SAHM.

alli2672 · April 2011

Emcat:
I have an MD. I finished residency last summer and took both my boards this fall (med/peds) but haven't gone to work yet. DH is a fellow this year in a demanding field, so between that and a cross country move for this 1 yr, I figured I'd just stay home with DS and enjoy it. And I have! Of course now I'm due with #2 right at the time we move home and he enters private practice. I'll go back part time (I'm aiming for about 12-15 hrs/week) when baby #2 is about 6 months old. I don't plan on working more than part time ever (at least when we have kids still at home, and maybe not even after that, but I'll see as the years go by what our family needs and what my wants are professionally). I feel totally sucked dry after so many years in school/training and I want the time to enjoy other things and be a wife/mama. Of course I am very fortunate that we're in a position financially for me to make such a decision. This is what works for our family.

Hi Emcat! I was wondering what you were going to do when your hubby finished his fellowship. I didn't realize you were pregnant again. Congrats!

pinksweetpea2 · April 2011

Yep, I have a MS in Library Science. I worked for 5 years and have been home with Lily for over 2.5 years. I plan to go back part time after baby #2 is done nursing and full time once both kids are in school.

I do love having this time with Lily, but I also miss working. I don't feel guilty about taking this time though. I worked so hard on my education so I would have choices. I am exercising my choices right now.

I plan to return to work and have kept my hand in the game a little bit (worked part time last spring, go to regional prof. association meetings, keep in touch with old co-workers, etc.) so that I will be able to return eventually.

Notwifezilla7 · April 2011

I have my M.Ed which I finished about a month after DD1 was born. I worked in elem. school for close to 8 years. I worked in district with a good graduate reimbursement rate, so my master's degree ending up costing me half- as I was reimbursed for one class per semester and I took two. In no way, shape, or form do I regret getting my masters. I learned so much those 2.5 years. The program I was in lends itself well towards PhD work and after completing the M.Ed I am currently debating continuing for the PhD or EdD- and eventual work at the college level. I could not see myself working a traditional teaching schedule right now as SAH is important to me, however the option of working part time at a community college or local university may be a good fit for me.

ccc'swife · April 2011

Congrats on everything!

I got my JD in 2004 and am a PT SAHM now. I did practice law for a year, then went to be a law student career counselor after that...and then I quit my counseling job and became a SAHM. Now I own my own business (totally NOT law-related) and SAHM PT. I think it's pretty funny that I have a law degree and do absolutely nothing with it, but I do feel like hey, at least it's there if I need it and need to fall back on it at some point!

wcjc7707 · April 2011

Yeah I have my master's in education. I have gotten a few of those "well, why did you go to college (and especially grad school) if you were just going to stay at home", but the way I see it is that you are still using your education and the experiences you got through your education. Plus I plan on going back to work when my kids are school-aged. That's going to be a while though because we only have 1, and hope to have 3.

JMB22 · April 2011

I have my MBA and I'm a SAHM. We can afford it and it makes everyone happier. Once DS goes to school, I will work outside the house again. I don't feel like I'm wasting my education by staying home for a few years with our son.

jennie13 · April 2011

I have an MBA. I finished it a long time before having kids, but I did plan on working after I started a family. I got laid off when my first daughter was an infant, and found out I was having twins before I got a new job. So we decided that I would be a SAHM, mostly because the cost of daycare is crazy where I live. Ultimately, I do want to work at least part time, but this is best for us right now.

broomy · April 2011

I will be finishing up my Master's degree in the next year. I'm a little worried about being out of the work force for so long, BUT (and I know it's totally clich?), I have the rest of my life to work and use that degree, but there are only a few years that DS and I can stay home together, so I'm taking them.

HadleyS · April 2011

Wow! I am so overwhelmed by the huge number of responses, and each one was so thoughtful and sincere. I really do appreciate all of you taking some time out to provide me with some input.

It's clear that I still have a lot to think about, but I will mark this post and keep coming back to it from time to time to read and re-read these responses.

Thank you SO much for everything, for the congrats, for the well wishes, for the encouragment to sort this all out, and for sharing your exeriences!

sassy_mommy · April 2011

Congratulations on your pregnancy and upcoming graduation. I have a Master's degree and have been at home with my LO for 19 months now (I didn't return to work after having LO, although I do freelance work for the organization). I feel that as long as your family is financially stable, you have all the time in the world to use your education in a full-time job once your children are older. The biggest thing is to make the decision that is right for you and your family. Best wishes!

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PGALer with a ?...Any SAHMs that have advanced degrees?

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