How to find time for grad school?

[Sparer]

I was wondering about doing grad school after my bachelors, but I was wondering how that works. Do most people put their professional life while doing it? I was thinking of teaching HS(High school) throughout my time as a graduate student, but it seems pretty overwhelming having a job AND being a student at the same time. How would balancing a life as a teacher and taking classes and doing some research as a grad student go? Am I supposed to take classes only in the summer?

 

[ModusPwnd]

Depends on the type of graduate degree. For research and a PhD its pretty much ridiculous to think you can have a job or career while you do it. I can't fathom why any professor would take on a student who wants to do that. You get paid~20k a year and you devote 50-60+ hours a week towards your degree for an average of 7 years. I had some labmates who got ~30k a year due to special grants. I had a few labmates who would pause their graduate work and intern for 6-9 months for higher pay too. But this delays graduation. Exceptions do probably exist.. But I wouldn't plan for that at all.

There are some masters degrees that cater toward working adults. I've had classmates who teach at high school while getting their masters in education.

 

[Sparer]

So what you are telling me is that graduate students are usually given the chance to do paid research while working on their degree? If so does it apply to MA and PhD or just PhD?

 

[ModusPwnd]

PhD students usually do some tutoring and/or teacher's assistant for the first year or two to earn their pay, and then research for the next 4 or 5 years. This usually applies to PhD students, but it does sometimes (rarely) apply to MS students.

 

[jtbell]

Just to make clear, in the US, when you go for a PhD in physics, you generally don't do a master's program separately beforehand. You enter the PhD program straight after finishing your BS or BA, and do a couple of years of coursework, during which you line up your PhD field, advisor, topic and dissertation committee. Along the way you can pick up a MS diploma if you like. Then you do research. Usually you start out being supported by a teaching assistantship (intro labs etc.), then you get a research assistantship for helping your advisor or his research group with their research.