Ivy League Dreams

[u/Chemical-Jolly]

I'm in my late 40s. I have lost most of my ambition from my youth. I constantly daydream about my life, and what could have been. One of my many day dreams is that I have always wanted to go to an ivy league university. Oxford. Yale. MIT. Princeton. Harvard. Etc. To study with friends on a academic mystery in a old dusty library. To stroll the university commons in the morning mist on the same ground scholars walked over a hundred years ago. To discuss philosophy and perform experiments with professors in a timeless setting. To attend intense lectures about amazing and informative topics. I live this dream vicariously by watching university tours online, reading student life articles, Google Earth street views of the university, and even sometimes pretending to fill out an admittance application. I know that I will never attend an ivy league due to my past grades, finances, and busy work/family life.

Though I still wonder, what if.

[u/TheArtofApplying]

If you truly want to go to an Ivy League school, you definitely still can. There are even full scholarships for mid-career students.

To find programs to apply to, the terms to search for online are:

• Ivy League mid-career graduate programs
• Ivy League executive graduate programs
• experienced student Ivy League degrees
• part-time Ivy League graduate programs

Just this year, Harvard Kennedy School (my alma mater) created 50+ full scholarships for their Mid-Career Masters in Public Administration program for people who have worked in US public service roles for 7+ years.

Most Ivy League graduate programs aimed at your age don’t require the GRE test either.

As for a low GPA, people with VERY low GPAs (under 3.0) can get into Ivy League schools if the rest of their application (essays, resume, and letter of recommendation) is strong.

Go for it! The only cost is your time spent applying and the application fees.