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Some
people might think boomers, who range in age from 38 to 56, are too old to
take on the grueling education and apprenticeship that law or medicine
requires. But growing old has relative meaning for boomers, who encompass
everyone from first-time parents to empty-nesters, said Mary Jane
Schreiber, a counselor with San Antonio-based Life Transitions, a career
and life planning company.
"Some people are at the age of 60 and
still have kids at home," she said.
Laureen Burke, a 47-year-old
obstetrician and gynecologist in Rochester, N.Y., left a successful
marketing career at Xerox to return to school at the age of 35. She
estimates she lost $1 million during the 10-year process of becoming a
doctor, including income and the cost of medical school at the University
of Rochester.
But for Burke, the priority was having a job that
her then 4-year-old daughter could be proud of.
"We totally
changed our lifestyle so that we could try to get through this," she said.
Experts say boomers differ from previous generations in that they
regard going to law school or med school in mid-life as more than a way of
getting a bigger paycheck.
"They see education as more than a
means to an end," Schreiber said.
For Wali Muhammad, 46, of White
Plains, N.Y., a jazz musician now attending law school, using his music to
complement his law studies has provided a balance in his life.
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