Going to graduate school is something I have gone back and forth about. I love school. I love going to class, learning new things, talking with peers about books and history, and dare I say I even like writing essays. What I don't like about school is how much it costs. It's insane how much it costs for the average person to earn and education and make a better life for themselves. Student loans are an unfortunate reality and mine have piled way high up. Hopefully I can pay them off before I die.

So as much as I want to go to graduate school and earn my master's and possibly my PhD, I just don't see it as being a reality right now. I've spent some time out in the real world. In the real world there's not meal plans, not spending the weekends party hopping, or sleeping in til noon. The real world has bills and expenses.

Throughout college I worked as a waitress and made decent money. It was enough to put gas in my car and pay for my outings with my friends. But as I transition into adulthood, it's not enough. Well it's enough to get by, but not enough to make a living.

Going into graduate school, I would continue to wait tables to pay for my car, phone, and whatever else comes up. I would acquire thousands of dollars of more student loan debt. The mountain I have attached to my name would grow even higher. What if I die before I can pay it off, and then my children would take on that debt? That's how bad this whole college cost has gotten. My children could potentially be responsible for my debt.

A masters degree doesn't necessarily mean more money. I would earn a degree in Creative Writing or English so that I could hopefully become a college professor. While that would be a rewarding career and I would earn a decent salary, I don't know if it would be worth the debt. I know people who only have a bachelors, some don't even have that much, and they make $50,000 a year. That's enough to live really well. They work hard for their money, but they love their life.

I just want to make sure I live a good life, and I don't know the right answers to make that dream possible. I can't predict the future, as much as I really wish I could. Graduate school just doesn't seem like the right choice right now. I want to see what kind of career I can get, maybe I can earn a position that would lead to the company paying for part or all of my masters degree. It could happen, just not right now.