陪女兒考研的媽媽考上博士了！那些重返校園的中年人太勵志
周亞鬆，早在2015年就因爲給女兒陪考而率先考上華中師範大學的研究生。今年7月， 56歲的她又收到了韓國大學院的博士錄取通知書。
活到老，學到老——這句話在周亞鬆的身上得到了印證。
有些人，人到中年、事業安穩、家庭和睦，不免就想繼續年輕時的教育。
國外知乎Quora上就有這麼一道經典的體驗題——“人到中年回到學校讀書是什麼體驗？”底下充滿了各種中年繼續教育的勵志故事：
網友Eamon O'Kelly 38歲的時候就回到學校念本科。
I went back to university full-time at 38 to finish my BA degree. I was the oldest student in all my classes but I would see a few older students around the college. I studied history and economics and did very well: I didn’t have the distractions that are common among traditional-age students such as partying and boyfriend/girlfriend dramas; I had the discipline that comes from 20 years in the workplace, and thus did everything well and on time; and I had real-world experience that benefited me greatly.
我38歲回到大學攻讀全日制學士學位。我是所有班級中年齡最大的學生，但我也會在學院裡看到一些年長的學生。我學的是歷史和經濟學，成績很好：我沒有受到傳統年齡段學生常見的分心因素的影響，比方說參加派對以及戀愛那一套等；我有20年的工作經驗，因此每件事都做得很好、很準時；這些現實世界的經驗讓我受益匪淺。
When I was 41, I went to law school of NYU. Again, I was among the older students but not the oldest: There was a woman in my class who had graduated from college the year I was born! The same factors that had benefited me in undergraduate studies also stood to me in law school (the real-world experience was particularly useful). I graduated in the top ten percent of my class at one of the best law schools in the United States.
我41歲的時候去了紐約大學法學院。我仍然是年齡較大的學生之一，但不是年齡最大的：我班上有位女同學在我出生那年就大學畢業了！使我在本科學習中受益的因素也同樣在法學院幫到了我（現實世界的經驗尤其有用）。我畢業於美國最好的法學院之一，成績在班上名列前茅。
I have always loved history but studying it seriously at university broadened and deepened my understanding in ways that I cannot begin to describe. I also find economics inherently interesting and my undergraduate economics courses have helped me tremendously in my career as an antitrust lawyer.
我一直熱愛歷史，但在大學裡認真學習歷史，以我無法描述的方式拓寬和加深了我對歷史的理解。我還發現經濟學本身就很有趣，我本科的經濟學課程對我反壟斷律師的職業生涯幫助很大。
Dianne Mclaren-Brighton發現自己40多歲讀研究生並不比20多歲讀本科的時候難多少。年齡不是問題，她還交到了忘年交。
I got my master’s degree when I was in my 40s. It wasn't any more difficult than it was to get my BA in my late teen-early 20s. Most of my classmates were in their mid to late 20s, but other than having a few cultural references that were different, the age difference was not an issue. In fact, I now have a terrific friend who is a decade younger than I and whom I would never have met had we not been in school together.
我在40多歲的時候拿到了碩士學位，感覺並不比我在20歲出頭的時候拿到學士學位困難多少。我的大多數同學都在20多歲左右，但除了有一些不同的文化背景外，年齡差異不是問題。事實上，我現在有一個很好的朋友，對方比我小十歲，如果我們不在一起上學，就不會有這段緣分。
Amer Khwaja也是類似的情況，他發現此前擔心的很多事情根本就沒有發生。
I went back to school at 43 and got my BS in photography. I was very nervous about it:
我43歲回到學校，拿到了攝影學的學士學位。起初我還挺擔心的：
❶ I thought the other students would be smarter than me, that wasn’t the case.
我以爲其他學生都會比我聰明，但事實並非如此
❷ I thought the other students wouldn’t like me, that wasn’t the case, they didn’t like me anymore or less than normal. For the most part, people just do their own thing.
我以爲其他學生不會喜歡我，但這也沒發生。他們喜不喜歡我跟一般情況沒什麼兩樣。大多時候，大家都只顧着做自己的事情。
❸ I actually feel I had an advantage in classes in that the professors were mostly about my age so I could relate to them better than the other students.
其實我感覺我在班裡還有點優勢，因爲教授們基本上都是我這個年紀的，我感覺我比年輕學生更容易和他們相處。
❹ I liked college a lot because of my real-world experience, it made me understand things so much better and I was far more motivated to learn than some of the other students who were straight out of high school.
因爲我有現實世界的經驗，所以我挺喜歡讀大學的。這些經驗讓我理解起知識來更快，而且我學起來也比其他同學有動力得多，他們纔剛剛高中畢業。
Gill Bullen則表示，她的老公作爲擁有過兩段職業生涯的退伍軍人，回到大學裡學計算機是一件又實用又開心的事情。
My husband left secondary school at 15, and joined the Royal Navy; when he left (by then a junior officer) ten years later, they recommended that he should go to university, but he refused; he felt that at 25 he was too old.
我丈夫15歲就從中學加入了皇家海軍；10年後他離開軍隊（當時是一名初級軍官），有人建議他去上個大學，但他拒絕了；他覺得25歲年紀太大了。
Fifteen years and a second career (in industrial purchasing) later, he suddenly decided he wanted to go to university. He had a wonderful time there, was suddenly a good ten years younger, got a very good degree (in Computing) and went on to a happy third career as a freelance programmer and systems analyst.
十五年後，也是第二段職業生涯（工業採購）之後，他突然決定要上大學。他在學校裡度過了一段美好的時光，整個人突然年輕了10歲，還獲得了一個非常好的學位（計算機專業）。接着，他便開始了第三段愉快的職業生涯：做自由職業程序員和系統分析師。
曾經爲很多大學生做過職業規劃的Jann Hoke發現，很多“非傳統學生”通常都是成績拔尖的。
Almost without exception, the best and most motivated students are the non-traditional students. ("Non-traditional" is defined as a college student who doesn't fit the stereotype of being 18 - 22 years old.)
幾乎無一例外，最好最積極的學生是非傳統學生。（“非傳統學生”意思是不符合18-22歲這個通常區間的大學生。）
In my experience, non-traditional students are more likely to be on time for class and be prepared. Their essays are usually far more interesting because of their life experiences. They ask good questions and they understand that they are paying me to teach them (through their tuition). They want value for their money and are willing to work with me to see that they get it.
根據我的經驗，非傳統的學生更有可能準時上課並做好充足準備。鑑於他們的生活經歷，他們的文章通常要有趣得多。他們會提出各種好問題，也明白他們是付錢給我來教他們的（通過學費）。他們希望自己的錢花的值，並願意與我合作以確保他們有所收穫。
網友Traye White用三段排比鼓勵了一把所有想要通過教育繼續追夢的中年人。
People will always tell you you're too old, talk to you about the income you'll lose, bring up the opportunity cost. But you're already asking the question. In your 40′s you're thinking about going back to school and making yourself better, you already want to go back. Do it.
人們總是會跟你說你太老了，說你會失去多少收入，還會提到機會成本。但你已經在問這個問題了。在你40多歲的時候，你在想回到學校，讓自己變得更好，你已經想回去了。那就去吧。
You can't put a financial price tag on your feelings of accomplishments and self-worth. Maybe it leads to a better job, maybe not. But you want a college degree, so go get one. As long as you don't neglect your family and bankrupt yourself chasing some foolish dream, do it.
你不能用金錢來衡量你的成就感和自我價值。繼續教育也許會帶來更好的工作，也許不會。但你想要大學學位，那就去搞一個。只要你不是爲了追逐一些愚蠢的夢想而忽視你的家庭或者讓自己破產，那就去做吧。
Most people work dead-end jobs for minimal pay and have very little time to enjoy themselves. If education gives you the slightest bit of happiness and satisfaction, shines a small glimmer of light on a dull existence, it's worth it, do it.
大多數人做着一眼望得到頭的工作，賺着微薄的薪水，幾乎沒有時間享受自己的生活。如果教育能給你帶來一絲快樂和滿足感，在枯燥的生活中閃耀出一絲光芒，那就值得，去做吧。
有些年輕人或許在父母嘮叨的時候抱怨過他們爲什麼不能在自己的生活裡去做些有意義的事情，比方說讀書、研究攝影、接受教育等等。