Thinking of going back to school at 28? Reddit shares its advice with struggling waitress

A post on Reddit’s r/jobs from a 28-year-old without a degree who has spent two years trying to escape a job that barely covers her bills has resonated widely, not because the story is unusual, but because it captures a specific kind of stuck that a lot of people recognise.

The original poster has no degree, some gap years from working nightlife in her early 20s, and two years of fruitless job searching behind her. She is not getting callbacks or interviews for entry-level work. Her discretionary spending, what she calls her “luxury” expenses, has already been cut entirely, and she still barely breaks even. She doesn’t want to be a waitress forever but feels like it might be the only option available to her.

Her question to Reddit: is going back to school worth it?

The thread’s answer was largely yes, but the more useful part was the direction people pointed her toward.

The two-year degree argument

The most concrete advice came from commenters who pushed her away from the idea of a traditional four-year degree and toward shorter, certification-based or two-year programmes in healthcare and trades.

“Look at two-year degrees that could be useful, like radiology technician and dental hygiene school. The pay is quite good,” one Redditor suggested. These are fields where demand is stable, the credential pathway is relatively short, and the earning potential after qualifying significantly outpaces most entry-level work without a degree.

Another commenter reinforced the trades and certification angle: “I would look for jobs that need certifications and go to a trade school. They tend to be a lot cheaper. You’re still so young and you can definitely find a good career.”

The age question

A recurring theme in the thread was reassurance about her age, with multiple commenters pointing out that 28 is genuinely not too late to redirect.

“I went back to school at 35 and got my bachelor’s. You can do this!” one wrote. Another offered their personal experience as an adult student: “As an adult student who went back later, the effort needed seems to be a lot less. I’m more stable as a person and spend less time trying to figure out who I am, so I can just study.”

That last point is worth sitting with. The version of her that would have gone to college at 18 when her mum said she couldn’t afford it is a different person from the 28-year-old who has been working for a decade and knows what she’s trying to escape. Adult students frequently report that going back later is easier in some ways precisely because the motivation is concrete and the life instability of early adulthood has settled.

The degree might not even be the point

One commenter pushed back on the framing slightly, saying “You don’t need a degree nowadays, unless it’s healthcare or science related. What you need is a skill and a career direction. Do you know what you want to work in?”

It’s the right question. The original poster’s problem isn’t just the absence of a credential, but the absence of a direction. The job market is difficult for everyone right now, but it is particularly difficult for people applying to broadly defined “entry-level” roles without a clear goal.

The original poster is 28, has real work experience including customer-facing roles, and has demonstrated the discipline to cut her spending and persist through two years of discouraging job hunting. Those are not nothing. She is not starting from zero. She is redirecting.

Going back to school at 28 is not a consolation prize. For a lot of people, it is exactly the right move at exactly the right time.

Read also: ‘Get a different degree’: Reddit’s brutal advice to a CS student worried about the job market