Janie's
I want to be finished with having babies before embarking on a uni degree
I now know why women do this!! there is a lot of merit in this approach!
If I knew I was going to be pregnant in 3 months time when I was enrolling in 2005, I would have probably delayed study. Well, I'd like to think I would have! Really, the only reason I keep going is because I started before I was pregnant and kept going thinking I"d better finish what I started...though if I'd quit back then, I'd have done so whilst ahead!!
I don't really want to contemplate 4th Year until all the kids I'm going to have are at school.
I'm just no good at prioritising study over being as fully 'present' for my child as possible. DS will always come first, and that's starting to show in my school work I know students who are able to say "well, I have to do this now, I'll miss out on a bit of my kids, and it's just part of the deal". Which works for them and that's their thing. I just can't justify it that way. I get one shot with DS, and I won't be a parent/student who resolutely stays behind the shut door of my study whilst DS bangs on the door for my attention (I studied with someone who did this with her two year old and it broke my heart hearing it!).
So, to all those contemplating it, if you're not in an absolute hurry for it and you have children under 3yo, think about this aspect of it - your child is going through an intense developmental period that you can't put on hold and you can't get back; you miss it and it's gone forever. After this age, development takes on a slower pace, giving you a bit more leeway for your own pursuits.
That's just my take on it, as I said, and others will feel differently about how they spend time with their kids. Maybe I was just never organised enough to do it properly!!
Good luck all you students - it's crunch time!