Dreams Deferred: Seniors Delay Careers

The future was crystal clear for Peter S. Manasantivongs '99. Well, it was at least translucent. The applied math concentrator had long since abandoned academic ties to his field and was set to pursue a master of philosophy and linguistics at Cambridge University. All that was left was the arduous process of locating a source for tuition funds, a benefactor of sorts.

But when the benefactor materialized, it was to take Manasantivongs in a new direction, far from Cambridge and academic plans altogether. In recent weeks, the Eliot House resident has decided to defer admission to Cambridge and travel instead to Western Europe in search of excolonial communities, from Africans living in Portugal to Surinamese and Indonesians in the Netherlands.

"There could be a point during my year when I don't really want to go back to school or I want to study something else, like cultural studies," he says, "But I figure I'll hit that bridge when I come to it."

The choice to defer--postponing graduate or professional school in favor of a short-term commitment--was an attractive option for many seniors. With the pressures of the "real world" looming, some chose to defer, while others have decided to leap directly into their long-term careers.

The John Finley Fellowship in some ways forced Manasantivongs' hand, prompting his deferral when he might have headed straight to graduate school. However, for most the decision to defer must be weighed against other options--including postponing the application process itself.

Alternative Options

Instead of applying and then postponing entry into the law school of her choice, Noel Rodriguez '99 opted to wait. The choice, she says, only became clear early this year as she was researching her history thesis on the role of women in the United Farm Workers' Union.

"A lot of it had to do with the fact that I was writing my thesis, and I thought the admissions process would take away from that," Rodriguez says. Although law school has always been a "pretty long term goal" for Rodriguez, she sees spending the next two years working for the federal defender's office in Manhattan as a step toward that goal, rather than in another direction. The California native is eager to assume her place in second-seating court-side with a team of attorneys that handle everything from "boot-leg videotapes to blowing up the World Trade Center."

Sounds good now. But was Rodriguez as sure of her choice after taking the LSAT this fall, when everyone else was applying?

"Maybe earlier in the year that might have bothered me, when everyone else was hearing from schools," she says. "But I know a lot of the schools are interested in people with real-life experience, so I actually feel better about applying later."

Rodriguez will begin looking at schools once settled in New York, and although she says her list of contenders is far from concrete, the few that are set choices (Berkeley, USC, UCLA and a few on the east coast) she chose based on expense.

Cost Concerns

Expenses are an important factor for in many deferral decisions, since students who defer (application or admission) cannot postpone student loan payments until they start school again.

Brent A. Townsend '99 sees this fact as a definite bonus for those headed straight to medical school.

"It would just be putting off what I want to do," Townsend adds.

What Townsend wants is to keep up the "momentum" he has built as an undergraduate by entering the accelerated medical school program at Duke in August. Rather than a traditional four-year program that includes two initial years of academic study before interning, the Duke program condenses the first two years into one, leaving the second year to intern and the third for supervised research.

Townsend acknowledges the program is more "non-traditional" than what he mighthave faced at Washington University in St. Louis,but says the demands, as well as the location, arewhat make Duke attractive. Harvard, he says, gavehim a chance to try many activities while buildinga solid academic record, and the pattern of studyshould not be broken.

"There's nothing I feel I've missed out on,"Townsend says. "I don't feel I need a break."

Admissions Decisions

Law and medical school admissions officials arenot surprised that the bulk of students applyingthis year think like Townsend in continuingdirectly into school.

"Particularly with people in that situation,they have a lot more options," says Todd Morgan,associate director of Harvard Law School (HLS)admissions.

Morgan explains that the number of studentsdeferring varies to some degree according to thestate of the economy. "If [the economy] is good,they go to Law School," he says.

However, the economy is booming and accordingto Morgan "this year looks no different from anyother year" in terms of the number of deferrals.

He attributes this to the fact that studentdeferrals are handled on a case-by-case basis,with some individuals deferring for years. The LawSchool asks students to submit a petition fordeferral by May 15, the due date for the firsttuition deposit.

"We don't make any judgements about why anindividual will defer," Morgan says. "We want toknow what that individual plans to do. We're lesslikely to grant [a deferral] if they have no ideawhat they want to do. If they have a time plan, aschedule, it's more positive and productive."

For the last 10 years, Morgan says about 100 ofeach 540-member class have chosen to defer. "It'snot so many that you can perceive it," he says.

"In general, I personally think that for peoplecoming out of college it makes sense to dosomething else," Morgan says. "I think there's alot of value in gaining experience outside ofacademia...It's best to know [law school] is whatyou really want to do."

Morgan says those who defer because they areunsure about going to law school in the firstplace, however, pose a unique problem. While timeoff is productive for those who are sure they wantto return to school, he says it may not be forstudents like Manasantivongs not set onreturning--especially if they don't do thesoul-searching others with time off might.

"By deferring, most people won't really gothrough that process," Morgan says. "I worry aboutthose people who defer because they're not surelaw school is what they want to do."

Students are allowed two years to defer beforethe Law School starts pushing them to return andassume the spot held for them in the returningclass. Although those who defer still pay theinitial $500 deposit, the spot may be held formore than two years, given extenuatingcircumstances.

Deferring From the College

Before even arriving at Harvard, many studentsalready familiarized themselves with the deferralprocess. Every admissions letter includes a clauseoffering the option, and the Dean of Admissionsand Financial Aid himself calls deferral a"wonderful idea."

"We believe it would profit just abouteverybody," says William R. Fitzsimmons '67."Students who arrive here have been on a fasttrack pretty much from the bassinet," he says.Fitzsimmons notes that 20 percent ofundergraduates take time off during their fouryears at the College.

"Partly because it is a more mature,sophisticated generation, I think people areasking themselves the harder questions now, whatwould have been the mid-life crisis," he says oftoday's undergraduates.

However, while praising the benefits of leavingCambridge to play baseball in Australia or to gotraveling in Nepal, Fitzsimmons notes that theinstability of deferral, no matter how short-term,tends to be anxiety-inducing for Harvard-typepersonalities.

"It can be frightening to students, but evenmore to parents," he says. "I think there's a fear[students] might become roving minstrels orsomething."

Some students, however, back up Fitzsimmonsclaim that taking time off makes sense in the longrun. Grace Tye '99, who is headed to HarvardMedical School, plans to spend a year in herhometown of Los Angeles. What she does there isnot important; the key is taking a year-long breakfrom school.

"I don't know if this one year is going to beenough of a deferral," says Tye, who says she'sconsidering either public health research or a jobin a coffee shop for her year off.

Tutorial Advice

House tutors who advise students onprofessional choices say Tye may have a point.Indeed, tutors say, students should thinkcarefully before barreling straight throughcollege and professional school without a break.

"Many seniors are burnt out by the timeCommencement rolls around, even though theywouldn't have expected to be so," says DanaLansky, a pre-law tutor in Cabot House.

Lansky says college saps energy from somestudents, leaving them less prepared to handlethree challenging years of law school right away."Law students who did not take time off seem tohave a harder time motivating to work hard, andfind the workload more tedious," she says.

"The first year of law school is very intenseand requires the ability to focus. People who havetaken time off are more excited about the prospectof coming back to school and studying intensely."

Deferment can also help students figure out ifthey really want to be lawyers, or if law schoolcan help them achieve their professional goals inanother field. Lansky says many students rush intolaw school mistakenly thinking that a law degreewill be useful for any career.

"It is helpful to have a clear vision for whyyou are going to law school before you decide togo," she says. "Taking time off and exploring yourinterests a little can help you figure out whatpath makes the most sense."

Other tutors agree that taking time off canhelp students decide what they really want to dowith their lives.

"My observation is that work experience oftenexposes recent grads to many new careerpossibilities that they prefer to legal careers,"says Pforzheimer House pre-law tutor Kayla Bakshi,who worked in consulting at McKinsey & Co. beforecoming to Harvard for a joint J.D. and M.B.A.program. For those students who have a vagueinterest in the law, deferring law school orwaiting to apply gives them time to get anon-the-job idea of whether or not they really wantto be lawyers. The time just after collegegraduation "is also a great time to find out moreabout the legal profession and see if it is reallywhat you want to do," Lansky says.

"Some find that they are more interested in thelaw after working as a paralegal or at a legalclinic, while others find they are not reallyinterested in the law at all."

In addition, students may just need a break. "Afresh college graduate generally has no idea whatshe wants to do with her life," says Michael N.Rader, a second-year law student at Harvard LawSchool. "This is normal and a good thing. Let hersow her oats for a while before moving on with`the rest of her life.'"

Rader advocates taking time off as a vehiclefor self-discovery. After graduating from BrownUniversity, he worked in consulting for a year andthen went to Israel, where he studied ancientAramaic rabbinic texts for a year before startingat HLS. He chose to study in Israel because hewanted to understand his Jewish heritage, he says.

Practically, some students use their time offto beef up their resumes, allowing them to getinto a better law school. Lansky advises studentsto take this path if they're not happy with theircollege record.

"If your application is not as strong as youwould like it to be, take some time to work andstrengthen your application before you apply," shesays. "You will have a better shot of getting intobetter schools. Plus, it will give law schools achance to consider any honors or distinctions youmay have received at the end of your senior year."

"Your law school application is strengthened byyour experience after college," says Nowrojee, whoestimates that about half of her 40 pre-lawadvisees are either deferring law school orwaiting two to three years after college beforeapplying.

The psychological reasons for putting offprofessional school can be complicated, the tutorssay. Sometimes students feel pressured to go toprofessional school when they would rather pursueanother career.

"A lot of seniors are nervous about the idea ofgraduating without a concrete plan for theirfuture, in part because they have always had aplan," Lansky says. "If they can get past theirworries, they will discover that there is a hugeworld out there waiting for them to discover.There is more to life than investment banking,consulting, law school, medical school and variousgraduate schools."

Bakshi cautions against choosing professionalschool as a default option.

"Many people go to law school with the ideathat it is a `good degree to have" no matter whatfield they chose,'" she says. "This is true;however, three years and a six-figure price tagrepresent a substantial cost associated with thatvalue."

Even for those students who know they want acareer in a profession such as law or medicine,however, the timing of professional school isstill a question requiring some thought. For Tye,who estimates she will be almost 30 years oldbefore she is a practicing physician, her year offafter college will help, rather than hinder, hercareer.

"I would say my professional life starts aftermy residency," she says. "That's after medicalschool.

"There's nothing I feel I've missed out on,"Townsend says. "I don't feel I need a break."

Admissions Decisions

Law and medical school admissions officials arenot surprised that the bulk of students applyingthis year think like Townsend in continuingdirectly into school.

"Particularly with people in that situation,they have a lot more options," says Todd Morgan,associate director of Harvard Law School (HLS)admissions.

Morgan explains that the number of studentsdeferring varies to some degree according to thestate of the economy. "If [the economy] is good,they go to Law School," he says.

However, the economy is booming and accordingto Morgan "this year looks no different from anyother year" in terms of the number of deferrals.

He attributes this to the fact that studentdeferrals are handled on a case-by-case basis,with some individuals deferring for years. The LawSchool asks students to submit a petition fordeferral by May 15, the due date for the firsttuition deposit.

"We don't make any judgements about why anindividual will defer," Morgan says. "We want toknow what that individual plans to do. We're lesslikely to grant [a deferral] if they have no ideawhat they want to do. If they have a time plan, aschedule, it's more positive and productive."

For the last 10 years, Morgan says about 100 ofeach 540-member class have chosen to defer. "It'snot so many that you can perceive it," he says.

"In general, I personally think that for peoplecoming out of college it makes sense to dosomething else," Morgan says. "I think there's alot of value in gaining experience outside ofacademia...It's best to know [law school] is whatyou really want to do."

Morgan says those who defer because they areunsure about going to law school in the firstplace, however, pose a unique problem. While timeoff is productive for those who are sure they wantto return to school, he says it may not be forstudents like Manasantivongs not set onreturning--especially if they don't do thesoul-searching others with time off might.

"By deferring, most people won't really gothrough that process," Morgan says. "I worry aboutthose people who defer because they're not surelaw school is what they want to do."

Students are allowed two years to defer beforethe Law School starts pushing them to return andassume the spot held for them in the returningclass. Although those who defer still pay theinitial $500 deposit, the spot may be held formore than two years, given extenuatingcircumstances.

Deferring From the College

Before even arriving at Harvard, many studentsalready familiarized themselves with the deferralprocess. Every admissions letter includes a clauseoffering the option, and the Dean of Admissionsand Financial Aid himself calls deferral a"wonderful idea."

"We believe it would profit just abouteverybody," says William R. Fitzsimmons '67."Students who arrive here have been on a fasttrack pretty much from the bassinet," he says.Fitzsimmons notes that 20 percent ofundergraduates take time off during their fouryears at the College.

"Partly because it is a more mature,sophisticated generation, I think people areasking themselves the harder questions now, whatwould have been the mid-life crisis," he says oftoday's undergraduates.

However, while praising the benefits of leavingCambridge to play baseball in Australia or to gotraveling in Nepal, Fitzsimmons notes that theinstability of deferral, no matter how short-term,tends to be anxiety-inducing for Harvard-typepersonalities.

"It can be frightening to students, but evenmore to parents," he says. "I think there's a fear[students] might become roving minstrels orsomething."

Some students, however, back up Fitzsimmonsclaim that taking time off makes sense in the longrun. Grace Tye '99, who is headed to HarvardMedical School, plans to spend a year in herhometown of Los Angeles. What she does there isnot important; the key is taking a year-long breakfrom school.

"I don't know if this one year is going to beenough of a deferral," says Tye, who says she'sconsidering either public health research or a jobin a coffee shop for her year off.

Tutorial Advice

House tutors who advise students onprofessional choices say Tye may have a point.Indeed, tutors say, students should thinkcarefully before barreling straight throughcollege and professional school without a break.

"Many seniors are burnt out by the timeCommencement rolls around, even though theywouldn't have expected to be so," says DanaLansky, a pre-law tutor in Cabot House.

Lansky says college saps energy from somestudents, leaving them less prepared to handlethree challenging years of law school right away."Law students who did not take time off seem tohave a harder time motivating to work hard, andfind the workload more tedious," she says.

"The first year of law school is very intenseand requires the ability to focus. People who havetaken time off are more excited about the prospectof coming back to school and studying intensely."

Deferment can also help students figure out ifthey really want to be lawyers, or if law schoolcan help them achieve their professional goals inanother field. Lansky says many students rush intolaw school mistakenly thinking that a law degreewill be useful for any career.

"It is helpful to have a clear vision for whyyou are going to law school before you decide togo," she says. "Taking time off and exploring yourinterests a little can help you figure out whatpath makes the most sense."

Other tutors agree that taking time off canhelp students decide what they really want to dowith their lives.

"My observation is that work experience oftenexposes recent grads to many new careerpossibilities that they prefer to legal careers,"says Pforzheimer House pre-law tutor Kayla Bakshi,who worked in consulting at McKinsey & Co. beforecoming to Harvard for a joint J.D. and M.B.A.program. For those students who have a vagueinterest in the law, deferring law school orwaiting to apply gives them time to get anon-the-job idea of whether or not they really wantto be lawyers. The time just after collegegraduation "is also a great time to find out moreabout the legal profession and see if it is reallywhat you want to do," Lansky says.

"Some find that they are more interested in thelaw after working as a paralegal or at a legalclinic, while others find they are not reallyinterested in the law at all."

In addition, students may just need a break. "Afresh college graduate generally has no idea whatshe wants to do with her life," says Michael N.Rader, a second-year law student at Harvard LawSchool. "This is normal and a good thing. Let hersow her oats for a while before moving on with`the rest of her life.'"

Rader advocates taking time off as a vehiclefor self-discovery. After graduating from BrownUniversity, he worked in consulting for a year andthen went to Israel, where he studied ancientAramaic rabbinic texts for a year before startingat HLS. He chose to study in Israel because hewanted to understand his Jewish heritage, he says.

Practically, some students use their time offto beef up their resumes, allowing them to getinto a better law school. Lansky advises studentsto take this path if they're not happy with theircollege record.

"If your application is not as strong as youwould like it to be, take some time to work andstrengthen your application before you apply," shesays. "You will have a better shot of getting intobetter schools. Plus, it will give law schools achance to consider any honors or distinctions youmay have received at the end of your senior year."

"Your law school application is strengthened byyour experience after college," says Nowrojee, whoestimates that about half of her 40 pre-lawadvisees are either deferring law school orwaiting two to three years after college beforeapplying.

The psychological reasons for putting offprofessional school can be complicated, the tutorssay. Sometimes students feel pressured to go toprofessional school when they would rather pursueanother career.

"A lot of seniors are nervous about the idea ofgraduating without a concrete plan for theirfuture, in part because they have always had aplan," Lansky says. "If they can get past theirworries, they will discover that there is a hugeworld out there waiting for them to discover.There is more to life than investment banking,consulting, law school, medical school and variousgraduate schools."

Bakshi cautions against choosing professionalschool as a default option.

"Many people go to law school with the ideathat it is a `good degree to have" no matter whatfield they chose,'" she says. "This is true;however, three years and a six-figure price tagrepresent a substantial cost associated with thatvalue."

Even for those students who know they want acareer in a profession such as law or medicine,however, the timing of professional school isstill a question requiring some thought. For Tye,who estimates she will be almost 30 years oldbefore she is a practicing physician, her year offafter college will help, rather than hinder, hercareer.

"I would say my professional life starts aftermy residency," she says. "That's after medicalschool.