Ask HN: I have yet to do the one thing I wish before I die

That being said, I can understand how at University you will have other great minds to throw ideas around with, and that can be truly invaluable.

I agree. I want to add, though, that even this can often be done without bothering with the official program and degree requirements.

Do you have another bachelor's degree? If so, you might be able to get credit towards the masters (though perhaps credits are moot if the degree is carefully structured) when taking the undergrad math classes.

However I should add that there are some really first-rate distance learning programmes (in particular by Canadian and Australian universities, where the population density is low and there is a high demand for such things, but also Open University in the UK and I am sure US equivalents I am not aware of). These are not "degrees by mail", they are genuine courses by quality universities, with classes and lecturers and credits and so on.

Unless you are specifically attracted by the idea of being on a campus (and bear in mind, at your age it's not going to be the same as for the youngsters), you might want to see if any of them meet your needs and try multi-tasking for a while. If your employer values you, they might even agree to cut back your hours to give you more study time.

I am 29, married, no kids. I finished my undergrad in CS when I was 22. I worked as a systems software developer until last year when I quit my job and went for Masters in Statistics. I have 2 more courses left to take to get the degree.

I am no fan of academia, but I came back to school because I think it was the only way to completely immerse myself into what I wanted to learn. It obviously cost me over 1 year of pay I would have had otherwise plus the tuition fee. But it is totally damn worth it. Plus it gave me more time to work on my side project.