<prompt> Human: I am a 50-year-old woman, a mother of two young children age 10 and 12, and will soon be getting a divorce from my husband of 18 years. I make about 30K a year with my office job, which I know will not cut it for being on my own with two kids. I feel like I have no marketable skills, as I do not have a bachelors degree, and know that my age gives me a disadvantage.My husband and I are already in debt, but I am contemplating doing an online degree program. I would be willing to take out the loans to do it in order to get a job that pays more than what I make now. However, I am unsure what field would have use for a 50-year-old woman and if an online degree is even worth something? We will be selling our house as soon as possible. We still owe 120,000 on the house, but I am fearful we will not make any money from it. I do not have the money to put in to get it ready to sell, and my husband has been promising to work on it since we bought it 9 years ago, but nothing has been done. Should this happen, I will most likely have to move in with my parents for a month or two with the kids until I can save up some money. After that, I am trying to decide if it would be best to buy a small two-bedroom house for me and the kids or if we should rent an apartment. But I am fearful of paying 1,200month for rent. I am also concerned that my husbands alcoholism will become even worse after I leave him. He already spends about 600month on alcohol and tobacco. I fear that he may get worse and lose his job, making it impossible to him to help with child support and their insurance. If you cant tell, Im scared shitless and have no fucking clue what to do. I have stayed with him far too long and realize now I would be in a much better position for me and my kids had I divorced him many years ago. I cant bear to raise my kids in such an environment any more. Please, please. I will humbly take any advice you can give.Assistant: Spending four years and a lot of money to earn a bachelors degree online may not be your best option. Youd be in your mid-fifties by the time you completed the degree, and might only have 10-15 years left to recoup your investment via higher wages. If you want to retrain for a different job, you should be looking for something that doesnt require a bachelors degree. What is the cost of living like in the area you live in? You may be able to get by on your 30k income and some amount of child support if you can minimize your basic living expenses. Paying 1500 for rent is definitely too much, but if you own a house worth about 120k, Im guessing you live in a fairly low cost of living area, and can find cheaper apartment options. Additionally, If your parents would let you live with them for free for an extended period of time, you may be able to pay off whatever debts you owe and start over with a clean slate. Human: Thank you very much for your advice about online degrees. I agree with you. I will have to search for a field that is accepting of people my age without a degree. I am in southeast Texas, so the cost of living is not high. We bought our house for 180K I believe it would be worth about 155K now, had it been fixed to sell, but with the recent flooding, I do not have the money to recarpet the house and fix the crack in our wall. There have been many apartment complexes built in recent years, but all are overpriced. I do not like the idea of giving so much of my paycheck each month for something I will not own one day. Even if I am only able to afford a tiny two-bedroom house, at least it will one day be mine.I know my parents would let me and my children live there, but the thought out burdening them weighs so heavy on my heart. My father has Parkinsons and I never want to add any more stress to his life. My mother already helps our entire family so much; it pains me to ask any more of her. But if I have to do it for my children, of course I will. And I know they would accept us lovingly with open arms. I am just hoping to use that as a last resort. I sincerely appreciate your advice. Thank you for taking time from your day to help a stranger :-  <response>: Living with your parents doesnt have to be burdensome for them. You and your children may be able to help around the house and you can pitch in towards the cost of utilities and groceries. It seems like a solid option to let you save some money and get back on your feet. 