[closure]

> I'm looking to transition out of startup nonsense and move into basic research.

There are options other than startups and moving to research.

Are you considering those?

It's not entirely clear to me from the post what you're hoping to attain by completing the PhD.

By the way, mid-30s isn't old, 10 years of experience isn't much, and a director-level position in a startup isn't particularly meaningful (if you were a director at a major corporation it might be).

[GFischer]

To play devil's advocate: I'm in my mid 30's myself and I'm not a director anywhere, so it does sound impressive to me (ok, maybe not enough for top 5 school ambitions or whatever).

And it does seem old compared to the perception of how life is seen in Silicon Valley / startup culture.