It sounds like you’re in the US. Why can’t you convert while you’re in graduate school? Talk to your local Orthodox rabbi — even if it’s a small Orthodox community, it may still be possible to convert.
I’ve heard that it is often more convenient to convert in the US (through a widely-recognized beis din) rather than in Israel. After converting here, then perhaps you could take time off to learn in a yeshivah.
That said, I’ve heard (maybe in the CoffeeRoom?) of gerim converting after studying at yeshivas in Israel like Ohr Sameach.
Of course, if you marry a Jew, your kids will be Jewish whether or not you convert, because you’re a man. However, you wouldn’t be able to marry a Jew halachically without converting, whether here or in Israel, and if you have daughters before you convert they would not be able to marry kohanim.
You say you want to “follow through with an orthodox conversion so that i can marry in israel in the future and save my future kids the worry of whether or not they are jewish,” and speaking of getting your conversion “straightened out.”
I just wanted to point out that a halachic conversion is not a technical matter of straightening out your Jewishness, or a hurdle to be jumped over for the purpose of marriage, but rather a fundamental decision: do you want to commit to being an observant Orthodox Jew in every respect for the rest of your life? If so — and it sounds like this may indeed be your intention — then you shouldn’t have any problems in completing the gerus. Hatzlacha with whatever you decide to do!