Is Grad School Worth It?
You see friends going back to graduate school. Your mother clips newspaper mentions of grad programs and slyly mails them to you with “thinking of you” post-its attached. You see a job posting for the position of your dreams, then notice the “master’s degree required.” In short, there are a lot of reasons you’re thinking about going back to school. In 2004, there were over 2 million students enrolled in U.S. graduate schools, and it may seem clear to everyone around you (that newspaper-clipping mother of yours, for instance) that you should be among them. Credentials are great, but you’ve probably also heard the horror stories of the “over-qualified candidate.” And while Mr. Over-qualified may be an urban legend, the tradeoffs involved in either leaving the workforce or continuing to work while earning a degree are significant. Financially, professionally, and personally, is graduate school really worth it? Graduate School to Launch Your Career For Chris, 30, the answer to the “was it
Graduate school, or grad school, refers to any college degree that goes above a bachelor’s degree. This includes a Master’s degree, PhD, or Masters of Business Administration (MBA). A graduate degree can be a great way to get into a competitive, high-paying field. However, there are many reasons why grad school may not be worth the cost. The first way to consider the worth of grad school is to consider the actual cost of the degree program. This can vary from school to school. A state school can be much cheaper to attend than an Ivy League school, and the education may be about the same. However, the more expensive education can lead to a better position based on the name and prestige of the college. In this situation, students are paying for the name and not the better education. While considering the cost of grad school, students should also consider the time they are spending away from the workforce. In many fields, a student with a bachelor’s degree can earn $40,000 United States D
The recent Ask Ed column advising against grad school struck a chord with a number of Edsters and started quite a debate on the message board. To get to the bottom of this, we decided to investigate the question further: Is it worth it to get a master’s in journalism? According to a recent Ed2010 survey, the majority of working Edsters didn’t attend grad school. While 78% of you have a full-time editorial job, only 10% went to grad school for journalism. “It’s not a popular route,” says a mid-level editor at a national magazine. “I can count on one hand the number of people I know in the industry who went to grad school — and most only did because they were pursuing a different career during college.” Jane, a recent graduate of NYU’s journalism masters program, is one of those people. After four years of studying politics, Jane realized that journalism was her true passion. “I had no experience, no related education, and no idea where to start,” says Jane. She decided to attend grad sc
You see friends going back to graduate school. Your mother clips newspaper mentions of grad programs and slyly mails them to you with “thinking of you” post-its attached. You see a job posting for the position of your dreams, then notice the “master’s degree required.” In short, there are a lot of reasons you’re thinking about going back to school.
Day to Day, July 29, 2008 · Bad economic times have some people thinking about returning to school. But getting that master’s degree may not be the best way to weather a financial storm. Alex Chadwick talks with personal finance contributor Michelle Singletary about whether grad school is a smart move.
