Master's Degrees

AliGirl11

Who has one?  What is it in?  How did your graduate classes compare to undergraduate classes?

I'm really starting to think about starting on mine, and I'm a little nervous.  It doesn't help that I can't decide what kind I want.  I'm more confused about what I want to do with my life than I was during undergrad...sigh. 

emilyinchile

I don't have one (although I think in a few years I may get an MBA), but what exactly do you mean when you say you don't know what kind you want? Like you know you want to go into a certain field and can't quite narrow down the speciality between a couple options, or you just like the idea of furthering your studies somehow but have no clue what you want to do?

opalsky007

I have one, in nuclear engineering.

I've loved grad school because it means fewer classes, but also hated it because it means more work per class, and that I have to be a lot more self-motivated in order to get through it.

The work tends to take the form of projects or long, extended homework sets instead of short homeworks and tests like my undergrad. That can be frustrating at times, because I'm a better test-taker than project-doer, but I guess it's more like the real world too.

mrscarter052011

I am in the last semester of mine right now.  My BS is in Environmental Science and my master's will be in City and Regional Planning.  The biggest difference for my course load is the amount of reading and papers.  Grad school is heavier than undergrad.  Also, there is much less "hand-holding" in grad school.  I was out of college for 3 years before I went back for my masters because since it was a big investment of time and money (and b/c I had a small child that I was raising alone) I wanted to be sure. 

It really depends on what prohram you choose.  What are you thinking about?  Will it be to further your current career or to start a new one? 

shaydenise

I'm interested in the comparison.  I want to go back to get my masters as well. I have a BS in Agricultural Education and Communication with a serialization in Leadership Development (which is basically a graphic design/web design/journalism degree all rolled into one).  If I go back,I think I want to focus on the graphic design aspect because that is what I love the most.

But I would definitely like to know how people compare their undergrad to grad courses.

[Deleted User]

I have mine in English. I really enjoyed my grad classes because they were much smaller, and more focused, so the discussions always seemed more interesting. Plus we had a great selection of courses to pick from and I loved my professors. Most of the students in my classes were older, a lot of teachers, so the maturity level was definitely higher (with the exception of one guy who flew off the handle one class and called us all middle school losers then walked out).

The biggest difference was the workload, since I had like 40 books a semester to read. I loved reading them, it was just a lot, especially on top of the articles and papers. The thesis was also a PITA, but I still loved writing it. If I ever go on for my PhD, I'd continue with that thesis (correlation between the destruction of nature and loss of Native American culture as portrayed in literature).

AliGirl11

Well, I'm a certified teacher, but currently I'm not teaching.  I work in the Registrar's Office of a college.  Part of me wants to continue in higher ed administration, and part of me wonders if I'll be disappointed if I never teach, because there are things about it I love.  So, if I were going to teach I'd get a Master's in English, if I want to be a Registrar someday, I need to get one in Higher Ed Administration or something like that.  I just can't decide what I want to do for the rest of my life...haha. 

mrscarter052011

It's ok to not exactly know.  I got half way through and had a moment "OMG is this really what I want to do?"

Maybe you can start by taking a couse that would act as maybe an elctive for either path just to "test the waters"?  For instance, I started non-matriculated with one class in Environmental Planning something I was familiar enough with that I wouldn't get lost but not an expert in.  This allowed me to ease in to the program and the new routine as well as meet some awesome people.  (One of which will be a BM when I get married in May)

LesPaul

I have an MBA with an emphasis in Accounting.  I also have a BBA in Accounting, and I'm a CPA.  Grad classes were much more project-oriented and collaborative, and I had more papers to write than undergrad studies, which were more homework and test-driven. 

One thing I didn't expect when I started grad school is that almost everyone in my MBA program was NOT a finance or accounting-type person.  Most were engineers or others who needed the business courses to make them more marketable as management candidates, or to help them do their current jobs better.  Most were attending grad school in addition to working.  I did the classroom option - (I tried one online course but didn't like it).

emilyinchile

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_masters-degrees?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:c96c1c89-e764-4d4f-8174-993d373fc7c9Post:d2df20cb-9680-4291-a5d6-3aa75f0c3248">Re: Master's Degrees</a>:
[QUOTE]Well, I'm a certified teacher, but currently I'm not teaching.  I work in the Registrar's Office of a college.  Part of me wants to continue in higher ed administration, and part of me wonders if I'll be disappointed if I never teach, because there are things about it I love.  So, if I were going to teach I'd get a Master's in English, if I want to be a Registrar someday, I need to get one in Higher Ed Administration or something like that.  I just can't decide what I want to do for the rest of my life...haha. 
Posted by AliGirl11[/QUOTE]

I know what you mean. I figure before I go back to school and spend all that time, effort and serious money, I should probably be 100% sure about what I plan to do with the resulting degree. That's why I say I think I will end up wanting an MBA, but since I'm not sure about my career path yet I'm waiting on it for a while.

marissa_claire

I couldn't work in the field I wanted to after we got engaged (late college, this meant moving to where my career was not...) So needless to say I'm in the same boat.  I worked as a nanny for a while and have now decided that I definitely want to be a teacher.

I've been looking at degree programs, but I actually found a really awesome program here that will allow me to go to glass to get my certification (through Northwestern!) while teaching in inner-city schools (in Chicago, I know, a challenge.)  I think if you're unsure then maybe sit and wait, or browse programs.  It won't hurt to start requesting info from colleges, figuring out how much it might cost, start figuring out how lucrative a career might be.  Do your information gathering and then maybe figure out what field is suited best for your future life.

marissa_claire

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_masters-degrees?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:c96c1c89-e764-4d4f-8174-993d373fc7c9Post:97826b05-db68-435a-921d-ad8fb1cbfbdf">Re: Master's Degrees</a>:
[QUOTE]I have my Master's in social work. Personally, i thought it was way easier than undergrad. Not because the material was easy, but because ALL of the classes were about something that I loved and believed in and really WANTED to learn about. I fully enjoyed every moment of graduate school and recommend it to anyone. Even the SUPER LONG papers and thesis that I had to write were super fun because I got to PICK what to write about. It was great. My sister in law just got her masters in teaching, and she said it was super easy, and more or less a hoop to jump through to get paid more.
Posted by crfische[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>Yeah, the big plus with teaching is that your salary automatically goes up because of the pay schedules.

</div>

Birdie1483

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_masters-degrees?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:c96c1c89-e764-4d4f-8174-993d373fc7c9Post:fc3b7b4a-b0b2-4f2d-b634-70927132c571">Re: Master's Degrees</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Master's Degrees : I know what you mean. <strong>I figure before I go back to school and spend all that time, effort and serious money, I should probably be 100% sure about what I plan to do with the resulting degree.</strong> That's why I say I think I will end up wanting an MBA, but since I'm not sure about my career path yet I'm waiting on it for a while.
Posted by emilyinchile[/QUOTE]


This is my #1 problem. I'm not planning on doing what I"m currently doing for the rest of my life, but I don't know what my next step might be. There are so many things that "sound" awesome, but I can't say for sure that I would want to do it full time as a career. I've thought about getting my MBA because it would be pretty versatile, but then I'm like "what if I end up not wanting to do ANYTHING related to business?"  I made it through undergrad without student loans, so I have to be 100% in my decision to take on that responsibility now.

My main motivation for getting an MBA currently is to better prepare myself in the event that FI and I open our own architecture business in the future. However, that's more of a dream right now than a reality. I could find something that I love way more than that and let him open his own business and me do my thing. So many choices!!

[Deleted User]

I have a master's degree in English, which ended up mostly making me a killer Trivial Pursuit player, but I am currently working on a second master's in Clinical Research, which is entirely online.  Personally since I got my original degrees a number (not talking about HOW many) of years ago, I find my current courses much easier.  While taking my last course, I was whining that during my first degree, homework was reading D.H. Lawrence and gossipy Victorial novels; now I'm reading 160 pages of HIPAA regulations.  So, while I still think my first degree was harder, it was also for me more intellectually challenging and spiritually satisfying.

AliGirl11

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_masters-degrees?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:c96c1c89-e764-4d4f-8174-993d373fc7c9Post:97826b05-db68-435a-921d-ad8fb1cbfbdf">Re: Master's Degrees</a>:
[QUOTE]I have my Master's in social work. Personally, i thought it was way easier than undergrad. Not because the material was easy, but because ALL of the classes were about something that I loved and believed in and really WANTED to learn about. I fully enjoyed every moment of graduate school and recommend it to anyone. Even the SUPER LONG papers and thesis that I had to write were super fun because I got to PICK what to write about. It was great. My sister in law just got her masters in teaching, and she said it was super easy, and more or less a hoop to jump through to get paid more.
Posted by crfische[/QUOTE]

Yeah, I've heard that about education degrees.  I'm sure that it depends on where you go, but the education classes I had to take in undergrad were miserable, just pointless bullsh!t.  After suffering through them I don't think there's any way I could make myself get an entire degree in education.  IMO the content degrees are more beneficial to teachers.  I definitely understand why some people get the general education degrees, though. 

[Deleted User]

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_masters-degrees?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:c96c1c89-e764-4d4f-8174-993d373fc7c9Post:ede56100-80a6-444a-b2f8-07ea4fe50ce3">Re: Master's Degrees</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Master's Degrees : Seshat, this makes me feel better about getting it in English.  I am so intimidated about it for some reason.  My BA is in English and I loved my literature classes, but I always had this constant fear that my papers weren't "smart" enough.  I did well, but I still have this irrational fear that I'm going to be in over my head in graduate English classes and everyone is going to be smarter than me.  Definitely have an inferiority complex going on here. 
Posted by AliGirl11[/QUOTE]

There were definitely people who were more well read than me, but the great thing about English is that people see books in so many different ways. What one person reads into a quote or theme may be completely different from someone else. That's why I loved the discussions so much. For my classes, as long as you had something to say and could support your argument then you were doing okay. Plus, since the classes were smaller and focused there were a lot less obnoxious students who cut in and tried to make everyone else feel stupid, which there was a lot of in my undergrad classes.

The papers were harder because the professors did grade on a tougher scale, but overall I felt like I was writing better essays because I was really into the subject matters.

AliGirl11

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_masters-degrees?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:c96c1c89-e764-4d4f-8174-993d373fc7c9Post:5df7f0b0-5ccb-49d8-a0c2-047336ca4c3f">Re: Master's Degrees</a>:
[QUOTE]Since you work for a college, do they offer some type of tuition assistance program (when I worked for Penn State we got a 75% discount up to 16 credits per academic year) that you could take a class or two at a reduced rate in the Higher Ed or English programs (if they have one) to see if that's what you really want?
Posted by strlzfan11[/QUOTE]

Yep, they sure do.  It's awesome.  I'm actually in the process of registering for a class for the spring semester.  It's an upper level undergrad class; I thought it would get be back in the swing of things and allow me to brush up on some concepts before I jump back in full force. 

TurtlesAllTheWayDown

If you don't know what you want, don't do one. I know too many people who have wasted tens of thousands of dollars on masters degrees they won't use. Or even worse, have dropped out before getting a degree.

I'm almost done with my MA in history, concentration in modern US culture, minor fields in gender and Middle East. An MA can be more useful than a BA, but in my field I'll really need a PhD to be competitive. Even community college professors often have PhDs now because there's so much competition at higher levels.

The classes are pretty neat. I like them better than undergrad because they're even more in depth and more discussion-based, plus smaller, of course. They're tough, though. In my program (probably many humanities) we have to read about a book a week per class for our seminars. Because I work full time, I can only take 2 classes per semester - 3 classes would be full time, though (3 credits a piece). In my program we're allowed to do either a thesis or comprehensive exams as our capstone project.

Just as an aside, I have a BA in journalism with a dual minor in history and art history. I was out of school for 3.5 years before I went back and started my MA.

rknox88

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_masters-degrees?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:c96c1c89-e764-4d4f-8174-993d373fc7c9Post:97826b05-db68-435a-921d-ad8fb1cbfbdf">Re: Master's Degrees</a>:
[QUOTE]I have my Master's in social work. Personally, i thought it was way easier than undergrad. Not because the material was easy, but because ALL of the classes were about something that I loved and believed in and really WANTED to learn about. I fully enjoyed every moment of graduate school and recommend it to anyone. Even the SUPER LONG papers and thesis that I had to write were super fun because I got to PICK what to write about. It was great. My sister in law just got her masters in teaching, and she said it was super easy, and more or less a hoop to jump through to get paid more.
Posted by crfische[/QUOTE]

I planned on applying for grad school to get a Masters in Social Work next year. I recently read an article about how people with Masters in this field generally feel it wasn't worth it-based on salary, the work load etc.  How to you feel about it? Do you feel like getting a Masters in Social Work was a good move or do you wish you had taken a different path?

I wanted to use a MSW to work with non-profits. How are you utilizing your degree?

MeghannElizabeth

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_masters-degrees?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:c96c1c89-e764-4d4f-8174-993d373fc7c9Post:bf86eb17-3075-425c-b377-0da548a82f63">Re: Master's Degrees</a>:
[QUOTE]If you don't know what you want, don't do one. I know too many people who have wasted tens of thousands of dollars on masters degrees they won't use. Or even worse, have dropped out before getting a degree. 
Posted by msmerymac[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>I agree with this. I have a Master of Health Administration. I always knew I would get mine because I had student work experience in the administration office of our university's health system. My undergrad degree was in health information management and I knew I didn't want to work in a medical records department. Grad school was way more group work, and my undergrad classes had a lot of group work to begin with. We had hardly any tests in grad school, it was almost all group papers, projects, and presentations. I had a few people I always worked with that I liked so it worked out for me, but it did get hard toward the end. Also I don't think I got any As in grad school because professors just won't give them. I had to get used to my 3.0 GPA! </div><div>
</div><div>I would recommend thoroughly researching ways to get grad school paid for before making a decision. It's expensive and sometimes hard to know whether it will really pay off. I was able to get my tuition paid for by the university by being a Teaching Assistant. SO worth it! I fought like heck to get my TA job and didn't realize at the time how valuable it was.

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KrystalsKitsch

I started my Master's in 2007 for Mass Communications. It was definitely a waste. I made it to my thesis and stopped the program. I didn't love it, the faculty weren't supportive, and I knew that this degree wouldn't help me get further in my career. When I started the degree I had worked in radio and thought spending more time in school would help me figure out what I wanted to do in the Communications world.

I ended up working FT at a university and now I'm three classes away from finishing a Master's in Instructional Technology and I. Love. It! It's graphic design, web design, writing for the web, curriculum and education courses...love, love, love. I love it so much I might try for a PhD in it

brookelynpaisley

I have my master's in Tax. Totally different experience from undergrad since I did my Master's online through a private university.