Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
put in the extra 2 years (or a lot more) and make half as much? To aitch with THAT. I am talking about being a teacher in a college, or a psychologist, as vs being a nurse-anethecist. Google for average salaries! :-) Better look around at what yor education can do for you, before deciding what to study. sheesh.
Clearing an extra 40k a year can mean retirement in a lot less than the 20 years promised the state-pensioned person (if you know what to do with that money). Your income in retirement will be much higher, too. Very, very few jobs are as attractive as travel, hunting, fishing, surfing, boating, etc, knowing that your income is secured.
it's different for different fields. a masters in comp sci only leads to around a 10k boost in salary from an undergraduate degree. However, in the time you spent getting the masters degree, you could be working full time at 50k/year. Also, you'd probably be more likely to be promoted (Due to working longer).
Someone mentioned a PhD to me the other day. We both have Master's degrees (hers in education, mine in library science,) yet still seem to be seeking something more, and both of us have considered additional Master's. Then she mentioned a PhD. In my field the only need for a PhD would be to teach or research at a university. For an education PhD I guess teaching, research or educational leadership would have more options. We agreed we did not want to work at that level.
Unless your career goal really requires it, I don't think a PhD is really worthwhile.
Most PhD's I know were professional students. They spent so much time studying they didn't have any practical work experience by the time they earned their degrees. That could account for the numbers.
As mentioned, the pay difference can vary wildly between fields. Also, the people that I know who have gotten Phds didn't pay tuition to get them - they were pretty much being paid by the university they were attending to teach or do research work, and while they didn't make a lot while getting a Phd they didn't have to pay to get it. All of them did it because it gave them a way to continuing research work they started doing for their master's, or gave them an opportunity to work learn from a professor they respected.
Most PhD's are geared toward work in academia as professors - however, there are no more jobs for professors. Instead, a significant portion of PhD's will end up in low-paid, non-tenure track positions. Many will never find full-time, permanent work in the field. PhD in many subjects is a path to poverty and debt. For those subjects that have good PhD markets, that is generally because there are many well-paying, non-academic jobs available to people with degrees in those subjects; in fact, in those subjects one can make much more with just a bachelor's than with a PhD in one of the other subjects.
Some positions require a PhD, and if you want to do that kind of job you have to go through it.
Of course, why you want to do that job is another issue.
Ironically, your hand picked masters degree is currently being eliminated. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing is trying to eliminate all MSN programs for nurse practitioners (anesthetist being one) by next year, replacing them with doctoral degrees for all future students.
put in the extra 2 years (or a lot more) and make half as much? To aitch with THAT. I am talking about being a teacher in a college, or a psychologist, as vs being a nurse-anethecist. Google for average salaries! :-) Better look around at what yor education can do for you, before deciding what to study. sheesh.
Clearing an extra 40k a year can mean retirement in a lot less than the 20 years promised the state-pensioned person (if you know what to do with that money). Your income in retirement will be much higher, too. Very, very few jobs are as attractive as travel, hunting, fishing, surfing, boating, etc, knowing that your income is secured.
Academia may not pay as much, but has great benefits.
Unless your a doctor, most corporate careers are MBA based not PHD based.
Most PhD's I know were professional students. They spent so much time studying they didn't have any practical work experience by the time they earned their degrees. That could account for the numbers.
That may be your experience; it is not mine. Most PhD students work for their professors, at least in the sciences and health care. I've posted the BLS statistics several times in the last month or so. You may do a search. PhDs earn slightly less than those with professional degrees, e.g. MDs and JDs, but they earn more than master's educated people, ON AVERAGE, mind you.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.