What is the deal with people getting Masters degrees immediately after college?

[gizmo980]

I think it depends on your intended profession, as some are degree-dependent and will have true entry-level positions available. In a job where the master's is required, it would otherwise be impossible to gain experience. Right?? I'm in one of those fields, librarianship, so the only relevant work experience I had upon graduating was an internship... didn't seem to hurt my chances, as I was offered two positions within a month of graduating (5 years ago).

P.S. I didn't go straight from college to grad school, in fact I was 30 when I completed the MLIS. But in terms of library work experience, I had nothing but the internship going into this profession.

[SorryIMovedBack]

Availability of financial aid might make immediately going for masters a smart thing to do. I am just speculating, of course. But I do know that having no income puts you in a more favorable slot for grants and discounts, usually. If you go out and get a decent income, then you will have to pay full price for more ed, because the calculations (at least used to) go back and look at income for past 2 years.

[wscottling]

I originally meant to stop after I got my BA, but when I started applying for work, employers in my field were looking for people with an MA, which wasn't the case when I enrolled in college two years before. So, I applied for grad school to get my MA so I could find a job in my field. It's as simple as that.

[RedRage]

For the people I know, the reason they got their Master's was A.) They needed it to sit for the CPA exam or B.) They were told, if you can't get a job get a Master's Degree and than you will have one.

Unfortunately, it hasn't worked out too well for the people who fall under B as of late...