Want to go to grad school but terrified of debt... (bachelor's, PhD)
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I'm one of the few these days who got dealt good cards and played them right, so I finished my undergrad debt free.
Now, late 20s, about three years of work experience in my field, a couple of certifications, and I'm thinking of going to grad school.
I'm TERRIFIED of debt though.... I don't have any debt. No student loans, car paid off, I'm a renter. I'm afraid if I go to grad school it won't pay off and I'll be straddled with debt that I can never repay. Anyone else feel this way?? . These days even a graduate degree doesn't help your chances much with employment, but I kind of feel stagnant in life right now and want a change.
My employer doesn't provide tuition assistance. Neither did the last big company I worked for. I don't think companies in Florida tend to provide this benefit. I don't make enough to pay for grad school cash, so that isn't an option either. Rent, various insurances, etc have my budget about maxed.
So what changed your mind in the course of three hours?The cost?
Reading the threads on this forum mostly.
The cost was already a deterrent, but it does appear like the consensus on this forum is that grad school is very expensive and may or may not pay off. The chance of getting wrapped in the student loan tornado with no escape is a real possibility.
that just isn't a risk I'm willing to take. I play life on the safe side.
what kind of program are you talking about? Is it related to your current career or are you thinking it will be a total change of pace? Is it something you can do part time while still working full time? How long and expensive a program is it? Some masters programs can be done in 18 months, maybe even a year. Others always take longer than that so are of course more expensive.
I would not be too persuaded by the threads here, people look for a place to complain when they are unhappy but they don't go around starting threads when their life has worked out the way they want.
However, I can say I'm a grad school success story. I have a law degree but I would not have my current job if I hadn't also gotten a masters in a program that is directly related to the field I'm practicing in. I really enjoy my job and I'm glad I was in a position to get it by virtue of having that additional degree.
But there are also degrees that really are not a good bet in terms of future career prospects, and would not be worth pursuing unless you just had a genuine desire for that education and you were ok if it never did anything for your career. The details really are going to matter.
There are quite a few positions that require a generic bachelor's degree, without any real specialization. But for a masters, the type of degree matters greatly, as you can substitute an MA in English for an MBA, for example. You really have to weigh the value of an additional degree for its long-term implications--will this really improve my financial standing in the end, or not enough to justify the cost? I'll leave out the act of pursuing further education for learning's sake, as most can't afford that "luxury"...
The cost was already a deterrent, but it does appear like the consensus on this forum is that grad school is very expensive and may or may not pay off. The chance of getting wrapped in the student loan tornado with no escape is a real possibility.
that just isn't a risk I'm willing to take. I play life on the safe side.
Whether or not it pays off, financially, depends on your motivation for taking it. If you're averse to debt, the, yeah, getting a continued degree simply for the sake of learning alone is not the greatest idea. If it's necessary to move up in your field, or to move from one field into another, then, yeah, might make sense.
Although, will say, I did not seriously consider getting a graduate degree until the opportunity get if paid for presented itself.
the consensus on this forum is that _____ is very expensive and may or may not pay off.
So is marriage, so is having kids, so is buying a house.
All these major life decision should be approached with some thoughtfulness and care rather than just whimsically marrying/having a baby with someone you met last night in a Vegas casino.
If you're considering grad school, you should have a plan, and it should take more thought than flipping in/out of the decision in half a day.
What program would you enter and why? Does it provide
1) knowledge you can't get elsewhere,
2) door to transferring to a different line of work,
3) the certification/prestige you need to advance in your current field,
4) business connections
5) something else?
Which of those things do you want, and is there some alternative path to getting them? Have you talked to people in your current (or desired) line of work to see how valuable the things you think you want are?
Do some more research, give it some more thought. Actually weigh the pros and cons. Yes, there are people who engaged in magical thinking and thought just getting another degree would pay off because degree! There are other people who considered their options more carefully and would say the degree paid off.
You can't guarantee anything, obviously. It's possible to make the worst decision and have it pan out on sheer good fortune, and it's possible to make the best decision and get nailed by life anyway. But by and large your best course is to try and work out a "good" solution and then follow it.
What sort of program were you thinking about, anyway? The considerations are very different if one is thinking about a PhD in history vs. Electrical Engineering.
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. These days even a graduate degree doesn't help your chances much with employment, but I kind of feel stagnant in life right now and want a change.
