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It sounds like you want to do it, though. Anyone who says not to is wrong.... it's fine to have that attitude, but what is the sense of posting on the interwebs about it if you already know your answer? To tell people that the program director said that you would get into Harvard and now you will have the opportunity to rub even more elbows with your bosses and their bosses?
I kept asking, "Does your company provide tuition assistance towards completing a degree that will help your career advancement with them?" It wasn't a personal question, but it was asked because that sure does matter in the grand scheme of things. It shows that they are willing to put the investment in your potential as long as you also invest a little. If they don't offer tuition reimbursement, I would talk to your mentors about what they feel could be your benefits from a Harvard education. I would also sit down with your partner and have a detailed look at what this could mean for your family, workout your financial plans/goals, and determine if this is truly what is best for your family. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. The person who should be helping you make that decision is your wife.
Now, would I go to Harvard? Probably not. I was accepted to University of Pennsylvania for my undergraduate education, an ivy league school although not Harvard. I chose the place that made most financial sense to me and graduated with little student loan debt, because my priority was to set myself up to be in a better financial position later. My employer is reimbursing my parttime MBA from a college that is the second oldest, still-active college in America. I don't think I would be doing that if my employer weren't paying for most of it. I interact with c-level employees often due to their data requests. I think working with them, having them know me and like me, probably trumps pedigree.... but maybe we work in two entirely different corporate cultures.
Well, you obviously want to go, so just do it and stop posting on the internet about it.
As for the family comment I made I will say this... If my husband was so insecure that he needed a degree from Harvard to validate himself, I would leave him.
Location: RI, MA, VT, WI, IL, CA, IN (that one sucked), KY
41,936 posts, read 37,071,979 times
Reputation: 40635
Quote:
Originally Posted by G-fused
Oy vey! The antogonism is because I keep having to say the same things over and over. For example, I did not ask for help on if the program was the right one for my profession. It's kind of a given for me, it fits. And the people I work with (more senior people to me) are directing and mentoring me. They have a good deal of insight. Let's put that aside and take it as a given. Let's pretend I'm a statistician and this is an MS in Statistics.
Whether you asked for help on the program, you're going to get asked about it as it affects peoples responses. This is the nature of open forums and one you should accept if you decide to post on them.
That said, I'm not familiar with the FAS graduate programs thoroughly, but it doesn't sound like a mid career program, but a traditional one. You obviously want to do it, so do it.
As for the family comment I made I will say this... If my husband was so insecure that he needed a degree from Harvard to validate himself, I would leave him.
COming up next on Jerry Springer:
Women who prematurely abandon their families.
Stay tuned!
Errrr, I don’t think insecurity is an issue with me.
I went back for my second masters full-time when I was in my 30's and married, but no kids. Intellectual curiosity was the main reason, but after graduation I found that having the Ivy League name on my resume really did help my career. Granted, I'm an independent consultant so your experience may vary AND I didn't have any kids, but it was a fantastic experience and I consider it one of the best decisions I ever made.
It sounds like you want to do it, though. Anyone who says not to is wrong.... it's fine to have that attitude, but what is the sense of posting on the interwebs about it if you already know your answer? To tell people that the program director said that you would get into Harvard and now you will have the opportunity to rub even more elbows with your bosses and their bosses?
Quote:
Originally Posted by randomlikeme
I kept asking, "Does your company provide tuition assistance towards completing a degree that will help your career advancement with them?" It wasn't a personal question, but it was asked because that sure does matter in the grand scheme of things. It shows that they are willing to put the investment in your potential as long as you also invest a little. If they don't offer tuition reimbursement, I would talk to your mentors about what they feel could be your benefits from a Harvard education. I would also sit down with your partner and have a detailed look at what this could mean for your family, workout your financial plans/goals, and determine if this is truly what is best for your family. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. The person who should be helping you make that decision is your wife.
Now, would I go to Harvard? Probably not. I was accepted to University of Pennsylvania for my undergraduate education, an ivy league school although not Harvard. I chose the place that made most financial sense to me and graduated with little student loan debt, because my priority was to set myself up to be in a better financial position later. My employer is reimbursing my parttime MBA from a college that is the second oldest, still-active college in America. I don't think I would be doing that if my employer weren't paying for most of it. I interact with c-level employees often due to their data requests. I think working with them, having them know me and like me, probably trumps pedigree.... but maybe we work in two entirely different corporate cultures.
I got many opinions that were helpful, that was the reason for posting. People said things like to consider the time I’d be missing with the kid. I hadn’t given that full consideration yet so it was helpful. Others relayed their experiences and said I may regret not going and those types of posts were helpful as well.
Then there were people who said Harvard ain’t so hot, which was absolutely confusing. And others who said people in Asia have never heard of it. Ummm, ok. And for those that haven’t, they really aren’t my target mkt ya know.
I am making the decision with my wife, of course I am.
To your last paragraph. You’re doing something similar to what I’m considering (getting an advanced degree to further the aspirations you have for your career) but then at the end you say that your work with the big wigs trumps pedigree. Yeah OK, yet you are still seeking a certain, higher level pedigree. Your getting the degree to advance yourself. You aren’t saying “well, I already have access to C suite people so I don’t need anything more than that because they aren’t going to give that any mind. They know me and my experience.” You know (as do most) that this isn’t true. That they do value things other than experience. Don’t you see? It’s similar. But I get it, you personally don’t think the name is worth it. OK, I understand that too.
I got many opinions that were helpful, that was the reason for posting. People said things like to consider the time I’d be missing with the kid. I hadn’t given that full consideration yet so it was helpful. Others relayed their experiences and said I may regret not going and those types of posts were helpful as well.
Then there were people who said Harvard ain’t so hot, which was absolutely confusing. And others who said people in Asia have never heard of it. Ummm, ok. And for those that haven’t, they really aren’t my target mkt ya know.
I am making the decision with my wife, of course I am.
To your last paragraph. You’re doing something similar to what I’m considering (getting an advanced degree to further the aspirations you have for your career) but then at the end you say that your work with the big wigs trumps pedigree. Yeah OK, yet you are still seeking a certain, higher level pedigree. Your getting the degree to advance yourself. You aren’t saying “well, I already have access to C suite people so I don’t need anything more than that because they aren’t going to give that any mind. They know me and my experience.” You know (as do most) that this isn’t true. That they do value things other than experience. Don’t you see? It’s similar. But I get it, you personally don’t think the name is worth it. OK, I understand that too.
Actually, I am working on it to be the first person in my family to get a master's degree. I wouldn't be working towards one if my company didn't pay for 80% of it.
I really should have let my first response stand, but I let myself get involved in responding to what I inferred as a hostile tone of superiority and sarcasm to anyone who didn't immediately give written recognition of the awesomeness of the Harvard pedigree.
Only the OP knows what the value of this program is to him, and that's where he can determine if it is worth his time and money. I think he has been given a startling revelation that not everyone in the world bows down and kisses the ring of a Harvard graduate, especially a post-graduate. Nobody says they suck. Nobody here is really mocking them. If it opens one door that wouldn't have been opened and makes your world a better place because you spent $50k and got $250k more later, then that's great. Nobody begrudges you that. Seriously, it's your choice, and I agree with the people here who say that I don't believe that it's the paper that will make the difference; it will be the contacts you make throughout the program. I might need to read your initial post again, but I was left with the impression that you haven't thought about how you plan to leverage this education to make a better life for yourself. What I remember is that you are going to get into Harvard and the fact that you got into the program (and presumably can complete it) is the primary objective and main accomplishment. It sounded to me as if that alone was going to get you a better life. I think some of us are trying to tell you that it is going to take more than just the secret handshake.
That's really it. There is no need to reply directly to me with agreement or disagreement. I'm not coming back to read it. I have decided that I have already dedicated too much time to someone who won't appreciate it anyway.
An Ivy League degree is not worth as much as it used to be. I know a ton of Ivy grads working in places where the majority of their co-workers went to their local flagship.
Ivy league is all about making connections and networking. If you won't do that then it's no better than some rinky dink commuter community college.
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I wouldn't be working towards one if my company didn't pay for 80% of it.
