One question many students ask themselves throughout their under-graduate career is whether a Master’s degree is a career step they see themselves taking in the future. However, many still question the related costs and benefits of a Master’s. It is only by weighing these factors that one can decide whether such a degree, with a significant cost, will enable them to become more competitive and qualified candidates in a job search. It’s a matter of living within your means with a comprehension and capacity to finance debt, while expanding your horizons and investing in the future.
The first step in considering any grad school is shopping for available options. Before engaging in such an endeavor, one must be aware that Master’s Programs are available for both specific career paths or a general field of study. According to Peterson’s.com, a website which specializes on all things graduate school related, one might also consider a liberal Master’s degree in the arts and sciences:
“to fulfill a variety of goals, including just simply gaining deeper knowledge in a particular field. Some doctoral students pursue master’s degrees to gain additional exposure to a field related to their doctoral pursuits, and some students pursue a master’s degree to satisfy intellectual curiosity or for personal fulfillment.”1
In this manner, Master’s program tailor to the needs of a wide variety of students, ranging from teaching majors to business economics wizzes.
A secondary step is to map out costs visually and to consider the rate of return one can expect from a Master’s degree. A rate of return is the money one can expect after making an investment in education. In terms of long-term monetary advantages, obtaining a Master’s degree can boost one’s potential income in the future and increase one’s chances for promotions in the work force.
In considering the rate of return on the investment of a Master’s degree, it is further important to understand all of the costs associated with a Master’s “including tuition, student loan interest, lost wages and retirement contributions.”2 According to FinAid.org, the average cost of master’s degree for students is between $30,000 and $120,000 and the cost varies depending on the university and the master’s program itself.3 With websites such as Learnvest.com, Peterson’s.com, SALT money.org, and countless others, students now have the resources to facilitate a cost-benefit analysis and thus can plug in the numbers for their situation to calculate the rate of return for a Master’s degree.
Mapping out costs, causes one to be more aware of general costs, but in this process, one ought also consider financial aid opportunity. As far as financial aid options, it is important to apply to scholarships and to consider other options of financing college education being loans and grants. Just as the cost of a post-graduate program varies financial aid options vary. Salt money recommends that students not take out more than what they’ll be earning their first year out of college, That way, you’ll only have to put 10% of your annual salary toward your loans to pay them off in 10 years.4
If financing a Master’s program does not seem feasible, there is also the option of a Master’s abroad. Study abroad not only saves students significant amounts of money, but immerses students in a variety of different cultures, languages and geographical locations.5 Thus, the student is given a unique competitive edge with a greater sense of international cultural awareness and expansion of horizons. This type of experience on a resume indicates personal drive and mobility in competitive Master’s programs where students typically pay less in student fees and often emerge debt free. 6
Emerging debt free or capable of debt repayment should be at the forefront in one’s consideration of financing any Master’s program. To reap the full benefits of a Master’s degree, it doesn’t make financial sense to take on significant financial debt if the benefit won’t balance the cost. In this manner, a Master’s degree is also most useful to those wishing to pursue a less-traveled career path and helps graduates to stand out from the sea of potential candidates. Although this benefit sounds ideal to most, the costs and benefits are far from the adage ‘one-size-fits-all’. Thus, by weighing cost, future salary and aid options of a Master’s degree, a post-graduate can use it as stepping stone to greater career options and income potential in the future.
Sources
1. Peterson’s. (January 17, 2014). Seeking a Master’s Degree in the US. Retrieved from Peterson’s.com April 18, 2014 http://www.petersons.com/graduate-schools/seeking-masters-degree-us.aspx
2. Sheehy, Kelsey. (March 12, 2014). Calculating the Return on a Master’s Degree. Retrieved from usnews.com on April 20, 2014 http://www.usnews.com/education/best-graduate-schools/articles/2013/03/12/calculate-the-return-on-a-masters-degree
3. FinAid Page, LLC. (2014). Student Loans. Retrieved April 15, 2014, from finaid.org http://www.finaid.org/loans/
4. SALT. (2014). Grad School Salary Estimator. Retrieved April 24, 2014, from https://www.saltmoney.org/content/media/Tool/grad-degree-potential-salary-estimator/_/R-101-12042
5. Mather-L’Huillier, Dr. Nathalie. (2014). Retrieved on April 20, 2014, from findamasters.com http://www.findamasters.com/study-abroad/guide-to-masters-abroad.aspx
6. Christianson, Anne Kunkel. (May 9, 2013). US tuition too high in comparison to Europe retrieved on April 19, 2014, from https://umdstatesman.wp.d.umn.edu/2013/05/09/us-tuition-too-high-in-comparison-to-europe/
photo from: http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/30/what-is-a-masters-degree-worth/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0
PAID 