Is going back for a Masters degree worth it?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5991752

by it_learnses • 13 years ago

6 10 13 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

Hello all,

I graduated with a BSc in comp sci around 7 years ago. I'm considering going back for a Masters degree. I'm mainly going back to upgrade my skills, but also to get new opportunities in terms of work terms, connections, etc. Is it worth it for me to go back since there are so many free online courses available and no shortage of jobs? I find the idea of going back to school exciting, but I'm wondering if it's a sound move. What sort of things should I consider?

michaelpinto• 13 years ago

Things you should consider: The cost and return on investment.

SamWhited• 13 years ago

Wheather it's `worth' it or not depends on a lot. Assuming you're paying for gradschool and aren't going on a research grant the answer is no, just learn the skills you need on your own and go get a better job.

However, I'd ignore the money and ask yourself if your time is more important than your desire to return to school. If the answer is yes, don't go, but if you really want to go back, the answer is go for it.

tl;dr: Do what makes you happy (if you can afford it).

tptacek• 13 years ago

Probably not, when you factor in the cost of schooling and the opportunity cost of being out of the workforce, and line that up against the diversity of jobs available to you now. If you're already working in our field and feel like you don't have the initiative or capability to generate new skills and opportunities from the job market, you should aim a jaundiced eye at the likelihood of your getting those things from school either.

But, I'm biased.

danial• 13 years ago

I don't really have a recommendation but I will try to shed some light on your situation based on my previous experience.

If you are a programmer, sysadmin, or in any other IT related field, the opportunity cost of leaving the industry is higher right now because of the numerous opportunities available.

I did leave the industry 3 years ago to get a Masters degree. My return on investment was higher, though, as it gave me the opportunity to switch job markets from a developing country to a US job market (graduates of STEM [1] programs are offered incentives to stick around).

Would I do it again if you don't factor in the changing job markets? Possibly. I was lucky enough to go to a program where I was allowed to take courses from other schools. I took difficult courses and did miserably on some of them in a program where everyone around me was obsessed about grades. And I enjoyed those throughly.

As for the opportunities available after graduating, I'm not sure there is a significant benefit. In fact, you may be at a disadvantage since some companies that come to colleges for recruiting often don't differentiate between a graduate with experience vs. one who has none. You may all be grouped into the 'college hire' category. This means you get a standard offer that every other college hire gets and not one based on your previous experience.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/STEM_fields#Immigration_policy

kohanz• 13 years ago

If you define "worth it" monetarily, my opinion is that you'll be disappointed by the return on a Master's.

Most good companies want smart, talented people. At this poin, to be blunt, you either have these qualities or you don't. A Master's does not increase your talent or intelligence and I don't think you'll get the bump in salary from just having a master's that you wouldn't get from the 2-3 years of job hopping and raises you'd be doing instead during that time.

If you define "worth it" as getting to work on some really cool stuff, with potentially some very smart people, then yes, it will likely be worth it. You will have more knowledge after a Masters. You will likely be an expert on a very niche domain and also have learned a lot about proper research.

yen223• 13 years ago

If you're trying to break into a foreign job market, a Master's degree usually helps with the visa application process. Other than that, a Master's degree isn't worth more than actual working experience.

mjn• 13 years ago

I would consider it if all of these are true:

1. You enjoy and learn well from traditional classroom-based education (true for some people, not for others);

2. You narrow down to something more focused that you'd want to learn if you had two years to devote to it (more specific than "computer science"); and

3. You can afford it without it causing financial difficulties.

Beyond that, there are of course lots of specific circumstances. If you want to move to another country, doing a masters degree there can be a way to ease into the local job market. It's a particularly common route in places where you can do the masters in English, as in Scandinavia and Singapore.

Alternately, some companies will reimburse you for part-time nights/weekends masters study. That's not the same as studying something full-time for two years, but can be a compromise of sorts. The arrangements vary a lot by company. Some will pay for one course a semester. Some will do it on a case-by-case basis if your manager thinks it's a good idea. Adobe will pay for up to $10k/yr of tuition/books/etc. if your manager agrees it's related to your job (http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/careeropp/additional_benefit...). IBM has a less generous but unrestricted program where they'll kick in 1/3, up to $1000/yr, of any courses you chose to take on your own (http://www.ibm.com/ibm/responsibility/learning_accounts.shtm...). Yahoo will give you $5250/yr (http://us.careers.yahoo.com/benefits/tag/118/).

it_learnses2• 13 years ago

I think all your three points apply to me. I'm wanting to focus on AI because I find it very exciting. I've done some basic intro courses online related to it on Coursera but now I would like to really get into it. So I think pursuing a Masters would be a good start.

majidfn• 13 years ago

I would say Go for it. You're on the right track.

I did my Master's after having few years of experience in the industry. It opened my eyes to some struggles which I had when I was working, and showed me good problem solving skills. If you enjoy studying, you will enjoy doing a Masters. It's only 2 years but you can gain a lot. At the University which I did mine, I had the option of doing a Thesis, or a Course-Based degree, I chose Course-Based, because it was more interesting, and diverse in terms of the different subjects. So it gives you view on multiple subjects, compared to focusing on one subject and doing research. If you wanna stay in Academy, thesis is nice, but if, you're like me and enjoy working in the industry, course-based is more useful. It's the debate of vast & shallow, or deep & narrow. But to me, Software Engineering is where you need to know your tools, as much as much as possible.

I know that there are billions of resources available online, prints and etc. BUT it requires a lot of discipline. To me, nothing replaces the force you get you studying for an exam. If you have an exam this Friday, you have to finish reading the book this week, while the same book might take me 6 months or even a year to finish.

Not all the subjects are very interesting at school, but to me it's a 50% of really good materials and 50% of useless materials and/or bad profs. So don't set your expectation very high.

Also I would recommend, not disconnecting from the industry, you could do a part-time school and a full-time job or both part-time or even if you decided to do a full-time school, keep an eye on what's going on in the industry.

Good luck.

it_learnses2• 13 years ago

Thanks everyone for such varied and elaborate responses. This is exactly what I was looking for :)

Is going back for a Masters degree worth it?

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