Is Grad School a Good Idea?

Short answer:  it depends, but usually no.  Let me explain.  If you’re having trouble finding a job and think that grad school will somehow help, stop!  Drop that idea right now, and slowly back away.

Oh sure, they’ll lure you into grad school saying how it’ll enhance your career and all that jazz, but in reality, it will close far more doors than it will open.  Most positions will instantly be off-limits to you because hiring companies shall instantly view you as overqualified.

That’s exactly what happened to me.  I went straight into grad school after college (because of family expectations at that time) to earn an MBA (masters in business administration).  Oh sure, it’s far more useful than most masters degrees out there, but I graduated with little experience, and learned the cold, hard truth that few people wanted to hire some over-educated, inexperienced guy just starting out.  I painted myself into a corner and didn’t realize it until it was too late.  Only by going back to school yet again to earn a CAD degree (specifically an Associates of Applied Science in Mechanical Design) at a community college did I finally land a full-time (with benefits) white collar job.

But is it ever a good idea to earn a masters degree?  Only if it meets these criteria:

• You already have a full-time job, and your company has spelled out that earning a masters in the subject of your profession will help you advance your career. These include MBAs, masters in accounting, an MEng (masters in engineering), masters in computer programming, etc.  School teachers, for example, usually play the game of earning a masters while they’re already teaching so they can eventually command higher pay.
• Make sure the company pays for it.

If the opportunity meets those criteria, then go for it.  Otherwise, avoid it.  It’s that simple.  Don’t be suckered in to an MBA program with their Sirens’ songs, either.  They’ll pitch it to you that you can use it for a career change.  Don’t buy it.  Career changes come from transferrable skills or skills you have developed that are germane towards your desired career.  You won’t pick them up in an MBA program.  It’s not that an MBA is a useless degree per se:  you can gain useful, practical knowledge.  The problem is, it’s too general.  Again, there are companies that value it, and if you can graft it on to the experience you are gaining in your current job, and if it’s a proven path to advancement within the company, then go for it.  Otherwise, it’s a waste of both your time and especially your money.

I eventually worked my way into an engineering job with just an associates degree.  My first job starting out was with a conveyor machinery manufacturer.  An MBA is useless there:  all that matters is whether or not you were good at designing machinery.  Our company’s president – a very good man and most capable leader – didn’t have an MBA, but rather an MEng (again, a masters in [mechanical] engineering).  That told me all I needed to know about the necessity of grad school, or lack thereof in most cases.

So to recap, if you’re having trouble finding a job, don’t think you can hide out in grad school hoping to eventually land one.  It won’t happen.  You’re only fooling yourself into buying into a cruel mirage, one that could hobble your career instead of help it.  Rather, the constructive thing to do is to concentrate on building up skills so you can land a job and gain experience.  Most employers value that and the skills you have far more than some fancy sheepskin that could harm your career far more than it could help.