Do you really need grad school to get a really good job?

[theflame]

With the economy today, I just don't want to put myself in more debt because of school. If I can get a good job with just a bachelors and professional work experiences, it wouldn't be necessary to go to grad school would it?

I just don't want be in piles of debt for student loans.

Not only that, my grades are shot anyway in college. I graduated to get the degree...didn't really care about getting As or Bs, hated school...as long as I could graduate with the bare minimum, that's all I wanted at the time.

I've also been trying to network to get referrals making up for not having a grad school degree.

 

[Korvinagor]

Sounds fair enough.

What are you defining as a really good job?

 

[Coriolis]

With the economy today, I just don't want to put myself in more debt because of school. If I can get a good job with just a bachelors and professional work experiences, it wouldn't be necessary to go to grad school would it?

I just don't want be in piles of debt for student loans.

Not only that, my grades are shot anyway in college. I graduated to get the degree...didn't really care about getting As or Bs, hated school...as long as I could graduate with the bare minimum, that's all I wanted at the time.

I've also been trying to network to get referrals making up for not having a grad school degree.

It depends highly on the job. Many jobs require only an undergraduate degree, while other jobs require a masters or even a PhD. Sometimes you can get an entry level job without a graduate degree, but then need one later for promotion or advancement. Employers might even pay for this if they like your work and want to give you the added responsibility.

I suggest you look at the kinds of jobs you would be considering based on your interests and background, and speak with people working in similar positions. Find out what kind of education they have, and what they know about education requirements in their field.

 

[SearchingforPeace]

Most grad degrees are worthless, unless required for a job. One can't be a lawyer without law school or a dentist without dental school.

Even securing the proper degree may leave one unemployed (there are very many unemployed and underemployed lawyers today, for example).

Research careers in areas you have interest in working. Find one that pays well. Research what is needed to obtain a job in a field.

Or research good paying careers. There are many good paying careers that require extensive training but not a grad degree.

I would recommend avoiding debt as much as possible. There are many humanities PhDS out there with 6 figure debt working many adjunct teaching jobs.

 

[theflame]

Most grad degrees are worthless, unless required for a job. One can't be a lawyer without law school or a dentist without dental school.

Even securing the proper degree may leave one unemployed (there are very many unemployed and underemployed lawyers today, for example).

Research careers in areas you have interest in working. Find one that pays well. Research what is needed to obtain a job in a field.

Or research good paying careers. There are many good paying careers that require extensive training but not a grad degree.

I would recommend avoiding debt as much as possible. There are many humanities PhDS out there with 6 figure debt working many adjunct teaching jobs.

The thing I'm attempting to avoid. I would have worked too hard for a grad school degree to still not get a job. Hoping I can be the one in a million Mark Zuckerberg/Bill Gates without needing any degrees, but I'm so unmotivated, lol.

 

[SearchingforPeace]

The thing I'm attempting to avoid. I would have worked too hard for a grad school degree to still not get a job. Hoping I can be the one in a million Mark Zuckerberg/Bill Gates without needing any degrees, but I'm so unmotivated, lol.

The ideal thing is to find a career that seems interesting enough and get the minimum education necessary to do the job. There are many very high paying jobs available that do not require a degree, but they do require training. These are skilled technical fields.

There are many good paying jobs that do not require anything more than an AA that you can get at a community college. Many health care jobs as well. Many computer programmers go to coding schools, not college, today.

The key is to find out what you like to do. Do you like working with tools, even if it is repetitive work? Do you like working with people, or hate it? How do you do with sick people? Do you hate touching people? Do you hate getting dirty? Can you schmooze people? Etc.

Unfortunately, many careers that used to not require degrees now do, because the job market has changed. Reporters and stock traders used to not have degrees. Most people in business middle management didn't used to need degrees.

One field to look into that is growing today is compliance. There are several different types, including health care, financial, etc. With the vast growth of the regulatory state, there are many jobs trying to make sure that companies can manage these very complicated regulations.

The overall idea is to minimize the costs to acquire the needed licenses.

And to have clear knowledge that many jobs that pay decently are not personally rewarding or entertaining. They are just jobs. And it is important to find an area where you will enjoy working as well as possible.

But, ultimately, getting $150k in debt for a humanities BA is most likely completely useless today. If anyone really wants that, they should go for the cheapest way to do so at a local state university.

So, if teaching 8th grade math sounds fun, get a degree for as cheap as you can. If you want to clean teeth, get the training.

Just find a career for as cheaply as possible. By having a lower cost, if you don't like it, you can change it much more easily.

 

[Frosty]

I went to a meeting the other day where they said that without grad school most people suffer. That with grad school fortune 500 companies would be banging down your door.

I think they just wanted more tuition money but I dunno...

It probably does open more doors. Is it worth it though is a question I want the answer too but dont really know myself.

 

[Amethyst]

In the department I work in you can't really move up far without a graduate degree. I plan on getting one, but I'm going to milk the company for it, and take classes online, part time. Some employers do pay for such an education if they find you to be a promising asset to invest in. I suggest taking a step in that direction if you're wanting to be financially savvy.

 

[Andy]

With the economy today, I just don't want to put myself in more debt because of school. If I can get a good job with just a bachelors and professional work experiences, it wouldn't be necessary to go to grad school would it?

I just don't want be in piles of debt for student loans.

Not only that, my grades are shot anyway in college. I graduated to get the degree...didn't really care about getting As or Bs, hated school...as long as I could graduate with the bare minimum, that's all I wanted at the time.

I've also been trying to network to get referrals making up for not having a grad school degree.

It's definitely possible to get a respectable job without a university education. All you really need is a sellable skill, and there is lots of ways to get those, frequently on the job training. Plumbers, electricians, carpenters - they all earn good money.

 

[Cellmold]

Why not be a waster who just shacks up with people and uses them to get by?

It works for anyone, regardless of gender or circumstances. Just got to have those important social skills and be likeable.

 

[uberrogo]

What do you plan to do to make a profit?

 

[theflame]

What do you plan to do to make a profit?

I wanted an IT/technical job but it's a male dominant field and they won't hire me. I'm so sick of it all I get is part time IT jobs that I've had to switch fields. The IT jobs, the right one, do pay a lot. All my interviewers for IT jobs have been guys and the ones who do IT I've noticed wherever I apply to are all guys so it's like they don't give me a chance even though I do have the experience.

 

[Coriolis]

I wanted an IT/technical job but it's a male dominant field and they won't hire me. I'm so sick of it all I get is part time IT jobs that I've had to switch fields. The IT jobs, the right one, do pay a lot. All my interviewers for IT jobs have been guys and the ones who do IT I've noticed wherever I apply to are all guys so it's like they don't give me a chance even though I do have the experience.

Not sure where you live, but in the U.S. that is supposed to be illegal. Bias remains, but persistent women can usually get hired eventually, even if for a bit less compensation or less preferred environment.

 

[SurrealisticSlumbers]

What you've trodden in's the truth, and that's the hardest thing to wash down with a glass of lemonade!

 

[Tomb1]

She has experience and is hungry to get ahead, so I don't see what the big deal is about giving her a chance. It's not like IT jobs require heavy lifting.