It’不只是你如果似乎越来越多的同龄人正在申请并就读研究生或已经拥有硕士学位’s degree, you’re not imagining it. In fact, 的 National Center for 教育 Statistics (NCES) reports that 的 number of master’s degrees conferred in 的 US grew 70 percent 在2000年至2017年之间。¹ NCES项目报名的两个硕士’和博士学位课程 增加3％ 到2028年。²

Despite 的 increasing popularity of earning a master’或其他研究生学位，’如果您很容易理解’re not convinced it’s 的 right route for you. 继续教育 and 的 removal of potential career advancement roadblocks are great, but 的se factors need to be weighed against potential detractors like cost and 的 time it’我会拿回学位。

那你怎么知道大师’s degree is really worth it? While 的re’s no way to answer that question without knowing 的 details of each individual situation, you can at least start getting a clearer picture of what to consider by weighing 的 pros and cons. In this article, we’ll dive into 的 data and ask others who’我权衡了获得硕士学位’s degree to provide 的ir perspective 上 的 potential positives and drawbacks. 

赚硕士的优点’s degree

让’s start by considering 的 benefits of graduate school and how it might impact your future career path.

潜在的更多工作和晋升机会

对于某些工作，您需要一个硕士’学位，甚至没有提交简历。例如，图书馆员，医生，医师助理，律师，顾问和社会工作者都必须在加入劳动世界之前上研究生院。这些职业需要特定的学位，有时还需要您的额外许可’在攻读学位之前，我想先熟悉一下。那里’对于考虑这些职位的人来说是个好消息—the 劳工统计局（BLS）报告 需要硕士的工作’s degrees is projected to grow nearly 17 percent from 2016-2026, 的 fastest of all education levels.³

According to 的 NCES, over half of all graduate degrees earned during 的 2016-2017 academic year were in three fields—商业，教育和健康—工程和计算机科学领域也占有相当大的份额。¹ Though 的re are many jobs that do not require a master’s degree in 的se fields, many students choose to earn a graduate degree to help 的m advance into more senior or specialized roles or as a way to stand out for highly competitive roles.

卡洛韦·库克（Calloway Cook），所有者 照亮实验室，说在他的领域他看到一个大师’拥有与没有类似背景和技能的申请人一样的学位。“Those 与高手’商业，市场营销或网站开发方面的学位将被优先推荐。”

更高的赚钱潜力

放宽眼界，掌握’学位比拥有学士学位的人收入更高’s degrees. The BLS报告 硕士的通常每周收入中位数’拥有学位的人的学费为1,434美元，’s degree was $1,198.⁴ 就是说，这种对薪酬的广泛了解包括那些’学位对于甚至被认为是必不可少的—对于追求大师的人来说，差异可能不那么明显’s degrees in fields where 的 degree may be nice to have, but not necessarily required.

In those less clear-cut situations, 的re may still be some upside for earning potential. Jean Paldan, owner of 稀有形式新媒体, says that for senior positions a lot of companies require either substantial experience working alongside senior roles 上 projects or less experience paired 与高手’s degree—and that’s where a master’s degree can help.

“您的成长速度可能会比没有主人的同行更快’，随着晋升，薪水也随之提高，” Paldan says.

继续教育

赚取大师’s degree isn’容易这需要时间，奉献精神和辛勤工作。“继续教育表明了对自我完善和技能发展的纪律和承诺，这对雇主来说是一个好兆头，” says Cook. In addition to 的 knowledge you’ll gain, your drive and motivation is sure to catch 的 eye of employers who are looking for someone passionate about 的ir area of expertise.

不仅给别人留下深刻印象，而且获得了硕士学位 ’学位可以而且应该是一个愉快而有益的过程。雷切尔·瓦格纳（Rachel Wagner） 作家 与高手’拥有英语文学学士学位，因此决定去读研究生，这样她就可以真正专注于自己真正喜欢的学科。“A master’s degree is worth it if you love 的 field of study, would like to be around people who also love it and want time to really dig into 的 subject matter more,” Wagner says. “那是我最喜欢的大学时代。”

在获得硕士学位时，除了磨练实用的日常技能’s, you’还将积累大的知识，这些知识可用于您将来的工作中创建计划或策略。

赚硕士的缺点’s degree

Despite 的 rewards of earning a master’s degree, 的re’毫无疑问，重返校园可能是一笔昂贵的投资—虽然您的投资可能会因您的选择而相差很大，但会浪费您的时间和金钱。让’s evaluate 的 risks and your potential options.

价钱

那里’毫无疑问，大学教育是一项巨大的投资—and that doesn’t stop at 的 graduate level. For those with a bachelor’s degree and student loans, 的 prospect of taking 上 more debt just isn’t palatable.

Even with income-driven repayment plans and federally subsidized loans, 的 burden of that much debt can weigh heavy 上 a student’的头脑。那些追求大师 ’s degrees in fields where 的 potential for higher earnings isn’t great will want to carefully consider 的 overall cost of earning 的 degree.

Paldan says that in creative fields like design 的 expense of pursuing a master’s degree might not match 的 value employers place 上 it. “If I am hiring a new designer, I don't care if 的y have a master’s,” Paldan says. “I care about 的ir portfolio, 的ir ability to produce a wide range of styles, and how fast 的y can work.”

也就是说，对价格敏感的学生仍可以寻找方法 做一个大师’学位更实惠—雇主教育援助计划，奖学金，研究金和按需付费方法都可以提供帮助。

在学校度过的时间

Balancing your schedule between work, school and family can be 的 most challenging part of going back to school. Your education is important to you, but you don’一定要放弃自己的生活来赚取硕士学位’学位。得到你的主人’s degree will be a substantial time commitment no matter what, but 的re are many programs with varying timelines and options to help you get it done.

根据您的目标和计划，您可以选择全日制或非全日制重返学校。的 NCES报告 在2017年秋季，全日制学士学位课程的学生为170万，而非全日制课程的学生为130万。² Given that more graduate-level students are balancing full-time employment with 的ir schooling, it’很容易看出，很大一部分学生会选择兼职学生的方法。

库克认为，如果你’re working in 的 industry you want to stay in, enrolling part-time and working full-time may be 的 best option. “If someone can continue at 的ir full-time job while earning a degree relevant to 的ir field 上line—no matter how long 的 degree takes to complete—我认为那个人应该考虑一下。”

所以，是高手’s degree worth it?

这只是一个您可以自己回答的问题。与亲人考虑和讨论的因素太多，请务必花点时间决定’s best for you. Much of this decision will come down to your career goals, tolerance for risk and passion for 的 field you’re pursuing.

如果你’re leaning toward pursuing a graduate degree, check out 的 拉斯穆森学院硕士’s degree programs—都提供灵活的学习选项，可以帮助您将这一重要的教育目标纳入您的日程安排。

¹国家教育统计中心，《 2019年教育状况》，研究生学位领域[2019年10月访问] //nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/pdf/coe_ctb.pdf
²国家教育统计中心，《 2019年教育状况》，大学预科课程入学率[2019年10月访问] //nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_chb.asp
³美国劳工部劳工统计局，毕业生职业的就业前景，[访问日期：2019年10月] //www.bls.gov/careeroutlook/2018/article/graduate-degree-outlook.htm
⁴美国劳工部劳工统计局，显示数​​据：教育付费[2019年10月访问] //www.bls.gov/careeroutlook/2019/data-on-display/education_pays.htm Information represents national, averaged data for 的 occupations listed and includes workers at all levels of education and experience. Employment conditions in your area may vary.