Is Graduate School Worth it?

Is it worth it? Crunch the numbers based on your financial situation and then decide whether or not it makes financial sense. This has been a gold mine of connections for me in that I was able to connect with so many people in my field to discuss their experiences in school, current career options around salaries and job prospects.

"That," he says, "was not something I intended on doing." In a field that relies on technical expertise in specialties such as international economics, agriculture or democratic governance, and is dominated by those with advanced degrees, Day says his management skills took him only so far.

Harvard Business School Baker Library 2009 (Photo credit: Wikipedia) The recent economic downturn has sparked a media frenzy over the value of graduate school. Pundits and young professionals alike are wondering if grad school is still worth the hefty investment. Law school, in particular, has been maligned by everyone from The [...]

By Jon Fortenbury, Schools.com Recent report showed a 1.7 percent decline in enrollment of first-time graduate students between fall 2010 and fall 2011. More people are applying to grad school and less people are going, according to a report by the Council of Graduate Schools. The report, released in Sept.

With unemployment high and wages stagnant, now's a rough time to be entering the job market. Historically, when an unwelcoming economy awaits, graduating college students tend to run for grad school. But the monetary value of an advanced degree varies greatly depending on major, school, and how much debt you take on to get it.

Few people spend 11 years in college. Most stay for four or five before the urge to leave campus and earn a salary kicks in. Barring a thesis defense meltdown, I'll be one of about 50,000 graduate students across the United States and Canada to get a Ph.D. in science...

Posted One of the best ways to invest in yourself and increase your earning potential is to get another degree. On average, holders of postgraduate degrees earn 23% to 55% more than those with bachelor's degrees. However, tuition at graduate schools has been skyrocketing in recent years at the same time that funding options have been drying up.

This isn't just the year of the massive open online course; it's also the year of two other hot topics in higher education-student debt and a barren job market for graduating students. While people in higher education are struggling to adjust realistically to the supply-and-demand changes in the labor market, students need more-transparent information about the pathways into and out of graduate school now.

Despite the professional success of many who did not earn a college diploma, it is becoming clear that earning an education matters. In addition, an undergraduate degree is increasingly not enough to land the solid, well-paying jobs of the future. What's needed, experts say, is a graduate degree.

In tough economic times, many people turn to education. Colleges and universities are seeing record enrollments. Many adults return to college to finish bachelor's degrees that they put on hold years ago to enter fulfilling careers.