Does Pursuing a Postgraduate Degree Mid-Career Make Financial Sense?
While you can maintain a successful career with only a graduate degree, it’s in your best interest to level up your education. This enables more vertical opportunities in your career, and gives you more negotiation leverage for a higher salary.
Another benefit of returning to school is the networking opportunities available, even to someone already in the middle of their career. An older person, for example, may be able to network with younger entrepreneurs, and lend career experience to potential projects. Further education opens your mind to think outside of the box, and see opportunities in places you’d never thought of looking.
Of course, pursuing a postgraduate degree may not make sense for everyone, and it’s up to you to weigh the benefits against the drawbacks. In this article, we’ll help you figure out which is the right path for you.
Reasons Why Pursuing a Postgraduate Degree Mid-Career is Worth It
Vertical Career Growth
Whether you are working at a big or small firm, it’s only suitable if you dream of having a better job or position. And in some fields, such as medicine, law, teaching, and tech, a postgraduate degree is essential. This will help you garner more knowledge in your field, thus earning you a better chance of getting promoted.
Increased Pay
We all desire to earn more, and as much as your experience plays a role, your level of education will also influence your pay. Therefore, you don’t expect a college or bachelor’s degree graduate to earn the same as a master’s graduate.
Better yet, if you pursue a postgraduate while working, it increases your chances of better pay.
Competitive Edge
Pursuing a postgraduate degree while working gives you a competitive edge while applying for jobs, thus increasing your chances of getting hired.
For instance, if a recruiter gets several resumes, one bachelor graduate with working experience, or bachelor and postgraduate with no working experience. But you have a bachelor’s and postgraduate degree with working experience; they will definitely select you.
However, this also depends on how you present yourself and answer questions during the interview.
Better Connection
When studying for a postgraduate degree, you get a chance to connect with other people from the same field. This helps elevate your thinking and opens you to new opportunities.
Factors to Consider Before Pursuing Postgraduate Degree Mid-Career
It would be best to ask yourself the following questions now that you know it’s feasible to pursue a postgraduate degree while working.
How is the job market, and will you follow the same career line?
Before you embark on your postgraduate degree, evaluate if you plan to pursue this career line in the long run as it would be a waste of money and resources to change it in the future. It would also be prudent to check the job market because you don’t want to rack up loans for an irrelevant degree.
Getting a postgraduate degree in some fields is just checking a box, as it does not increase your value. Therefore, ensure that there are jobs in your chosen field by researching with professionals with the same degree. Scan the jobs boards, internationally and locally, to see your prospects.
How will you finance the postgraduate degree?
How are you going to finance your postgraduate degree? If your income is insufficient, you can consider getting SoFi private student loans.
You can also take advantage of staff education benefits provided by your employer to help reduce your financial burden.
Bottom Line
Pursuing a postgraduate degree mid-career is a wise decision if you are in a competitive field and intend to stay in the same career line. It helps you get a better position, better pay, gain a competitive edge when applying for new jobs, and better connections.
However, before you embark on your postgraduate journey, evaluate your finances and career goals.