[ SECRET POST #2987 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #2987 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 03 pages, 068 secrets from Secret Submission Post #427.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 1 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 1 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

Re: OK, real talk: do you want a job?

[chardmonster]

I don't think I know a single person who paid for grad school.

I don't know where you live, but that's rare for MAs here in Upstate NY. My cousin paid for her MA in English that she's never going to use. Maybe you only knew PhD students? But that's not necessarily always the case either. I was lucky to get into a program that fully funds all its students. A lot of programs don't.

I knew a woman who was actually fucking paying for her phD in philosophy. Yes, that's stupid. She's a fucking moron for various reasons.

Re: OK, real talk: do you want a job?

[(Anonymous)]

NAYRT -- Your friend should have gone to a SUNY. Multiple SUNYs have nationally ranked English programs and most of them offer paid graduate assistantships. Union jobs, no less.

Re: OK, real talk: do you want a job?

[chardmonster]

That's where she went, SUNY.

Maybe she didn't take the opportunity to get a grad assistantship, but I know not everyone can get one.

Look: I just don't want people reading this thread to think an MA is a really good way to delay going out and getting a job. I know people make it work--me being one of them--but I also meet a lot of people who aren't.

Re: OK, real talk: do you want a job?

[(Anonymous)]

You're right. It's not an automatic "get out of the real world free" card, unless you're bankrolled and looking to be a professional grad student. Sometimes, though, it's a viable option even without a serious post-graduation plan in mind. Look at it this way -- if you're unsure or lukewarm about your post-Bachelor's career, and you're not going to bankrupt yourself by going to grad school, it is a decent way to 1) defer your student loans for a couple of years, 2) get some focus regarding what you actually want to do with those degrees, and 3) automatically increase your starting salary by about 10K. Plus, it looks better on your resume than spending the same amount of time job-hopping or working at Wendy's.

That said, I think the best thing that anyone considering grad school could do would be to spend some time talking to second (or more) year grad students in a program that they're interested in. If that doesn't scare 'em straight, then go for it.

Re: OK, real talk: do you want a job?

[chardmonster]

Honestly, I disagree with this.

if you're unsure or lukewarm about your post-Bachelor's career, and you're not going to bankrupt yourself by going to grad school

There are a lot of people this doesn't cover. A lot of us WOULD either bankrupt ourselves or add a hell of a lot to our debt pile by going to grad school.

1) defer your student loans for a couple of years

By adding to them, one way or another. Even if you somehow get into a funded masters program, interest accumulates.

2) get some focus regarding what you actually want to do with those degrees,

No, no, no, no! You want to have some kind of focus going in, otherwise you might not be getting what you need out of it to turn it into a career. Grad school can help you find yourself, but you can't go there for that purpose.

) automatically increase your starting salary by about 10K.

Oh holy crap.



Look: there are certain careers where you CAN do that, like education. But odds are if you're doing that you either already have an education degree or are going for an English Education masters. BUT NO, in most professions, a goddamn humanities MA is not going to give you an automatic 10K on your starting salary.* Goddamn. If only. What do you do that this is your outlook? Because I want to work there.

That said, I think the best thing that anyone considering grad school could do would be to spend some time talking to second (or more) year grad students in a program that they're interested in. If that doesn't scare 'em straight, then go for it.

This is an excellent idea.

*I suppose exceptions might be you having the job already, or jobs that flat out require that MA to be seriously considered or have a lot of people getting that MA in the course of working there. But in that case you're getting an MA while working, which is a different scenario.