how a graduate degree can pay off

Deciding to go back to school for a graduate degree isn’t something to shy away from, but it’s completely understandable that you may have some reservations about the time, money, and investment necessary to complete your degree and whether all of that capital will pay off in the end.  Virtually all employers and mentors in every field would recommend earning a graduate degree—here are a few huge reasons why.

Your Expertise Can Grow

Whether you’re a coding genius already or a financial expert, going back to graduate school for a degree in your given field (or another altogether) can grow and broaden your expertise in your current position.  A computer programmer by trade, for example, can earn a Master of Business Administration in order to better understand the business side of his or her workplace and see how various workflows, management, and other departments intertwine to make business function.  No matter your current position or future ambitions, a graduate degree can broaden your understanding of both your work environment and your trade and may even unveil a previously undiscovered passion entirely and steer you in a completely different direction.

Increased Bargaining Power

The Father of business strategy, Michael Porter, made his “5 Forces” famous.  Bargaining power comprises 2 of Porter’s 5 Forces, and a graduate degree can certainly give you that power in the job market.  A graduate degree immediately gives you bargaining power to negotiate higher wages, increased workplace responsibility, or a new position within your existing firm all together.  Of course, if you plan to remain with your current company, it’s important to work with your supervisors along your graduate school journey in order that both you and your organization’s goals remain in alignment.  Whatever the case, you’ll have more to draw from when it comes time to use the expertise you’ve gained.

Career Advancement and More Job Opportunities

Along the same lines as above, another major graduate school payoff is the myriad doors that open for you as an employee and jobseeker.  Our current economic climate shows a relative increase in jobs created throughout the country’s economy; however, an increase in jobs does not positively correlate with “ease of ascertaining” for those positions.  What you can expect to see from a graduate degree is your resume to be set in a different stack (so-to-speak) giving your greater odds and increased opportunities to land the job you want.  Alternatively, graduate degrees can pay big dividends in your current work situation by offering opportunities to advance your career.  Even if you’re not a proverbial “lifer” at your job, a vertical move in your current company could easily yield an extremely profitable lateral move in the future.

Credibility

In many career fields, credibility is easily attained in the form of professional certifications, memberships in professional organizations, or simply work-produced data and experience.  Technology is one of the few fields where bachelor’s degrees accompanied with professional certifications and continued expertise can yield similar results as a graduate degree; however, many fields don’t have that luxury.  Young professionals, fresh out of college, are increasingly susceptible to this workforce fallacy, but a graduate degree gives exposure to the higher-thought, higher-education concepts that make the stuff of leaders.  A graduate degree also shows you’re willing to work hard to earn your keep in an organization, and that alone is worth it for the credibility of potential value in an organization.  The graduate school payoff here, of course, is an opening and an opportunity without necessarily gaining work experience.

Personal Growth and Satisfaction

Whether you’re a seasoned veteran in the workforce or new entrant to the job market, the personal growth and satisfaction of accomplishment from earning a graduate degree is likely one of the most gratifying feats you’ll experience.  Graduate school has the ability to expose your every academic and work weakness all while strengthening your ability to overcome the challenges and workload of a post-bachelor program.  Each person has a certain mountain they’ve conquered in earning a master’s degree whether it’s digging deep to find the resolve to complete a major assignment or task mastering in order to balance your work and school life to succeed in both.  Earning a graduate degree and the growth you experience is possibly the biggest payoff of all.

Earn a Master’s Degree at ECPI University

If seeking a graduate degree is your forte and you have the work ethic and drive to succeed in both your workplace and school, then why not head over to ECPI University and peruse the growing list of master’s degrees offered? Whatever your goals or professional ambitions, ECPI University may have a degree program designed for you.  Get in touch with an advisor today to discuss your options and choose the degree track right for you. It could be the Best Decision You Ever Make!

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