What has your Master's degree done for you?

darkerosxx

Title says it all.

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zen master

Excellent post. I'm keen to see the responses.

UnixGuy

waiting responses...

JJArms

darkerosxx wrote: »

Title says it all.

I got a job in April of '08 just because I was going to have my masters in October of '08.

I now have my masters in information systems.

Basically, it puts you ahead of anyone who has the same certifications as you do.

Regards,

JJArms~

rfult001

In progress...I will let you know when I apply for a real job

mamono

My friend was scouted prior to his graduation for a position as a Network Systems Manager without any industry certification, yet has a great deal of real world I.T. experience. I hope to pursue the same MSIS program that he went through in the near future.

ilcram19-2

i've learn that a employer would respect it more than a certification but also i;ve learn that everything i know i had to learn it my self none of the teachers thought me anything close to what've learn true certification and experiance altought im still persuing a masters i dont think it will give me the knoledge it probably just mean that i manage to stay at school for a long time and that i was able to affor it but is good for employers and for management positions

MCPWannabe

It's huge. I got my MBA from a pretty sucky school, but I'm not making sucky money. When you piggyback a Master's on top of certifications or vice versa it gives you an instant credibility that I can't even begin to explain.

I've moved very, very fast up the career ladder since I started getting certfications and there is no doubt that my Master's degree helped.

Essendon

Maybe it's me or maybe it's the country, I dont know. But my Master's degree in Telecomm Engineering did NOTHING for me. For me it was time and money wasted. Had I started doing my certs then, I think I would have been much better off now. I basically lost 1.5 years and a ton of money (got a debt to pay off).

Once went for an interview at Symantec, maybe 1.5-2 years ago (was for a junior sys admin role) and the guy asked if I had any certs. I said that although I didnt have certs, but I had a Master's in Telecomm and the guy said "Do you know Master's degrees are nothing more than very expensive toilet paper??" Take that.

I took some very dumb advice about doing a Master's, they said it would open up new avenues for me, get a decent starting job. By the time I realised I had blundered, I was too far into the degree to pull out. So just completed it. Now the degree sits in bottom drawer among cables and screws.

My advice based on my expereince (only), dont do a Master's degree. Go for the certs.

the_Grinch

Of the guys with a Master's Degree, how many went to school fulltime and worked fulltime? I am hoping to do that and wanted to see what everyone's experience was..

Essendon

I went to school full-time, worked part-time. Impossible to do both full-time, IMO. Just the school alone is draining enough, let alone coupling it with working full-time.

darkerosxx

To each their own....I'm working full-time and completing MBA courses. I've seen some great value in the knowledge I've learned in just one semester.

rfult001

Working full-time and taking 2 courses per semester. There are other factors preventing me from taking more than that.

BeaverC32

I'd like to eventually take advantage of the tuition-assistance my employer offers all employees. I would only take 2 classes per year, so it would take me 8 years to get my Masters, but financially for me it would be a free degree (they even cover the cost of books).

I don't think I would pursue a Masters if it was on my own dime, but since it wouldn't be I would be foolish to not take advantage of it. I have been rewarded in my past two annual reviews based on the number of certifications I have earned, so I would imagine pursuing my Masters would also impact my yearly reviews.

Plus I would think it generates more job security

nel

So would all you guys which had to pay out of your own pocket and time say its worth it?

im curious because i would like to take a masters but i dont think i would want to invest in it because i wont get the technical knowledge i want back out hence the large investment would not be good value for me. Maybe its just me, but my Bsc Hons has given me very little technical knowledge to put into my job - i reckon around 90% i could not use in my job. Which is why it has put me off. I think i would rather use the £10K going for a CCIE (long term of course) if i can work my way up the networking ladder.

To the OP, i work FT and pretty much do uni FT ( i do one less semester than the FT students this year). One thing i would say its very hard and time consuming. I would rather do it over a longer length of time than the way i am now.

miclch

IT HELPS!!
1) With a Master degree, I stayed on top of other Bachelor degree holders and got hired for this job of mine.
2) When I asked my Bachelor degree holders coworkers, who started the same job at the same time, I get paid so much more than them.1

empc4000xl

Depends on your career path. If you plan on management, or teaching I recommend it. If you are planning on that lead engineer role I would use the time for other educational endeavors.

KGhaleon

Masters? Why would I need a masters degree?

shednik

Essendon wrote: »

although I didnt have certs, but I had a Master's in Telecomm and the guy said "Do you know Master's degrees are nothing more than very expensive toilet paper??" Take that.

To me it sounds like this was a guy who couldn't hack some sort of degree whether it be a masters, bachelors, or associates. A degree from a reputable institution is something you can take anywhere with you and you always have it. Yes in IT a lot of the knowledge will become outdated but I feel it also exposes you to a lot of theory that will stay with you for a long time. I've learned a lot after 1 class in my masters, and I feel I will continue to learn more and more. I am not paying for most of my degree as well and don't know if I would be back already if I had to pay for it myself. Atleast in the US I know a masters can you put further ahead whether it be managerial or technical.

BradleyHU

shednik wrote: »

To me it sounds like this was a guy who couldn't hack some sort of degree whether it be a masters, bachelors, or associates. A degree from a reputable institution is something you can take anywhere with you and you always have it. Yes in IT a lot of the knowledge will become outdated but I feel it also exposes you to a lot of theory that will stay with you for a long time. I've learned a lot after 1 class in my masters, and I feel I will continue to learn more and more. I am not paying for most of my degree as well and don't know if I would be back already if I had to pay for it myself. Atleast in the US I know a masters can you put further ahead whether it be managerial or technical.

exactly!!! and yeah, dude who said that to him, sounds extra bitter that he couldnt hack it. saying a master's is like toilet papers is like saying a bachelor's is like toilet paper. reason i say that is because, they really arent any different from each other...neither gives you any real world experience...but they do both help with theory that you might need when on the job. certs help also, but the combo of a bach, master's , certs, AND experience trumps all...

Kasor

Higher postion and salary... It paid off 2 yrs of work. Also, it look better on the resume and get to know more people in the field while attending graduate school. U know

msteinhilber

I don't have a masters degree yet, I do plan to pursue it however. I haven't had issues yet moving up having just my associates and nearly finished with my bachelors, and I don't think I would have much trouble working my way up into a more senior engineer/administrator path whichever my career path moves into. I do desire to eventually move into a more management/executive type role at some point in my career, and it is there where I suspect a masters degree would come in very helpful.

I think a lot of it depends on the market quite a bit, in my particular region I haven't had much need to see myself going past just a bachelors degree for the jobs around here that I am currently interested in. If there was a lot more competition (I don't think there is as much competition around me as there is in other regions) then I could see a masters degree coming into play more as others have mentioned - it would get you an edge over the majority of the candidates that would likely only have a bachelors.

Deciding to pursue a masters degree ultimately requires a lot of research and thought on where you want to be, how quick you want to get there, how much the degree will set you back, and how much return you could possibly see on the degree.

itdaddy

It's huge. I got my MBA from a pretty sucky school, but I'm not making sucky money

hahahahah 5 years later still am I laughing my arse offf hahahha ha
man is that funny as hell but true hahahaha god is that funny
ahah

girt81

Had an easier time finding a job with it than when I was looking with just a BS. I'm glad I did mine, though if I could change anything I'd of gone straight MBA instead of the more technical degree. It ended up being abould half of the MBA program anyway.

skrpune

I think a better important question is what did you do for your masters degree? (Or any other degree or certification for that matter.) While having that credential to your name is great & can open a lot of doors, what you put into getting it is more important than the end result, and it will show when you go on interviews and when you can perform on the job.

loxleynew

Does it even matter really what you get your MBA in? Like I got my BS in something totally unrelated to IT but here I am working It. I do think it would be worth it and I do want to do it one day, although Id have to study for an take the GRE which would be a pain.. plus pay off my BS first.

I think anyone who says a masters is like expensive toilet paper is a moron. I am not sure how important it is, but i'm sure at the least it would be on the same level as a high end certification?

savior faire

Essendon wrote: »

I said that although I didnt have certs, but I had a Master's in Telecomm and the guy said "Do you know Master's degrees are nothing more than very expensive toilet paper??" Take that.

This is why I pointed out a few weeks ago that a masters in any IT discipline is a waste of time. IT experience, plus an MBA in some business discipline is much more valuable. Add in some technical certs, and you can likely work anywhere and you will be promotable.

savior faire

I think anyone who says a masters is like expensive toilet paper is a moron. I am not sure how important it is, but i'm sure at the least it would be on the same level as a high end certification?

A masters in IT would be a poor choice, though I would not say it is toilet paper.

UnixGuy

if you have IT experience, up to date valuable certs (not just A+), then a technical Master degree in IT is worth it IMHO.

If, for example, you have a master degree in InfoSec, or Operating systems, then this open doors for you to work with R&D or get a consultant position after years of experience of course.

Another option is as some guys pointed out, having MBA will help in managerial positions.

But yes I can agree that having a theoretical Master degree in "engineering" (any discipline) is useless unless you pursue PhD and go for an academic career.

UnixGuy

Also, keep in mind that some companies (such as Google, YaHoO!, Sun, MS, ..etc), the big companies, require at least Master degree for high-level technical positions, so this is another value (even if it's a theoretical master degree in engineering).

zen master

Let me first say that I'm a little disappointed with some of the "blanket statements" in this topic. Now, all MSc programs are not created equal, and any serious analysis of the usefulness of doing an MSc in the IT field must take into consideration what the program is, and what jobs it might apply to. For example, someone such as myself, interested in entering the field of IT Security, may well benefit from doing CISSP, MCSE, CCNA, and a masters in Information Security. However, an MSc in Information Technology, really may not be terribly useful to anyone. I think the level of analysis in this topic has been superficial at best, and I'd really like to see you guys put a bit more thought into your posts, especially the members of the forum who are in more senior positions and really ought to have a lot more to contribute. Although, to be honest, I've found that the majority of members of this site seem to be in very junior positions in the field, and not in the best position to give advice (myself included). The two posts above mine are actually quite useful, so, please note that my comments aren't intended to apply to all the posts in this topic.