When Is Grad School Worth It?

For some people, going to graduate school means the difference between being stuck in a rut and advancing their careers. For others, a graduate degree may have minimal effect on their earnings and career trajectory. Attending school may still be worth it intellectually, but try not to decide whether to go without doing the analysis and the math. Go ahead and ask yourself the following questions, then get out your calculator.

Does Graduate School Fit With Your Career Goals?

One of the first and most important steps you should take is to decide what kind of job you want and how that job relates to the degree you are considering.

Will you be comfortable with the lifestyle, day-to-day activities, hours, and responsibilities associated with the job? Shadowing professionals, interning, and conducting informational interviews can give you a better idea of what the job is really like. For instance, law school might seem a responsible choice, but will you be happy spending 60 hours a week reading detailed documents? Doing your research before committing to grad school can save you from pigeonholing yourself into the wrong career.

Next, make sure you check out the job requirements in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Outlook Handbook. This is a comprehensive resource that matches job titles with the skills and education required for different positions.

In some professions, such as law or medicine, a specialized graduate degree is necessary to actually practice. In others, including many jobs in the finance or investment industry, it’s pretty crucial to be able to move beyond entry-level work. But experience and quality of work are more important than having an advanced degree in other fields like marketing and computer science.

Finally, be sure the school that you’re considering will get you where you want to go. A master of business administration (MBA) is a classic example where networking and connections are one of the main draws. If your option is a second-tier school, will it give you the kinds of connections that you need to rise in the field?

How Much Can You Expect to Earn After Graduating?

Before paying for grad school—especially if it involves taking out big loans—be sure that you’ll earn enough in the future to make that debt and/or time worth it. Be sure to research these four issues:

• Starting salaries for your program’s graduates. This information should be available through the universities that you are considering or on a number of publicly available websites.
• How much do people in the field ultimately earn? Salary information websites like Glassdoor, PayScale, and SalaryList can give you a good idea. You can break down compensation and “price a job” by company, location, and years of experience.
• Can graduates find jobs? Research employment statistics for the programs to which you’re applying. Will you have easy access to career services and other types of alumni networking support?
• Translatable skills. Can you expect an oversupply of new graduates with the same degree and skills, or does your career field have a shortage of new hires?

Analyze and Forecast the Financials

Now it’s time to do some math to see the type of financial impact that a graduate degree can make versus the cost of obtaining it. 

Assess the Cost of the Program

Calculate tuition, cost of living, books, and fees for each program that you’re considering. Apply for grants, fellowships, and financial aid. Look into working as a teaching assistant, research assistant, or even a resident hall/dormitory advisor to help reduce expenses. Can you work while you are in school? Will your current employer pay for some of the costs of your degree through its benefits program?

Inquire About Second-Chance Scholarships

Not every student who is awarded a scholarship will attend the program. A few weeks after acceptance decisions are announced, call your graduate program to see if they have any recently available funding—even if you have already been given a scholarship. If you were accepted into other programs, don’t be shy about name-dropping to remind them that you are a competitive candidate.

Asking for money may feel uncomfortable, but your school has already decided that they want you. The worst that will happen is that they will say no, while the best-case scenario is free money for one awkward email/phone call.

The Bottom Line

If you’re thinking about graduate school to avoid the real world or because you’re not sure what you should do next, it is probably a better use of time and money to hold off for a few years. Graduate degrees are expensive, hard work, and take a lot of time.

But an advanced degree is about more than money. Graduate school provides you with knowledge, skills, a network, and a wider set of career opportunities. Even if you don’t end up using your new degree or working in the field, having it will increase your value as an employee in the future. You may also want to think about the intangibles as you do your research and add up the costs.