Deciding to go to grad school

[lruble]

Hey everyone! I'm new and my name is Lyndsey. I am currently an undergrad and starting to think about grad school. I am a journalism major and want to work in newspaper. I don't know what the benefits of getting a master's and/or PhD.

So my question is, how did you all decide grad school was worth the extra time and money? If I do decide to go to grad school, should I stop after I get my master's or keep going and get a PhD?

[commcomm]

Welcome to the forum! I'll pass along the advice I got from every single one of my professors when I began asking about graduate school: You do not need a graduate education in journalism unless...

1) You want to teach and/or do research

2) You are eying a specific job which requires an advanced degree (for example, a consulting firm where research experience is needed)

If you want to be a practicing journalist, I think there's a case to be made for getting an advanced degree in a particular area, say economics if you want to work at The Wall Street Journal; however, in this particular profession, experience in the field typically trumps years of education.

If you're thinking about teaching at some point in the future, a Master's degree could come in handy. Depends on what kind of teaching gig you want.

I'm sure there are varying views on advanced journalism degrees — but that's my two cents.

[lruble]

Thanks so much! As of now, I am thinking I am definitely going to get my master's simply because of the pay difference simply by having some extra letters behind my name.

I'd love to teach someday, but I think I will wait on PhD.

Do you recommend taking a few years to work before going to get your master's? I am from North Carolina, so my first choice would be UNC Chapel Hill, which has a great J-School, but they prefer students to have worked a few years before applying.

What do you think?

[commcomm]

I've shown this article to a few of my undergraduate students looking into a Master's : http://www.dailyorange.com/2.8657/is-it-worth-it-professors-question-the-benefits-of-a-master-s-degree-1.1231214#.T42bh1H2eyI

UNC Chapel Hill is a great J-school, like you said. I think the general consensus is that a Master's degree in journalism becomes infinitely more valuable with corresponding experience in the field, so the school's stance on a few years of full-time practice is very sensible.

There are other major advantages to gaining even a year of experience before grad school

1) You'll have a stronger application just to get into the program

2) You'll be able to contribute to the discussion in your grad classes, having experience to share with your peers

3) You will be able to come up with stronger research ideas after spending extensive time in a newsroom

You don't need to go work in a newsroom for 20 years - but get out there and explore the field for a year or two. It will make you a much more valuable, efficient journalism scholar. If you do choose to go directly into graduate school, I highly suggest going to a school where you will get hands-on experience in a newsroom (and not just a university paper/TV station/magazine) during your time in the program. Gotta have something for that resume!

[brancan]

Lyndsey, save yourself a lot of time and money and don't go to grad school! I have an MA in journalism (from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University) and it has done nothing for me that a BA could not have. More than half the people in my program don't work in journalism. They are teachers or work in corporate editing jobs or PR. The ones that do work in journalism make the same crappy pay as everyone else. An MA will not change the pay of your first few gigs. If you ever make it to the top, it might come in handy, but even then, it's not something that is important. Hell, half the people working in journalism don't have a formal education in the field.

The reason I got my degree was because my undergraduate one was in another field. If you are already studying journalism, you're good to go. All of the undergraduate students I met at Syracuse have been a lot more successful. The key is networking and building your portfolio. I currently work as a blogger/writer, and it's a tough road. I wouldn't suggest investing anymore into it than necessary, financially-speaking. Unlike MBA or law degrees, an MA in journalism does not pay itself off.

[brancan]

Also, I should not that none of my professors had advanced degrees. And they TAUGHT journalism, both newspaper and magazine. It's all about experience and portfolios. And connections.

[brancan]

HAHA. I was in the same program as the guy in the photo in the article mrpbn7 posted. Nice dude.

[commcomm]

The reason I got my degree was because my undergraduate one was in another field. If you are already studying journalism, you're good to go.

Brancan makes a really good point-- about 50% of my graduate peers have their undergrad degree in something else and they needed the Master's to get some formal journalism training.

[lruble]

All of your comments are so enlightening. Thank you so much. I really think after hearing what everyone has to say, I will at least wait to get my masters. I will be a junior next year an editor in chief of my school newspaper. Hopefully the experiences I have here in undergraduate and internships for the next few summers should build a portfolio that will at least get me an entry level job.

Now, I am also a minor in political science. Do you all think that of political journalism is something I want to pursue, there is more of a case for grad programs?

[brancan]

Not particularly. My undergrad was actually in poli sci, though political journalism is not something I was interested in pursuing. My best advice would be to network your butt off. Join ED2010 if you haven't already and if you end up moving to NYC, go to their events. They offer helpful information and you will meet a ton of people. They also regularly post jobs on their website and they are sometimes jobs that are not posted elsewhere yet.

Beyond that, I'd say to keep involved with campus publications. If you can get paid freelance work, that would be awesome for your resume too. And intern. Ninety percent of the journalism students I know (who actually work in journalism) got their first job because of an internship. They either interned at the publication that hired them, or they made a connection through which they found a job. Plus, internships offer experiences you won't get in school. I did four and my program was only 12 months.