Leaving job for unfunded masters

[AlwaysWorried]

I have been working at a large engineering firm for 3 years and have been promoted to the level where I am compensated as if I had a masters. I don't really enjoy my work, I want to get involved in design but lack course work or experience so I'm suck running tests. Does it make sense to leave a good paying job at this time to go for a masters in EE that I hope will allow me to do work I'm more excited about?

[behavgradwa09]

Hi AW,

I'm facing a similar situation. I make really good money at the moment, but not in the field I want to work in. My MS acceptance is unfunded, and I'm on the fence about taking the acceptance because of the many top ramen days it would entail. But I do think that it's worth it to struggle for a few years to earn the degree and have more latitude in your employment choices. And it's important to be excited about and engaged in your work!

[Reinventing]

Is the competition for the roles in which you are interested steep? I know in some areas, design jobs are plumb and can be hard to come by. Also, what about part-time study options?

[verito]

Hi AW, am in the same spot. Have been working for 5 years now, and i have a pretty stable job that is well paid. But of course, i do not like it and would like to pursue another career. I applied to 5 Masters programs in International Affairs. I so far have one admission, unfunded.

I am extremely happy but the whole economic situation has brought havoc in my head : what if , after quitting my job and going for the masters, i do not get a job when i am done? What if my salary ends up being much lower. I am willing to stay at the same level, but a pay cut would definitely not be ideal.

My boss has asked me to defer admissions but i am torn. I would not have hesitated 8 months ago, but with all this economic backlash... it does not seem reasonable to go for something i would love to do vs. a stable job. After all i do already have a master's in another field....

What would you do?

[Jordan+AirForce1]

hey guys, i'm in the same situation. I've been working as an engineer for about a year and a half after my BS, and well, i wouldn't say it's well-paying, but it pays for my rent, and i'm able to pay off my college loans and my car loan, as well as helping out my significant others financially.

i've gone through the same thing, that considering the current economic situation, maybe leaving my job won't be a good idea.. it's a really complicated issue.

i think it all depends on what you really want. I think if you choose what's best for you, stick with it, and give it all you've got, you will not regret it later.

In any case, i wish the best for all of us who have to make this decision this year..

[AlwaysWorried]

I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one making a hard choice about going for an unfunded program. It just freaks me out that:

I will be losing a years salary at 75K + tuition/living 54K. That Works out to almost $130K for one year between actual expenses and opportunity costs. What if it ends up taking me two years. That would be $260K. For that much money I could buy a house.

Hopefully I will be making at least 10K a year more after I graduate, but it still gives me some pause to think about what I'm giving up.

Could someone help me see this in a more positive light?

[glasses]

Well, I think the question really depends on whether what you want to do or not requires a graduate degree. If it does, I'd come down on the side of going for it, regardless of the financial difficulty you'll suffer in the interim, because it'll put you in a better place--psychologically and even possibly financially--in the long run. Don't think of it in terms of $$ you'll lose; think of it in terms of what you'll gain.

On the flip side, I'd also say you might want to make dead sure that you need the degree. Although I'm not a grad student yet, I believe that getting in is only a very small part of the game, and if you don't need the degree, it'll be damn hard slogging through the rest of the game, particularly since your programs are unfunded.

Speaking of which, and returning to the first category (needing the degree): is there a possibility that y'all could stay at your current jobs for now, and apply for programs with funding the following cycle? You're obviously qualified to get in . . . are there funded masters programs in your fields that you could go for?

[was1984]

I'm in the exact same boat, but my decision was made for me when I was laid off shortly after applying. I asked my manager for a recommendation, which was very very positive, but made his layoff decision easy. I am going back to school and trying not to worry about the $150k+ (or even close to half a million if I go on for Ph.D., holy crap). I look at it like I'd rather be poor than be bored. My job was starting to get pretty ho-hum after 2 years, so I couldn't imagine myself doing that in 15 years. My favorite courses in my undergrad were analog design courses, which as I'm sure you know require at least an M.S., so that's what I'm doing.

I'd say go for it. I'm tired of testing other people's work too!

[studentfromLA]

I worked in my field for 12 years before deciding to change careers and go back to school. I gave up a 6 figure salary for a graduate student stipend, and I have not regretted the decision for one minute (okay, to be perfectly honest, when I'm up late working on an especially hard assignment, I have thought that my job was actually easier than grad school, but that's a different subject altogether ;-). But for the most part, I am optimistic that when I complete my program, I will actually be able to obtain gainful employment in a field of work that I find much more interesting, relevant and rewarding than what I was doing before.

Believe me, if you don't like your job now, the money isn't going to make you like it any better as time goes on. Unless you think you will not have to work for a living for most of your adult life, I'd say go back to school now while you have the chance and are not too deep into life's responsibilties to make going to school too difficult to manage. My friends who are still working in my old career hate it too, but now they have kids and mortgages and don't have the flexibility to change careers mid-stream. One friend has a term for it -- staying in a job you hate because of the $$ -- he calls it the "golden handcuffs."

Of course, only you can judge how much benefit the degree will bring to your future work life -- if it will allow you to do something you are more passionate about than the job you are doing now, I say go for it, because the average person works for over 40 years of their adult life. I think I'd have killed myself if I had to do my old job for another 25 years.

[was1984]

(okay, to be perfectly honest, when I'm up late working on an especially hard assignment, I have thought that my job was actually easier than grad school, but that's a different subject altogether ;-).

When I first started co-oping I loved that my job was so much easier than school, AND I was paid instead of paying. If I had to pinpoint one thing now that I didn't like about my job, it would be that it was far too easy. It is interesting how that works. One of my driving forces in going back to school is that it will be HARD, and I just can't wait!

[BayAreaStat86]

I'm not in the same situation, I still haven't made it to the graduate program, but I'd like to offer my perspective.

Right now, it's seemingly prevalent in American society (I can only speak on my own experience but it likely pertains to many others, both domestic and international) that society encourages youth to attend school with the sole incentive to land a high-paying job....but that doesn't ensure joy!

So what it really comes down to is what you value more: high-paying job or a job that you truly love (because it benefits yourself and others, or whatever reason).

I don't think Jordan+AirForce1 could have said it any better, if you want something, go for it. Fight for it, endure and persevere, and you will definitely not regret it in the future. Set the goal and go for it, don't be deterred by financial insecurities....or what's the point of living life?

Frederick Douglas once said, "If there is no struggle, there is no progress." Some things that you desire in life, you'll have to work hard and struggle for. I say go for it....but it's easy for me to say that because I'm not in your shoes. But good luck whatever decision it may be.

[AlwaysWorried]

I really appreciate everyones advice and support. I have already told my manager that I will be leaving, so now it is starting to feel more real. As the time gets closer I am trying to figure out if i want to be more theoretically oriented in my masters coursework or be more practice oriented. I am conflicted about studying the theoretical side of solid state physics and developing the next generation of solar panels or go for a design oriented track. I again see myself at another fork in the road.

Has anyone else faced a similar dilemma?

[volumen]

I have decided to go for my Masters that is partially funded. I have undergrad student debt, but I just don't want to work another year. I have all the time to work after grad school. I am going to school not in the hopes of getting a better paying job, as I will likely make less if I teach then what I have been making in my career. I can always go back to the career, but I am less and less excited about it, so time to do something exciting.

[moommoombaba]

I'm in the exact same boat, but my decision was made for me when I was laid off shortly after applying. I asked my manager for a recommendation, which was very very positive, but made his layoff decision easy

i can feel you. i asked for LOR around june, boss was very supportive of it, then went on vacation during thanksgiving and first day of work after that was *bang* 'i am sorry but you just got laid off'. the only good side was i was able to spend much more time on my applications and essays. luckily right now i got employed again and my current boss is willing to keep me as part time during grad school, so the whole laid off thing wasn't so bad afterall.