Exploration
The decision to attend graduate school is not easy. Graduate school represents an extensive commitment of time, money, and hard work. Graduate school in itself is not a plan. It is a step in the plan.
Reasons to attend
- Do you know what your short- and long-term goals are and how a graduate degree can help you achieve them?
- Do you want to enter a profession that requires an advanced degree (some examples are Medicine, Law, Library Science, Architecture, Teaching)?
- Can a single topic or narrow range of topics sustain your interest for the next 2-7 years?
- Are you comfortable initiating and carrying out independent research? (Most Ph.D. programs are highly academic and research oriented)
- Are you willing to invest the time, energy, and money associated with going to graduate school? Have you thoroughly investigated these costs?
- Are you prepared to spend the majority of the next 2-7 years studying while living on a limited budget?
- Do you want to make a career change?
- Will you achieve higher potential for future promotion? Obtaining a graduate degree does not always lead to a high-paying job right away, but it can open up opportunities for future promotions.
Think twice if...
- You are stalling on making a career decision.
- You are applying to graduate school because "everyone else is doing it."
- You are getting "pressured" into it.
- You feel like you have no career options.
- You need a break from school.
- You aren't ready to commit 2-7 years of your life to study a particular topic.
- You believe you will be guaranteed a higher salary.
If you're having trouble with any of these questions, make an appointment with a Career Counselor at the Career Center.
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