HIT: I'm in - but it costs so damn much!
December 6, 2010 1:25 PM   Subscribe

I was just accepted to part-time masters program that is directly related to my current career path. I'm excited, but the price is making me reconsider. Help me deal with snowflaky grad school sticker shock.

Background: I'm in my mid 20s and I've been working in healthcare IT for around 4 years. I've liked both of my jobs in this industry so far and am interested in the industry in general. I've been praised for my work and given good raises, but I haven't advanced as quickly as some of my peers - I'm still doing analyst work while other with my background and experience are getting into management or at least leading projects. Even if it's well-paid analyst work, I haven't seen any indications that I'm being considered for real advancement. What I'd like to do eventually is work for a hospital leading IT teams.

I've been accepted to a masters program in Medical Informatics. I want to take these courses - I still sometimes feel like I don't get the industry as much as I could, so I'm interested in the coursework. I graduated college with a liberal arts BA, so I'd like to study something on a professional track. I'd like a credential that will make my resume stand out a little more. And frankly, I'd just like to get a masters and feel like I'm advancing myself.

But the degree will cost me just over $40k, and will take me 2-4 years to complete depending on the course load I choose. So while I want to get this degree, I'm wondering if it's really worth it. I'll keep working the whole time and my savings are intact, so I wouldn't have to take on debt - but that's a lot of foregone savings. I want to do this, but it feels self-indulgent. It feels like I'm going to sink a lot of cash into this and not get much in the way of ROI. There are a lot of conflicting opinions on the value of graduate degrees to one's career, and I'm questioning myself thanks to the people who say that hard workers will advance just fine without fancy degrees.

Complicating the matter: I originally planned to get an MBA, but decided that I want to keep working for a few more years first. This is my way of gaining a real credential without exiting the workforce. So I'm unsure whether this will save me the time and expense of getting an MBA, or if I'll wrap up this $40k program and immediately decide to launch into a $140k MBA program. And I feel that I won't know the answer to that until I've worked for a few more years and completed this program.

So I'm looking for input - is this worth it? Why or why not? What else should I be thinking about? The answer that I want to hear is "yes, it's worth it." But I need some outside perspective.

I'm also stalling because I feel like I can't start coursework without completing the degree. It seems like a waste and a black mark if I apply to MBA programs later. Let me know if that's the wrong way to think about it - it would certainly take some of the pressure off the decision.
posted by Tehhund to Education (12 answers total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
Have you checked to see if your employer offers any sort of tuition reimbursement?
posted by amarynth at 1:33 PM on December 6, 2010


Response by poster: I've checked. No tuition reimbursement.
posted by Tehhund at 1:36 PM on December 6, 2010


Is your current employer offering any tuition cost sharing? Will they promise a salary increase or promotion once you have the degree? If the answer to both of those is no, that says your current employer doesn't think much of the degree. Try to find out what hospitals would think of the degree; would they see you as a more promising applicant? Unless you hear from someone in a hiring position "yes, a Masters in Medical Informatics would launch you straight to the top of my pile", I think the market is telling you the degree is not worth what it costs.
posted by slow graffiti at 1:39 PM on December 6, 2010



I'm also stalling because I feel like I can't start coursework without completing the degree. It seems like a waste and a black mark if I apply to MBA programs later. Let me know if that's the wrong way to think about it - it would certainly take some of the pressure off the decision.


I don't think this is an issue so long as you quit relatively early on. If you get 2 years in and then drop it, that'll make you look like a flake, but if you take a semester and decide that what you're learning isn't really going to be helpful to you, compared to an MBA, that'd be easy to explain away on an application.
posted by kagredon at 1:40 PM on December 6, 2010


Short answer: sure, it's probably worth it.

Longer, less direct to your question, answer: Have you discussed your career path with your direct supervisor? Some jobs I have had were pretty much on cruise-control with little to no "check-ins" from the boss, re: career planning. Other jobs I have had included almost monthly one-on-one meetings where the entire point of the meetings were to align my expectations and career goals with my boss. Guess which of those two situations lead to more understanding (on all sides) about who expected what when?

Also, I think it is worth asking whether you think you would enjoy the advancement you are seeing in your peers? I know I, for one, always thought I would climb the corporate ladder. However, having seen the ladder, I realized two things: 1) it is often far more difficult and/or tedious to balance on the higher rungs, and b) the actual day-to-day work is far more interesting near the lower rungs. While I still entertain rising pay and career advancement, I'm going about it from an entirely different angle these days - I'm not looking at the more typical project management route (which, with some caveats, seems to be the direct approach up the ladder). Instead, I'm concentrating on a more technical route (programmer->technical lead->software architect). This technical route is likely longer and never makes its way to the top, but then I will probably enjoy myself more and have less stress and tedium in the long run.

Have you checked with your employer about tuition reimbursement?.. Or perhaps reduced hours at the same pay while you study? Or even just a more flexible schedule while you are attending classes? I have seen all of these situations "in the wild".

Sorry I didn't really get into your actual question of the worth of the program vs. the cost. In the long run $40k spread over 3 or 4 years is probably worth it, especially when you account for education tax credits.. but then I'm always averse to debt. If you didn't have to take out loans to accomplish this it makes the decision much much easier, in my opinion.
posted by mbatch at 1:42 PM on December 6, 2010 [1 favorite]


Really if you can pay for the program out of concurrent earnings and the program is something that interests you, in a field in which you are already employed, then I can't see why you wouldn't do it. What would you use the savings for otherwise?

Have you calculated your actual expected ROI for the degree, perhaps talking with your current employer or others in the field?

I would be surprised if an MBA has a greater ROI than a specialized MA in a field you already work in and enjoy.

No one is going to criticize you as self-indulgent for getting an MA in Medical Informatics.
posted by ChrisHartley at 1:50 PM on December 6, 2010 [1 favorite]


but I haven't advanced as quickly as some of my peers - I'm still doing analyst work while other with my background and experience are getting into management or at least leading projects. Even if it's well-paid analyst work, I haven't seen any indications that I'm being considered for real advancement. What I'd like to do eventually is work for a hospital leading IT teams.

Your answer is in this sentence. You need to take a cold, hard look and figure out why you aren't getting the project leads. Is it your knowledge and experience, which could be remedied by the MA? Or is it something else, like whether you are suited to the work intellectually or personally? Ask your bosses for feedback -- and you could also ask your colleagues who are getting the advancement you're looking for.

If what you want to do is lead hospital IT teams, then you need to go do a ton of informational interviews to find out what people with those jobs do, and whether you have any gaps the MA would fill.

But besides this kind of specific skills-based analysis, you also really need to look into the other two other main factors in professional schools: connections and "brand." Is the MA going to help you make connections, through alumni and internships, that will lead to opportunities? This can be the most beneficial part of professional school -- there is simply no substitute for doing an internship in getting to know people. Is the MA highly regarded as a credential in your field?
posted by yarly at 2:07 PM on December 6, 2010


I've seen some analysts hit a ceiling because they didn't go to the next level with regards to their education. Credentials matter, especially in the type of work that you do.

You might want to sit down with a supervisor and get them to commit (verbally or whatever) that this approach will position you well for management and/or team leadership, because that is your goal. It is important to say that and have them acknowledge that you said it.

You can also ask for work opportunities to assist in those capacities along the way (team leads and managers ALWAYS need co-ordinators or backups). Having this conversation is important to being able to decide whether or not it will be worth it at your organization; because some places don't actively try and bring people up. They might say no, and that this is not possible, which means you would probably want to start using your educational opportunities to network and find a new job that would allow you to achieve your goals.

Having your education plus your experience will make you a more attractive candidate if you need to move companies, especially if the standard education levels are known for the types of positions you are looking for.
posted by dobie at 2:13 PM on December 6, 2010


...part-time ... just over $40k...

Is this one of those continuing education type of deals (i.e. weekend and evening school for working adults)? By "I've been accepted", did you mean you filled out the application and paid the fee? If so, it's probably not worth it.

I signed up for one of those programs at University of Washington to raise my GPA, and am definitely quitting after the first quarter wraps up in a couple of weeks. I didn't even do it for the credential, just the coursework because it was in the evening. It's a total joke, the degree is worthless – anyone with enough cash can get it, the instructors have so far been terrible, and judging by the other people enrolled in the program (a motley crew of people who couldn't get jobs but have rich parents to pay tuition), it's an overall worthless endeavor. YMMV.
posted by halogen at 2:28 PM on December 6, 2010 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: Thanks for the excellent answers so far. One thing that AskMe has proven is I need to get out of my head and do some informational interviews. I've been putting that off, but it's now on the "important to do" list.

Regarding talking to my employer: I don't plan on staying here past the summer. I have consulting opportunities that, barring a major change in the industry, will be available this summer when an old noncompete expires. So my most likely career path will be a few years of consulting, followed by looking for a stable job at a hospital when I'm burned out on the travel & demands. Let me know if that changes my equation.
posted by Tehhund at 2:29 PM on December 6, 2010


Have you considered maybe a part time MBA program? If you're worried that something will make you look like a flake, you can always leave it off your resume. I'll second dobie that one can easily hit a professional ceiling but I don't have enough knowledge of your industry to know if it's one where that might happen.

I think if I was looking at resumes and saw that someone had this degree and had worked in the field for a few years, regardless of the position you were applying for, I'd probably consider it a good thing that you took your work seriously enough to study it outside of work. You're not talking about getting an M.A. in English or art history, this is something that is directly related to your field of work. I'm inclined to say go for it.
posted by kat518 at 3:09 PM on December 6, 2010


I have just started a program that's pretty similar, and as soon as I got in (this summer), I turned around and put it on my resume, which I then sent out to all kinds of places. Talking about my path forward in the degree program and how relevant my coursework and the connections I'd be making would be to Job/Industry X in interviews landed me a new gig with a 30% higher salary than the old one... which is instantly paying for the master's degree.

Recommended highly, if you can swing it.
posted by deludingmyself at 3:46 PM on December 6, 2010


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