Why Should I Go to Graduate School?

By Ian Acosta on July 9, 2017

Whether your undergraduate career is winding down or is just starting, or you are already fresh out of college, graduate school is one of the many routes you can take after graduation. Even then, there is a myriad of paths you can take in just choosing what to study in graduate school! You can become a doctor or lawyer, get an MBA, etc.

Why go to graduate school and obtain a higher-level degree? You are about to find out.

Invest in the future

Even going back to your undergraduate days, going to college was a decision to invest in yourself for the long run. Graduate school is the exact same thing. Graduate school can sometimes be considered the academic version of professional training. What that means is that it enables you to graduate with not only academic knowledge in your field but professional experience as well.

Do not view it as just going to school to avoid getting out into the real world. Do it to round out your knowledge and prepare yourself for your career.

Stand out in your job search

The fact of the matter is this: graduate degrees get you noticed. We live in a time where more people than ever are going to college in order to obtain a degree and get a job. Therefore, by going to graduate school, you help yourself stand out and get a leg up on the competition as compared to your peers.

Develop professionally and personally

I touched on it earlier but a huge reason to go to graduate school besides the education is the development of your professional skills. Not only that, you will find out more about yourself and what career/area you would choose to pursue after school. In addition to that and also very important, you will make many important connections. From your fellow students to professors, to counselors, to recruiters, to industry professionals, keep in contact with everyone you meet. You never know who can give you a hookup when you need it.

Pursue your interests more in depth

While undergraduate courses give students the opportunity to study modules and courses of personal interest, a graduate degree does this with much more focus. While enrolled in graduate school classes, you typically will have to conduct personal research along with your classes. This allows you to get real world experience and to broaden your breadth of knowledge in a particular area. Attending extracurricular activities and meetings, hearing from guest speakers and lecturers as well as full-time faculty members you find interesting, is what makes grad school so diverse and multidisciplinary.

Higher earning potential

This is probably an obvious one and there is a reason I did not put it first. While it is an important factor, money is not everything. However, for those of you who want to make more in their lifetimes, pay off other debts faster, and have higher cash flow in the long run, studying and pursuing a graduate degree might be the way to go.

Academic recognition

As mentioned previously, you will no doubt have the opportunity to have a solid platform and groundwork to conduct your own research. Research is such a major point of what goes into building someone’s resume for the future. If you conduct any research or publish a study or paper that is written exceptionally well, you will no doubt be recognized by the academic community.

This could lead to presenting at a conference, contribute to another research project, or even receive publication in an academic journal. Not only would that be an amazing professional accomplishment, it would be a great personal accomplishment as well.

Personal satisfaction

As I just mentioned, some may go for the personal reward of what comes with accomplishing graduate school. It is not easy, just as your undergraduate degree was not easy. If it was easy, everyone would do it. If you have the mentality and personality of constantly wanting to achieve greater things and set higher goals for yourself, graduate school would be an amazing way to do that while also helping your professional goals. Keep them hand in hand and your time spent in academia will not only make you better off in the short term, but it will also keep you motivated in the long run as well.

Competition

Ever have a friend or group of friends that you were competitive with growing up? You all tried to one up each other to prove who was the best at any one thing. Make graduate school part of that motivation as well. Prove to them but also to everyone else that the challenge of higher learning is something you are ready and willing to take on. What is better is that when you’re done, you will have a degree and exciting career to show for it.

isorepublic.com

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