<p>I have been thinking a bit about what I want to do after I finish my MS degree:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Continue to work in industry and make a higher salary. Possibly get married, start a family, and such.</p></li>
<li><p>Get a PhD, stay in school for longer, and possibly do something interesting.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>How did you people decide what to do? I currently work in software(been working in the position for two years now after undergraduate study) and am somewhat satisfied with what I do. I would really like to continue on with school and work in a field directly related to research however the salary of a PhD student is horrible. I think I would have trouble affording the quality of living I have right now- a single apartment, car, groceries, health insurance, and such. If you are really interested in your subject of study, will this even matter very much?</p>
<p>I took a break to work a bit after my BS and long story short, I hated it. So I kept going and now am finishing my Masters with plans to start my Ph.D. I only worked briefly, and never had much money. So a decent 25K year stipend is plenty for me. Money was not much of a factor in the decesion overall to keep going. It was more about personal satisfaction and doing work that I’m invested in, that I own from start to finish, and honestly just being around academic minded people. I have ZERO interest in working for profit or a company who only cares about the bottom line. Sure academics has there issues as well, but I’ll take that any day over industry. MOST important though, I don’t feel like an expert, and I WANT to feel like an expert in engineering (well my small slice anyway). 4 years with just a BS wasn’t enough time, and even 2 more with a MS wasn’t enough, I’m in it for the long haul.</p>
<p>Also, why can’t you start a family and get married while in graduate school? What if your spouse is working full time and can support you more, or what if you both struggle with money in graduate school but you make it work? Plenty of people do both, the “American Dream” is old fashioned, just follow what you want and is best for you. Going to graduate school doesn’t mean giving up any of those old fashioned things, it just means it might be tougher in the short term, or delaying them. Also, you can do something interesting without a graduate degree, but it might not be what you want. I know it wasn’t for me.</p>
<p>What is your style of life anyway? A stipend is just enough to live off of food, maybe a very cheap car, your rent, and that is about it. Doesn’t leave much else around, though you can still get out time-to-time if you so desire. If you honestly care about money and having things that people who you went to undergrad have, then graduate school wouldn’t be the best option. Most of my old UD classmates are at least living in a decent place and enjoying the spoils of there education. Funny though, many tell me they are jealous of ME that I get to do such interesting work in graduate school. I’m never once jealous of them.</p>
<p>Edit: I’d say finally I think of it this way. If you work your ass off for 5-6 years for a company, you might get a raise, a promotion, you MIGHT. If you work your ass off for the next 5-6 years, you would come away with a Ph.D. from likely one of top research universities in world, and have worked with some of the most brilliant minds in your field. Not a bad choice, right :-)</p>
<p>Getting married and going to grad school aren’t mutually exclusive, you know.</p>
<p>I decided to get a PhD after my BA because I wanted a career in research. I was reasonably certain what I wanted to do research on, and I wanted to go ahead and get started, so I didn’t see much point in waiting and doing something else after my BA when I could go straight into a PhD program.</p>
<p>PhD students don’t get good salaries because we’re not purely workers. First of all, we get paid for half-time work, so actually $30K for half-time work (20 hours/week) is pretty good, as that’s $60K for full-time work. Second of all, you also get tuition and health insurance. My tuition is valued at $40K per year and I haven’t paid a dime of it yet; my health insurance is an additional $3K. Thirdly - and more importantly - PhD students don’t go into this field for the money. There’s not much in it, either during or after grad school. It’s about loving the research and really wanting to answer questions within your field, and/or really wanting to teach on the college level.</p>
<p>That said, I’m a PhD student on an NSF fellowship, living in one of the most expensive cities in the US. I can live quite comfortably on my fellowship. I don’t live like a queen, but I’m not in poverty, either. You learn to make do.</p>
<p>I also worked in software with a pretty good salary. I’m now a 2nd year Ph.D. student. The difference in pay can be significant, but not impossible to overcome. It’s really not so bad if you’re in a technical field.</p>
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<p>I can afford all these things, and also a few more extras as well. The real challenge is for humanities students, where stipends are relatively low, and harsh sacrifices have to be made.</p>
<p>I’m a non-stipended grad student - I don’t have a car, keep my food purchases simple, live in a barely-furnished apartment and lack health insurance. You do what you have to do.</p>
<p>But I had to go back to school to be eligible for a government student hiring program and in four months, I’ll start a $52K GS-9 permanent job with a federal land management agency that ladder-promotes to $62K GS-11 after the first year. So, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel and making sacrifices along the way is just life.</p>