Grad school too soon?

Graduate School
1

<p>Hello, all. Just figured I'd tell you my story and ask your opinion.</p>

<p>I've wanted to write since I was a kid. In high school, I became demoralized enough to call it "going into publishing." By my freshman year of college, I realized that all it took to write was to write. So I joined the paper. I wrote constantly. I interned or freelanced for five companies, including a major news network and a well-known alternative quarterly. I found it challenging and often exhilarating. When I became editor of my college paper, I was surprised to find that I had a knack for [crisis] management as well.</p>

<p>Then something happened. I applied to two journalism schools, Berkeley and Columbia, fully expecting to apply to some jobs in the spring. I made the schools, but I never wound up applying for any jobs, because I am a big wimp.</p>

<p>Now I'm set to start a one-year masters program at Columbia in August. I've been looking forward to this for four years. Sort of. All this time, I've been working so hard to leave nothing to chance. I promised myself I wouldn't depend on my mom for money. She's willing to pay most of my tuition (I'll work part time and take out my first student loan). At the same time, all this has shown me something: my mom went into a relatively stable profession (law). That has allowed her to fund my forays into what's currently the most volatile. </p>

<p>Is it too late now? Can I get out of this? Should I get out of this? Is this just a lapse of idealism brought on by panic, or am I really doing everything wrong? I've heard both.</p>

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<p>I don’t really understand your question; the title of your post refers to going to grad school “too soon,” but the post itself makes it sound like you’re worried about the journalism profession and not attending grad school itself?</p>

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<p>If you can’t work yourself up to apply for a job, journalism isn’t for you.</p>

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<p>@ Zelda: A bit of both. I’m wondering if I should have tried to make it in the field before committing to a program.</p>

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<p>To be honest, I would not take a student loan out to get a master’s in journalism, particularly right now. The industry is in crisis, jobs are extremely scarce and editors generally value real-world experience over credentials.</p>

<p>I think you would be better served going after internships and entry-level jobs. You’re going to have to start with entry-level jobs anyway - very few journalists get hired to “big-name” outlets without extensive experience at lower levels of the industry. Getting a master’s, even from Columbia, is not an instant ticket to the NYT or HuffPo. You might well start in Poughkeepsie or Corpus Christi, making $25,000 per year.</p>

<p>Getting paid even $25,000 is better than paying someone else $40,000+.</p>

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<p>@ adkinsjm: This isn’t the greatest example of my commitment to the field. I worked very hard to get paid internships and freelance work in previous years. But you’re right, I botched it this time.</p>

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<p>@ polarscribe – It would be a small loan. That said, I’m coming around to your view. Corpus Christi or Poughkeepsie would be great.</p>