<p>Hey all,
Here's a little background. I obtained my bachelors in legal studies and graduated with a 3.4 GPA. I've always wanted to go to grad school... this is a personal goal I've always had. Unfortunately, I did not do my research and out of impulse enrolled in a Master in Health Care Administration. I have never worked in the health care field mainly because it wasn't very appealing to me BUT somewhere in my mind I thought to myself how difficult can a health care master program is. After taking 3 classes I can honestly say I HATE IT, it is not as hard as you would think but i do not find it interesting and it is making the classes unbearable. I am withdrawing from school and pursing my passion, whether or not it makes me a ton of money after I graduate. I was lucky enough to have landed a good paying job with bachelors. Anyway, I am looking for advise as to which of these majors to go for....I am very passionate about them and it was a mistake to enroll in the MHA program when all I know is law. I have narrowed it down to a Master in Legal Studies, Master in Psychology, Master in Forensic Psychology, or Master in Criminal Justice. I included Psychology as I took some courses in Psychology before and I absolutely loved. I have learned my lesson and regret wasting my time. Thankfully I just turned 23 so I am glad I was able to quit before I spent another year being miserable. Sorry for the long paragraph. Thanks </p>
<p>Well, since you entered a master’s degree program hastily last time, you want to avoid making the same mistake. Good for you - a lot of people learn much later, when they are still bearing the debt and misery.</p>
<p>With that said, though, the learning from your mistake into the future. By now you must have realized that a master’s degree is preparation for a specific career or set of careers, not just something to get to study something interesting. So you select the master’s program that will enable you to enter the career that you want. If you wanted to be a banker, you’d get an MBA or an MS in finance. If you wanted to work in public policy, you’d get an MPP or MPA. If you wanted to be a lawyer, you’d get a JD, and so on.</p>
<p>So what do you want to be? If you don’t know yet, then the best thing you can do is stay in your job and work while you figure it out. In your off time, reflect on what it is you like about your job and what you don’t like.</p>
<p>I honestly don’t recommend any of the master’s you mentioned, because they don’t really seem like good professional preparation for anything.</p>
<p>-What do you even do with a master’s of legal studies? You can’t practice law with it in the U.S., and if you wanted to be a paralegal, you can do that with a BA and a paralegal certificate. So why get it?</p>
<p>-Same question with a master’s in psychology. This MA does not prepare you for a job; the purpose of the few MA in psych programs out there is really to prepare you for a PhD program in psychology. You can’t do counseling with an MA in psychology - you’d need an MSW and to become licensed as a clinical social worker, or in some states, you can get a master’s of mental health counseling and get your LPC. But a general MA in psychology is pretty much useless.</p>
<p>-Ditto with forensic psych. What do you want to do with this? If you want to do research on the intersection of psychology and the law, you need a PhD for that. If you want to testify as an expert witness, again, most of those folks have a doctoral degree of some type and do research. If you wanted to work providing mental health services for people involved in the criminal justice system, this degree will not prepare you for that - you’d have to get an MSW or a master’s in mental health counseling (or a PhD in clinical or counseling psychology).</p>
<p>-And for the MS in criminal justice. Again…what are you going to do with it? Most people who get this degree are preparing to go into law enforcement, or are already in the field. Many of them are police officers; some are probation officers or otherwise work in the system. Here’s how the CUNY-John Jay College of Criminal Justice describes its well-reputed MS in criminal justice program:</p>
<p>The aim of the Master of Arts in Criminal Justice Program is to broaden the perspective of those already in the criminal justice profession and prepare students for further graduate work and scholarship.</p>
<p>If neither of those is your goal, then it may not be a good program for you.</p>
<p>My advice is that you stay put and figure out what you really want to do first. It’s very possible that your eventual career doesn’t require a graduate degree at all - remember, most people don’t have them.</p>
<p>Hi,
You make great points. I know for a fact Health Care is not my cup of tea by now. Mathematics does not appeal to me either, I was never bad at it but it is not something I see myself doing. I will take some time to reflect on this. At this point I am just driving myself insane. Law is what I do for a living and I really enjoy what I do; it pays me well and I have learned so much. I will not pursue a JD as it will require for me to quit my job for a whole year and I am also a single mom living on my own so I have to provide. If you feel like there are any other Masters worth looking into, please feel free to share them with me. Thanks</p>