<p>I was accepted into a program that allows me to attend UPenn's Graduate School of Education for a Masters in Education. </p>
<p>Although I am interested in education and social justice, I am not an education person. I'm graduating with a BA in international relations from a university in DC and always believed my track would be to stay here and do my MPP someday. Yet, I question how effective an MPP is as a professional degree nowadays as well (from what I see around DC so many grad students/grad school grads are doing admin jobs and research assistant jobs). The good thing about this program is that I would not have to pay too much (would take out a few loans, but not much). </p>
<p>My mentors give me some sound advice. Some say that it wouldn't matter what Masters degree I receive and that I should just go for it considering it would be cheap. Others say that I should not go to graduate school unless I know I am fully committed to the field of education and that grad school should be like a "candy shop." What do you think? (Note: I would have a Masters at the age of 23 so that would be a bit concerning)</p>
<p>Also, I am concerned that if I do a Masters in Education I will have to continue to be a teacher, work in school administration/counseling, or I won't be able to transition into public policy. I have nothing against teachers or school administration, but all I know is that I don't want to do that my whole life or for a long period of time. Is this a valid concern?</p>
<p>Any insights would be highly appreciated!</p>
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<p>What? NO. That’s terrible advice.</p>
<p>If you don’t want to do work in education, don’t get a master’s in education. Simple. It doesn’t matter if it’s cheap or easily available. First of all, “cheap” is not “free” - if you have to shell out any money for a master’s, it should be in something in which you are interested and plan to make a career. Second of all, your time is also worth money. If it’s a one-year program, that’s one year that you could’ve been working and making an income. Even if you had full funding for the program, there’s still that opportunity cost.</p>
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<p>This is closer to the truth. A graduate degree is a means to an end. You get it because you want to do something specific. Now, teaching is not the only thing you can do with a master’s in education, depending on what kind of master’s it is - you could also do work in educational policy, or educational testing and measurement. But if you aren’t interested in education, then don’t get a master’s in education.</p>
<p>Honestly, if you aren’t sure what you want to do the best thing you can do for yourself is work for a few years. By working, you can figure out whether you even need a grad degree - and if you do, what kind of grad degree you need.</p>
<p>Read this: [Should</a> you go to graduate school?](<a href=“http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/outside-voices-careers/2014/05/19/should-you-go-to-graduate-school]Should”>http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/outside-voices-careers/2014/05/19/should-you-go-to-graduate-school)</p>
<p>@juillet – Sorry, when I meant “it wouldn’t matter what Masters degree I receive,” I meant that perhaps getting a Masters in Public Policy or Education might not matter as much in the long run considering the fields intersect since I want to do education policy and since MPP graduation outcomes seem to be losing value each year. But I understand what you’re saying. Thanks for being so clear and dry about it. I think coming out of undergrad has given me some rosy picture about how grad school will look like.</p>
<p>I am interested in education policy and have my own story and reasons, but I won’t go into that. What I’m scared of right now is (A) long-term salary and (B) career stagnation. Of course, I don’t think I’ll be a teacher forever, but from what I’ve gathered the field of education yields lower salaries and benefits. Along with that, I’m concerned about the practical end goal of what a career in education is… to be an Assistant Principal or Principal? or some Educational Consultant or Director of Admissions? Not to say that any of these jobs are bad, but I think one of the reasons for why I chose IR for my undergrad was because I always believed I had dreams of becoming something I couldn’t even fathom. A degree in education is more specific than IR (and perhaps less comfortable than what I imagined my life to be) and I think that’s why I’ve been struggling coming to terms with it. </p>
<p>Believe it or not, this helped a lot! Sorry for the long posts. Please, please let me know if you have any other great insights!</p>