I’ve met a few people now who have 2 bachelors, 2 masters, and 1 PhD. When I asked them why they went down that path, they told me they had the time, money, and everything was inter-connected to lead up to an ultimate goal.
I didn’t want to be rude by asking them if it’s practical, so I thought I’d come here and ask. Is there every a situation where this would make sense or is this more common than I think it is?
For the same reason that some people like avocados… personal preference.
Some people simply love being in school. They love to learn for the sake of learning, not necessarily to push them further along a particular job trajectory.
I have neither the time nor the money for anything beyond my Masters, but I can see how some people might choose that route.
Sometimes that second bachelor’s or master’s is simply a matter of a few additional courses.
Sometimes a student does not get into their given major as an undergrad. After graduation they get another BA for an extra 15-18 credits at a different school in the major that they originally wanted. This is particularly true in fields such as nursing.
I know for me two Bachelors was because my senior year they offered me a full tuition scholarship if I majored in math (I was EE). I asked what it would take and they said I needed two math classes. Of course I did it! So I ended up with a BS EE and a BS in math. I then got an MBA. I almost got my masters in math but stopped due to family issues. It was all to help my career path at work. A friend did the same and then work paid him to go get a PhD and gave him time off to do it so he ended up with exactly what you said. Then there is the career change path like my husband who worked as a Chem E and then went to Law School.
I know folks who work in clinical counseling type jobs who have multiple degrees. They often started out in something general like psych, then later on got another BA in something similar (again just a few courses) and Master’s depending on the specific field they chose. The going on for a first Master’s, you might start out with Psych, then later on go for one in school counseling, pastoral counseling, family counseling, geriatric counseling once you have some work experience and know the specific field you are drawn to.
State regulations may require the specific degree, or it might be harder to get hired or get decent pay without the specific degree. Or it may just be people who continually want to learn more and are fortunate enough to have the means to continually take classes.
Our pastor has at least that many degrees, including the PhD. He’s worked as an addiction counselor for pre-teens among other occupations.
Many of these people (obviously not all) can’t handle working in a real world, so they try to stay in academia as long as they can. If it works for them…great.
Sometimes one interest leads to another, or a person develops an additional interest after fully pursuing the first one. Second bachelor’s aren’t generally funded so it is more usual to get a master’s in that other interest, but some do go back for a bachelor’s or do a post-back.
Life isn’t really pre-planned, and I can think of a few situations in which someone might do this without meaning to from the start. For example, maybe they majored in math in college, but then decided upon graduating they wanted to become an engineer, so they got a second bachelor’s in engineering. Later they got an engineering master’s on their own, and an MBA paid for by their company a few years later. Finally they decided they wanted to be a researcher, so they went back and got a PhD.
Or maybe someone majored in chemistry (or anything) in college, then decided later they wanted to be a nurse. They got a second BSN, worked for a few years, and then decided to get an MSN in nursing administration. Then later they decided they wanted to be a nurse practitioner, so they went back and got an MSN and a DNP in nurse practitioner.
However, just because someone has does something doesn’t mean that it is practical. Most people don’t plan up front for this to happen - it’s kind of just the way their life goes over time, and they have to switch careers for some reason. Two master’s degrees isn’t uncommon - those are only 2 years, and often employers can pay for one or both, and many schools have dual-degree programs that allow you to earn 2 in three years. But two bachelor’s degrees is less common.
It could be good for being in the world of academia, OR if you have rich parents who don’t mind supporting you while you’re taking your time getting degrees. Hell, if you’re a super dedicated student, you could accomplish a Dual undergraduate degree and then a dual graduate degree. For example, if I start my academic journey over, I would have gone for a Double major in something like Economics or Politics + Finance, and then gotten a dual masters degree MSF/MBA + MPP/MPA. It would have taken some time, but it would have left me extremely qualified to work in almost any political or financial field, and then if I got a PhD I could go work as a college professor or something.
Double major in something like Economics or Politics + Finance, and then gotten a dual masters degree MSF/MBA + MPP/MPA. It would have taken some time, but it would have left me extremely qualified to work in almost any political or financial field
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I think that’s what people think, but having a double major or two master’s degrees doesn’t necessarily make you more qualified to work in a specific field than having just one. There are only very specific circumstances in which that might be the case. But generally, the finance jobs wouldn’t care if you had the political science degree; the political science degrees wouldn’t care if you had the finance degree. A job that sits right at the intersection may be mildly interested, but not necessarily more than a person who, say, got an MSF and took a lot of classes or a concentration in political science (or, better yet, worked in politics for 5 years and then went back and got an MSF).
I went to school with guys who were Soil and Water majors, but it only took a few more courses to get two more majors, biology and chemistry. Not 4 degrees, but 4 majors. I’m sure many went on to get masters degrees too.
My sister has a double major bachelors, a JD, and then went back to school to get a masters in education. She teaches 4th grade now after a career in law. My brother’s girlfriend has at least a BS, masters and PhD. Plus a law degree. She’s a patent lawyer and it’s not an usual path to get the science degrees and then the law degree.
Some people might have to take the route of two Bachelor’s degrees if they find out that their first degree is not very marketable. Then, they go on to get a graduate degree, while waiting for a job, and later realize that they picked an umemployable field. (My niece was in this position).
Now, she is trying a marketable major and will be getting her 2nd bachelor’s degree. She plans on getting her masters as well.