Post-Graduate Dilemma: Part I

As time quickly approaches for our graduation ceremony, every senior student at least once asks the following question to themselves: Is it essential to complete a post-graduate degree for my career? Obviously the answer is yes, for anyone who has considered drawing an academic roadmap for their future, although this alone does not guaranty that it will make a difference in the actual business environment.
Modern human resources philosophy states that today’s business environment looks more for what you can give to the company than what you have gained in school. Unless you gained an expertise for the advertised subject in your post-graduate study, one may hire your undergraduate friend who experienced actual years on the job, related with that subject. Still getting a Master’s degree has unique advantages: first, certain careers definitely require an advanced degree such as medical doctors and lawyers. Second, studies show that people with advanced degrees earn more on average than people with bachelor’s degrees. The important thing to note here is, do the wage differences really compensate for the amount of money and time you spend during your post-graduate years.
For some administrative and hi-tech positions, some companies require individuals to complete their post-graduate study prior to employment, even though some prefer to send their current employees for short and midterm MBA and certification programs. The latter is typically for patient and stable employees, whom make a career within a bottom-up fashion, since at every advancement stage they will be more preferable due to their experience and knowledge about corporate culture and business models.
Local figures show that 17 of the most prestigious 30 companies from the retail, consumption and telecommunication industries think post-graduate studying is not essential for recruitment. 12 of them believe a Master’s degree is wanted for some positions while for other positions job experience and personal details are more important. We should extend the topic question on whether or not post-graduate study makes a difference for a specific position. Clarifying the subject in this manner enables you to draw different alternatives for the paths to that position while identifying the opportunity costs. Thus, if you go to graduate school without a clear goal, you will probably end up wasting both time and money.

Doğuş Uysal (CS/IV)