This is the third post in the ‘Postgraduate Study’ category which explores the merits of postgraduate education. Interviewing eight people in their 30’s about their postgraduate experiences for my book ‘1000 Years of Career Advice’, I was struck by how different people’s answers were about their own postgraduate experiences.
MSc in Business Analytics Ireland: Were you paid any more than a person at your level who didn’t have a masters in business analytics?
Yes, as I did a relatively obscure type of maths in my masters which is at the heart of my current workplace software. I’m the only one that knows it, but I’d that was more down to luck than design I think!
MSc in Business Analytics Ireland: With hindsight, would you do a masters after uni or would you get a job and why?
I got a job straight after my degree, before I went back and did my masters in business analytics. I think that was a better way to do it because I was sick of university and having no money after the degree. Having a few years of work under my belt changed my approach to the masters for the better I think. it made it less abstract. Even though I got on with all my class mates, you could tell the difference between those who had worked and those that came straight from a degree. The people who had spent time out working were much more clued into the material being taught. They could apply it to something compared to the ones who had come straight out of university.
MSc in Business Analytics Ireland: Would you have been able to get your first job without the masters in business analytics?
I did get my first job without my masters! I got my current one without it too. However, I was a couple months there before I realised that they used the obscure maths that I had studied in my masters in business analytics.
MSc in Business Analytics Ireland: What were three good things, and three bad things about your masters in business analytics?
Good:
- The content (i.e. using computers to solve real world problems),
- That it was partially funded by the EU,
- That it allowed me work part-time due to how the classes were scheduled.
Bad:
I didn’t like that some topics got very abstract and removed from practical application. I can’t think of any other bad things about it to be honest.
MSc in Business Analytics Ireland: How did it compare to your undergrad i.e. hours, fun, people etc
It was less hours in the classroom because the expectation was that you do more yourself outside of the classroom. It was probably more interesting than my degree because it was more specific. I was also a bit more mature and ready to open my brain to it rather than just doing it as another feather on my cap for my CV.
MSc in Business Analytics Ireland: Would you advise a young person to get a job first and then do a masters, or vice versa?
Unless the economy is in bad shape, I’d say try get a job first. It gives you perspective on what you might really want to do for a career. The option of going back to do a masters gives you a way of changing career paths if you realise that you don’t like your current career path.
If you are still unsure as to whether to do a masters in business analytics, or any masters for that matter, please do leave a comment or contact me using the contact section. I’d be more than happy to help. You can also check out my other posts on postgraduate study:
Should I get a job or do a postgraduate degree?
Postgrad Interview #2: Shane, 32, Masters in Civil Engineering
Postgrad Interview #1: Maurice, 34, Masters in Marketing
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