TEM #033: How to research different degree types for your career goals.
March 8, 2024
Happy Friday!
I hope spring is starting wherever you are today. We have a few teeny green buds on our trees in Ohio, I’m totally here for the new beginning energy 🌱
Even more exciting news: every future graduate student I’ve worked with since fall has been accepted to one of their top choice programs!
It’s been such an honor to be a part of journeys like Trevor’s:
I’m looking forward to celebrating even more acceptances in March!
This week’s highlights:
Your education affirmation
How to research different degree types for your career goals
First woman PhD’s degree switch 📜
Workshop: When to Go Back to Graduate School [March 21, register here]
Education affirmation.
“I don’t like to gamble, but if there’s one thing I’m willing to bet on, it’s myself.” – Beyoncé Knowles
How to research different degree types for your career goals.
Something I always found fascinating while working with students on a college campus was the variety of master’s degree types that ultimately led toward the same career path.
Here are the degree names, including mine and my close colleagues:
Master of Arts (MA), Higher Education & Student Affairs
Master of Arts (MA) in Higher Education Administration
Master of Science (MS), College Student Personnel
Master of Education (MEd) in Student Development and Leadership
Plus 10+ other variations of these
Why am I sharing these?
As you start researching programs, it’s easy to stay in a Google box like “MBA” when there are a variety of related graduate programs that can also help you reach your career goals.
Continuing with the business example, did you know specialized master’s programs in business are growing in popularity?
Here are a few Master of Science (MS) examples that can propel someone’s business career:
Business Analytics
Supply Chain Management
Entrepreneurship
Risk Management
Healthcare Management (sensing the “management” trend?”)
Leadership & Organizational Development
This is where researching people whose jobs you aspire to can be helpful - plus doing as many informational interviews as you can (build that network!).
If you see that everyone has an MBA, that will give you a clue that a more broad business degree may be most helpful.
Keep in mind, you might also find a trend of people who graduated in the past 5-10 years have specialized degrees, too.
Ultimately, whichever degree you pursue will give you skills in communication, critical thinking, research and writing - all of which will serve you well as a future leader in your industry.
Action steps:
In addition to researching programs with common degree names for your field, ask Google or ChaptGPT for a list of 10-15 alternative degree types and names that lead to your intended career path
Add these university and program names to your research list
Do a little digging on LinkedIn to see where graduates with these specialized degrees ended up - BONUS: you will likely find new career options you never knew existed
Fun fact.
It’s International Women’s Day!
Elena Cornaro Piscopia was the first woman to pursue a PhD in 1672 at the University of Padua in Italy.
She was initially prevented from graduating with a degree in theology (… because of “policies”), and was eventually allowed to graduate in 1678 with a doctorate in philosophy.
If Dr. Piscopia could go on to have a flourishing career after her degree type was switched, you’ll for sure find success with whichever degree you pursue.
Workshop: When to Go Back to Graduate School 🎓
Date: Thursday, March 21 at 7:30pm EST
What to expect:
An honest look into reasons why working professionals consider grad school to reach their career goals - so you can start determining your priorities
How to know when it’s time for *you* to apply... or if you should explore other options first
Open Q&A (the best part!)
Make it a great weekend!
Dr. Jena
P.S. I’ve been blown away by the enthusiasm for The Graduate School Shop this past week. Thank you to everyone who’s checked it out and found a resource that meets your needs. My goal is to save you hours of time and mental energy when starting the graduate school application process.
Let me know what you’d like to see next in the shop to meet your goals!
** Whenever you are ready, here are 4 ways I can help **
If you’re thinking about graduate school 🤔
NEW Workshop: When to Go Back to Graduate School (March 21, 7:30pm ET)
1:1 Graduate School Strategy Session to talk through your current role, career goals, and when (or if) graduate school makes sense to reach them
If you’re ready to apply this year 😃
The Graduate School Shop for application resources to save you time and mental energy
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Hi! I’m Dr. Jena. I help working professionals confidently apply to graduate school and advanced degree programs so they can achieve their career goals.
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