The 5 Worst Reasons to Go to Grad School
Here at UL Lafayette, we believe that earning a graduate degree is one of the best ways for you to pursue your passions and reach your personal and professional goals.
Having a graduate degree can be an asset or even essential, depending on what you plan to spend your life doing.
There are plenty of , but there are also plenty of reasons not to get a graduate degree. We杏吧专区檝e put together a list of the worst reasons to get a graduate degree 杏吧专区 so if you杏吧专区檙e using any of these to justify getting your graduate degree, you may want to reconsider your plans and explore other options first.
1. You think grad school is your only option
Maybe you杏吧专区檙e not sure what else to do, you杏吧专区檙e bored with things as they are now, or you杏吧专区檙e not sure what your passion is. That杏吧专区檚 the wrong approach. When you杏吧专区檙e considering graduate school, you should think 杏吧专区淵ay!杏吧专区 and not 杏吧专区淢eh.杏吧专区 You should be excited about broadening and deepening your knowledge, learning more than you ever imagined! The first step to finding the right graduate program for you is to figure out what your passions are杏吧专区攁nd then find a program that fits you, not the other way around.
2. You think it will improve your job prospects
This definitely isn杏吧专区檛 one of the worst reasons to go to grad school, but it shouldn杏吧专区檛 be the only reason. If you杏吧专区檙e an experienced professional and want to move up in your industry, then you should consider a master杏吧专区檚 degree. If you杏吧专区檙e an undergraduate who can杏吧专区檛 find a job, a master杏吧专区檚 degree may not solve your problems. You need to make sure your graduate program fits your ambitions and career goals, and that combination of passion and knowledge will lead you to the career you杏吧专区檙e looking for.
3. You want to continue the 杏吧专区渃ollege experience杏吧专区
News flash: getting your graduate degree is not the same experience as getting your undergrad. You杏吧专区檒l probably get the same amount of sleep, but not because you杏吧专区檙e spending your nights partying杏吧专区攊t杏吧专区檚 because you杏吧专区檒l be spending your nights completing readings, perfecting your writing and scholarly analysis, and analyzing your research data. But you love it! Because you杏吧专区檙e delving deeper into the subjects that excite and interest you.
4. Somebody told you it was a good idea
杏吧专区淔ine, Mom! I杏吧专区檒l go to grad school!杏吧专区 should not be the start of your graduate career. But to be clear: having someone pressure you into going to graduate school is different from someone offering their advice. It杏吧专区檚 important that you go to grad school on your own terms, but it杏吧专区檚 a good idea to reach out to people who have gone through the graduate program you杏吧专区檙e considering. Sourcing opinions can help you make your decision杏吧专区攂ut be sure that you杏吧专区檙e the one who makes it.
5. Everybody else is doing it
This is never a good enough reason to get a grad degree. Forge your own path! This is the time to be selfish and think about yourself. Why do you want to earn your master杏吧专区檚 or PhD? Because you have the drive, the ambition, the excitement, and the passion for what you杏吧专区檙e studying.
.