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Is a Master’s degree worth it, in your view?

Matt N

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Hi guys. I am currently in my second year at university, studying BSc Hons Computer Science at the University of Gloucestershire (an undergraduate degree). As I’m now midway through my second year, I am beginning to ponder what I could do after my undergraduate degree finishes.

My natural thought, of course, was a graduate job. I am currently thinking of applying to summer internship schemes to try and gain some experience (I do have 1 or 2 in mind that would like to apply to in the coming days) which will hopefully make me more desirable to employers, and if that fails, I’m thinking of spending the summer doing some online courses to gain some industry-relevant skills.

However, I did have another thought, and that is that I could do a Master’s degree. The area I’m thinking of going into post-university is Data Science/Data Analytics, and my current university offers MSc Data Science as a course.

My initial thought about doing a Master’s was “no way”. I initially felt that it would simply be more money and a way to “delay the inevitable”, if you like.

However, the more I think about it, the more I think that it might be a very valid option to consider. Doing a Master’s in a more specialised discipline that I’d like to pursue a career in would give me some more nuanced skills in that discipline which could make me desirable to employers, and I actually think I would find it quite interesting.

Also, money wouldn’t be such an issue seeing as you can apparently apply for a student loan to do a Master’s degree if you do it straight out of an undergraduate degree.

However, I am aware that quite a few on this forum are doing or have done postgraduate degrees, so I’d be keen to know; if you are doing or have done a postgraduate degree, is it worth it, in your view? Are you glad to have chosen a Master’s degree? Or do you think that going straight into a graduate job or similar would be more valuable?

I would only be intrigued to know about some of your opinions to help myself make an informed choice about my post-university options. I am only midway through second year, so I haven’t really set anything in stone yet by any means, but I’d just be intrigued to hear some thoughts so I can gauge whether a Master’s degree is for me.
 
I would do it straight after if you can afford it. It seems to be more common for people to apply for jobs with Masters now so maybe worth getting out of the way earlier in your life to keep yourself up with the job market.


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When do you have to decide by? I think you need to see how you get on in the third year.

On my course it was a three year BSc and the option to stay on and do a fourth year to get the MComp degree. However for me by the third year it was getting increasingly difficult and I decided to bail out at that point, despite originally planning to get the Masters.

Partly my decision was based on how the qualification was graded. For the BSc it was something like 30% second year, 70% third year. On the Masters it was something like 10%, 30%, 60%. I felt that as the third year was already hard, I didn't want to do a fourth year that was likely to be even harder and "water down" the grades I'd got so far.

It's a question of confidence as much as what you'd like to do.
 
I certainly won't be doing a masters, I don't really see the point. I'm not convinced having a masters which much increase your employability straight out of university and I know plenty of employers who will pay for you to go through a masters if they want you to do that in a promoted role (which your unlikely to get out of university in the first place).
 
I did a Master's degree (Publishing) in the hope that specialist training would land me a nice job. But employers weren't overly interested in what I'd learned on the course, just the small amount of work experience I'd done as part of it (which taught me nothing). Work experience will land you a job, a Master's degree probably won't.

TBH if you have a first or 2:1 degree in computer science you'll be able to walk into a job anyway. Computer science graduates are a dying breed. I'd recommend lining up a graduate internship as you'll be able to work in a variety of different areas within a company before deciding where you want to commit.
 
Yes companies are desperate for Computer Science graduates, @Matt N I imagine you'll be able to walk into some form of job pretty easily. There's a shortage of people like you. Plus you've got a great attitude. If I were running a computer science company I would hire you instantly.
 
When do you have to decide by? I think you need to see how you get on in the third year.

On my course it was a three year BSc and the option to stay on and do a fourth year to get the MComp degree. However for me by the third year it was getting increasingly difficult and I decided to bail out at that point, despite originally planning to get the Masters.

Partly my decision was based on how the qualification was graded. For the BSc it was something like 30% second year, 70% third year. On the Masters it was something like 10%, 30%, 60%. I felt that as the third year was already hard, I didn't want to do a fourth year that was likely to be even harder and "water down" the grades I'd got so far.

It's a question of confidence as much as what you'd like to do.
The university website says that the application deadline is 9 months before the postgraduate course begins, but I don’t think I necessarily need to accept any offer they give me straight off the bat, so I may have longer to decide… also, I can start in either September or January depending on what length of course I pick. If I go for a 12-month Master’s, I would start in January, but if I went for an 18-month Master’s, then I would start in either September or January. I’m not sure what difference the length of course makes, to be honest…

Grading isn’t an issue because at my university, the MSc in Data Science is a wholly separate qualification. Even if I did badly on the Master’s, it would not undermine my undergraduate grade; I would still have the grade I obtained in BSc Hons Computer Science to fall back on even if the Master’s did go pear shaped. I think my undergraduate degree may be graded 20% second year/80% third year if I’m remembering correctly, but don’t quote me on that.

But no, my grade at undergraduate level would not affect any potential grade at Master’s level because this MSc Data Science qualification is completely separate from the BSc Hons Computer Science degree that I’m doing now in every aspect other than being at the same university on the same campus.

Ultimately, I think I will probably see how third year goes, as well as possibly how well I fare in the graduate job market, before I make any firm decisions. If I get a graduate job offer, then I will definitely take that rather than do a Master’s, but if I struggle on the job market, then I may consider a Master’s to try and give myself an additional edge.
I did a Master's degree (Publishing) in the hope that specialist training would land me a nice job. But employers weren't overly interested in what I'd learned on the course, just the small amount of work experience I'd done as part of it (which taught me nothing). Work experience will land you a job, a Master's degree probably won't.

TBH if you have a first or 2:1 degree in computer science you'll be able to walk into a job anyway. Computer science graduates are a dying breed. I'd recommend lining up a graduate internship as you'll be able to work in a variety of different areas within a company before deciding where you want to commit.
Interesting… so would you say that a Master’s ultimately wasn’t overly valuable to your personal job prospects?

I must say that I’m surprised to hear you say that Computer Science graduates are a “dying breed”. I’d have thought that Computer Science would be an incredibly competitive field with huge numbers of graduates and rather tough employment prospects what with how much it’s growing and how vital it is to modern society!

My first year average was a low 2:1 (my mean grade was 63, my median grade was 60 and my mode grade was 60) even with me having failed and resat one module (thus meaning that my grade for that one was capped at a 40), so I’m hoping for at least a 2:1 upon graduation.

I’m aware that Computer Science is a relatively employable degree compared to some others, but I do wonder if the BSc on its own would give me enough of an edge over other job applicants. With that in mind, I wondered whether an MSc might be worth pursuing to give me better prospects and more of an edge.
 
Do you want to do it? The first question you need to ask. Not is it good but do you want to be at uni longer?

I got to the point during my first year of uni where after 16 solid years in school of some sort it was time to be done and go and try hand elsewhere (retail, followed by metalworking, outside broadcasting, warehouse engineering and now survey equipment maintenance)

I'm probably not the best example though as I got my current role through experience in another field and the best attitude for being put through specialist training. But ask yourself, do you want to commit to it?
 
Personally I would leave it. Get some experience under your belt. I can’t speak for the computer science route as I haven’t a clue, however in most cases, you’re unlikely to need a masters until you’re in a more senior position and by that point most employers will pay for you to complete a masters.

As someone with experience of making bad decisions, you need to get work/life experience to know if that’s what you really want to do.

It’s your personal decision to make. It depends on a lot of things, how passionate you are now, what industry you intend to enter, what your career ambitions are.

I would suggest researching the area you want to enter to find out if a masters is required or will be beneficial and what the progression route/options are.
 
Probably depends on how you feel, for a start I'd speak with whoever at your uni is involved with the Masters course and what exactly it all entails.

I did a BA in English Literature & Film which I thoroughly enjoyed but by about halfway through 3rd year I couldn't wait to leave and just couldn't phathom doing a Masters in an even more specific field of English Literature.
 
This is one of those things that is wildly variable and depends on the career so I would ask the experts in that field and not a roller coaster forum. I have a masters (and doing a second) but I had to do the PgDip for work and I only needed 60 credits to complete the masters so it made sense from my perspective. The 2nd one is a requirement for any promotion. That said I know people with masters degrees that have had no value in getting a job.
 
Hey Matt,

I did a computer science degree, and graduated from my masters in computer science innovation about 6 years ago.

It was a benefit when applying for graduate programs straight out of uni, it gave an edge over those who had a bachelor's of the same grade.

I think for something like Data Science would stand out on your CV if you were to be interested in following that speciality in your career. It could be advantageous in getting you to the interview.

Having said that, experience is also valuable to employers. There is something to be said for earning money too 🤣

I think if you enjoy studying, want to take on a more specific course. In the long run it's not going to make a significant difference to your career, but it might help you starting out and getting the role you want.

I've been a software engineer at my company for 6 years now, in that time there has always been roles vacant for all roles at all levels. It's competitive for sure, but there are plenty of roles available (at least in London, and I imagine other cities).
 
I’ve got a Master’s in Linguistics… was it fascinating? Hell yeah! Was it REALLY worth it? Probably not…

There are jobs around with or without a Master’s degree. You could argue it might give you the edge over another candidate, but if I’m honest I feel like in this day and age, everyone just gets degrees for the sake of it so they’re kind of devalued in that respect.

Tl;dr - if you’re interested in furthering your own research in a subject area and like the idea of POTENTIALLY looking better than another job candidate, then DO IT! 😁
 
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