I went to grad school and studied HR Management and I chose
a program within a business school so as to give me the business basis I lacked
from receiving a liberal arts undergraduate degree. I went to Purdue University for both
undergraduate and graduate school. Now,
before you think this just one in a long line of articles recently questioning
the value of graduate school, hear me out as someone who’s lived this path, and
had to live with the decision for several years now, post-graduation.
My undergraduate degree is in communication, specifically
organizational communication and PR and I’d like to start there. I’m not a fan of my undergraduate degree,
with hindsight being 20/20. I didn’t
really know what I wanted to do in terms of a career at the ripe age of 18, and
I selected this major as an individual who excelled at liberal arts studies in
high school, but as someone who clearly had no clue about the real world. Communication, and all of its concentrations,
is essentially a useless degree. Now, I
know some of you will disagree, particularly the PR professionals and
journalists out there. However, unless
you are with a high level of certainty going to be pursuing one of these career
paths, you’re better off choosing something else. I went to an in-state school, so at about
40K, my undergrad degree was relatively affordable compared with many
undergraduate degrees. Would I pay
$40,000 again for this degree?
Nope. I’d put that money toward a
business or computer science degree or studies that fall under the STEM
categories. My parents always told me I
should study the things I had strengths in, but I wish they’d pushed me harder
to choose a more practical path of study.
I realized by my senior year, after several internships in
various disciplines, that I did not want to be a PR professional or a
journalist. I was desperately trying to
break into the world of business for my first full-time job, with little
luck. The funny part, is that the
economy was still booming at this point, and I was still struggling to find
employment. Based on some internships I
had in HR, I decided this was a good path for me. However, I needed to build my knowledge,
skills and abilities in this area. I
decided to pursue a graduate degree because I thought it would help me stand
out in my field. Now, for the record, I
am pro graduate school, in the right situations. Here are some items to chew on as you think
about whether graduate school is the right choice for your HR career.
- Cost. I want to get this one out of the way immediately – plus, I’m all about creating economic value (must be the business school training), so cost is something that I feel passionately about. Higher education is more expensive than ever. For example, my full-time two year degree rang up at about $40K, plus an additional $20K if you consider books and other school and living expenses I incurred during those 2 years. Again, I went to an in-state school, so I came out ahead of many of my peers from a cost perspective, but even at the in-state price, I’ve questioned the value of the degree in my first few years post-school. The economy created a situation that didn’t deliver the salary ranges I’d seen in pamphlets and based my investment decision upon (for those that were lucky enough to actually get a job). The starting salaries listed on most HR grad programs have been adjusted since the economy tanked, but you need to carefully examine these numbers. I encourage you to consider the amount of student loan debt you may have to incur to go to school. Then, sit down and figure out what the expected salary would mean for you in terms of an actual paycheck. Will you make enough on a monthly basis to maintain a reasonable lifestyle, and ultimately, get those loans paid off as quickly as possible? For many HR grad students I’ve spoken to in the last few years, the answer to that question is “no”, and it’s better to know that on the front end of your decision, rather than figure it out when those checks start rolling in after graduation.
- What degree? I went through a program which was focused specifically on HR, as do many people pursuing a graduate degree in HR. I made the choice to pursue a program which would allow me to take MBA coursework, as well as work with MBA’s and be part of an MBA cohort. This is one of my favorite things about the degree I received, and the experience I had. Many graduate HR programs are not part of a business school, and with the benefit of hindsight, as well as some real world experience, I can say that I wouldn’t go through one of these programs, and I’m grateful I didn’t. I looked into and applied to several of these programs, but ultimately valued the business school experience, and as it turns out, people in the real world and in my jobs have respected that also. Now, don’t get me wrong, I know several great HR people who went through some of these programs (i.e. University of Illinois, Michigan State University, Cornell University, etc.), but if I’m going to spend $40K - $60K or more on a graduate HR degree, then I want the credibility of surviving an MBA core curriculum for that price tag. My recommendation is to either pursue an MBA with a concentration in HR (or related studies) or to pursue a graduate HR degree (non-MBA) that is within a business school. I’ve also noticed that the level of prestige of the university and program does matter in HR. There are a lot of articles on the Internet, and a lot of “gurus” that will tell you this doesn’t matter so much. And for many undergraduate degrees, or some types of graduate degrees, this may be true. But again, if you’re going to drop the dough on a graduate HR degree, this is one area you don’t want to go cheap on, and a time in your life when you should heavily consider school prestige.
- What are your goals? Finally, beyond some of the tactical decisions necessary when considering grad school, the fundamental self-reflection can’t go un-discussed. And, when I say, “what are your goals”, I’m casting a pretty wide net here. First, what are your professional goals? Likely, if you’re considering a graduate HR degree, you’ve already thought about this a little bit. But further, what are your financial goals? Does an HR career align with those goals? Also, what are your goals for your personal life? Do you hope to have a family? Do you want to travel or even live abroad? The decision of graduate school does weigh in on these other goals in your life, and if there’s one thing you take away from this post, it should be to consider all of your goals, and how this decision aligns. For example, one individual I know is so crushed by the weight of her student loan debt for her graduate HR degree, that she is foregoing her personal goals of starting a family, at least for the next 5+ years until she can get her financial life under control. Another individual I know has aspirations of rising to the executive level, and seems to be on the fast track to a really big career in HR. The problem – this individual works insane hours, and doesn’t see this subsiding in the foreseeable future. This means less time with the spouse and family and hobbies they enjoy, but it also means that life is not set up right now to accommodate other goals like starting a family of their own or even going on one big vacation each year.
The decision to go to grad school to enhance your HR career
is not a decision to take lightly. Now,
from speaking with some of my readers, I know you have good heads on your
shoulders. But, as you make all of the
necessary considerations to pursuing a graduate HR degree, I encourage you to
think through some of these points.
While I worked through many of these ideas in making my own decision
about grad school, it would have been helpful to hear opinions from those who
lived it, and how to weigh the pros and cons. Trust me; you’ll thank me down the road!
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| Yes, this pictures is a shameless plug for my alma mater :) |
While I believe that my character and work ethic would enable me to be successful in multiple capacities (and even without grad school), I'm happy with my decision to pursue my graduate degree at Purdue, and I don't think that some of the blessings I've experienced in my personal and professional life would have been possible without it. However, I've seen others along the way who may not feel the same about their graduate HR degree. It's all about setting good goals, making smart decisions and working hard. If grad school is part of that process for you, then go for it!
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