Is a masters worth while?

craptakular · 3 Feb 2013 at 17:06

I know I post a lot of rubbish on the forum, its not a reflection of the real me as I see this forum as more of a comedy club than anything serious...

I am 30 this year and wish to push my career onwards, I have 9 years work experience which landed me a job in physical asset management for a power company.

I am toying with the idea of doing a self funded masters, I think it will cost me personally £10,000 or I can do a certificate and diploma from the institute of asset management, alas I don't think this is post-grad recognised. The exam is only £100 but it gives no information about tutor options.

I have a 2:2 in Geology from a top 20 university, but I think I need more for oil/Gas or consultancy, I also have emigrating in the back of my mind and I think this masters could get me international work experience somewhere.

The masters in question is the following:

http://www.rgu.ac.uk/engineering/st...-flexible-learning/asset-integrity-management

This is a unique course relevant for those who aspire to competently manage and co-ordinate physical assets to optimum effect.

Combining theory with best practice, this Engineering Asset Management course is aimed at engineers and management personnel working in an engineering/operations environment. It marks a significant advance in the delivery of specialised professional development, designed to meet the 'real world' needs of industry.

The implementation of asset management practices within an organisation enables it to see tangible benefits such as lower operating costs, longer asset life, improved asset performance, greater reliability, higher safety standards, enhanced environmental support and better informed investment strategies.

I suppose I need to answer the question; why do I want to do a masters?

Well I want one to get a job in oil and gas as it will double the money I think. How can I determine if a masters is likely to be worth it for the long haul?

The other issue I have; I am on a fixed term contract at the power company, with 2 years left, if I get a perm contract, is a masters worth it? I guess it would be advantageous should a management opportunity come up somewhere in the dept.

Anyone got any advice?

dowie · 3 Feb 2013 at 17:29

Oxy said:
How can I determine if a masters is likely to be worth it for the long haul?
[...]
Anyone got any advice?

Universities tend to keep a record of where their recent graduates end up - you might get a reasonable idea of whether the course is worth anything simply by contacting the dept... what % of people ended up in the oil and gas industry within 6 months of graduating, what roles were they in? Can the uni put you in contact with any recent alumni? Do they have good contacts with the industry, do certain companies actively recruit from that course?

You could also try a rough test yourself - create two fake CVs, fake names on each with everything else roughly at the same level - similar ranking uni to yours on each for undergrad etc.. but have one of the fake CVs contain that masters course... send them out to prospective employers for the roles you're interested in - do you get a a lot more responses for the fake CV with the masters? Could you still potentially land a similar role without the masters (and sacrificing a year of income + tuition fees)?

One · 3 Feb 2013 at 17:38

It would put you ahead of similar competition on paper, but in reality a managerial role will rely heavily on your personal experience, and a certificate with your name on it doesn't prove anything. Saying that, doing a masters alongside full-time work is something that would certainly impress any interviewers for any role. What you really need to ask yourself is how doing a masters will impact your life. Is it going to make money tight at the end of each month, could it potentially jeopardise the job you're currently in? Weigh up the pros and cons but remember that the cons are real but the pros are prospective.

craptakular · 3 Feb 2013 at 17:43

Thanks Dowie, they are all valid things to check.

I can't leave my current job as I have only 18 months experience in this type of work. So I wanted to finish the masters and than have like 5-6 years experience under my belt.

I'll do the CV trick and use my sisters address and see what happens.

craptakular · 3 Feb 2013 at 17:48

desires said:
It would put you ahead of similar competition on paper, but in reality a managerial role will rely heavily on your personal experience, and a certificate with your name on it doesn't prove anything. Saying that, doing a masters alongside full-time work is something that would certainly impress any interviewers for any role. What you really need to ask yourself is how doing a masters will impact your life. Is it going to make money tight at the end of each month, could it potentially jeopardise the job you're currently in? Weigh up the pros and cons but remember that the cons are real but the pros are prospective.

I have no social life to speak off and moved away from my home town for this job in Leicester.

I think it would be possible to do both.

I can get an education interest free loan from work and the masters is directly relevant to my current job, I have enough money for it to be not much of an issue as long as I am sensible.

eatcustard · 3 Feb 2013 at 18:12

Go for it, you have nothing to lose

craptakular · 3 Feb 2013 at 18:20

eatcustard said:
Go for it, you have nothing to lose

apart from £10k

Participant · 3 Feb 2013 at 18:36

Are there any professional exams from bodies recognised by the industry? If so I'd probably do that before a Masters at your stage in life.

craptakular · 3 Feb 2013 at 18:49

Robbie G said:
Are there any professional exams from bodies recognised by the industry? If so I'd probably do that before a Masters at your stage in life.

Yeh there is, just launched. Maybe that is all I would need, the topics are the same but the grade may not be post-grad level, that I don't know.

Shayper · 3 Feb 2013 at 18:51

Masters is more for a career in teaching/high end research. Hence why I'm studying for a BSC in maths rather than a masters

Jimbu · 3 Feb 2013 at 18:57

Shayper said:
Masters is more for a career in teaching/high end research.

That's not quite true. A Masters is more for specialisation than anything else.

Shayper · 3 Feb 2013 at 18:58

Jimbu said:
That's not quite true. A Masters is more for specialisation than anything else.

That's what I meant, I didn't clarify my point enough. Thanks

craptakular · 3 Feb 2013 at 18:58

Shayper said:
Masters is more for a career in teaching/high end research. Hence why I'm studying for a BSC in maths rather than a masters

Erm no it isn't, I already have a BSc. I want to specialise in Asset Management, that is the point of post grad education.

Amp34 · 3 Feb 2013 at 21:21

Shayper said:
Masters is more for a career in teaching/high end research. Hence why I'm studying for a BSC in maths rather than a masters

Not really. In the sciences masters and PhD's are pretty standard in industry. In the technical side of the O&G industry for example most people will have a Masters or PhD, with most masters being more vocational courses (practical applications of your academic undergrad knowledge) than academic.

As for the OP, if you want a masters to further your career then you need to know it will help you get that job you want. Dowies suggestions are pretty good, or see if people in that part of the industry know of the course. I've never heard of that uni, let alone the course, but then i'm technical not assets/finance. I get the impression that the rest of the industry is very postgrad oriented as well however.

[FnG]magnolia · 3 Feb 2013 at 21:28

Oxy said:
I know I post a lot of rubbish on the forum,

I remember taking the time on at least four separate occasions (by which I mean threads of yours) to answer your questions about how one can move to New Zealand and make it work.

I really think you need to work out what you want and then go from there. You seem to be grasping a bit which is understandable but I think you should try to work out what you actually want from life and what plans you need to put in place to make that happen.

Asking for advice but never doing anything with it won't push you any further forward than if you had remained silent.

craptakular · 3 Feb 2013 at 21:30

Amp34 said:
Not really. In the sciences masters and PhD's are pretty standard in industry. In the technical side of the O&G industry for example most people will have a Masters or PhD, with most masters being more vocational courses (practical applications of your academic undergrad knowledge) than academic.

As for the OP, if you want a masters to further your career then you need to know it will help you get that job you want. Dowies suggestions are pretty good, or see if people in that part of the industry know of the course. I've never heard of that uni, let alone the course, but then i'm technical not assets/finance. I get the impression that the rest of the industry is very postgrad oriented as well however.

Asset management is the bridge between the two. It encompasses things like reliability, integrity and corrosion management all the way through to risk and criticality of assets and whole life cycle costs.

You work in the industry don't you? Do you have asset management teams - maintenance/asset managers?

craptakular · 3 Feb 2013 at 21:31

[FnG]magnolia;23688753 said:
I remember taking the time on at least four separate occasions (by which I mean threads of yours) to answer your questions about how one can move to New Zealand and make it work.

I really think you need to work out what you want and then go from there. You seem to be grasping a bit which is understandable but I think you should try to work out what you actually want from life and what plans you need to put in place to make that happen.

Asking for advice but never doing anything with it won't push you any further forward than if you had remained silent.

That was before I found a career I liked/wanted to progress in. Now I have no desire to rush away to NZ without a quality job offer exceeding my current salary by some margin.

Shayper · 3 Feb 2013 at 21:36

I apologise for my mistake, Jimbu put it better than I did

[FnG]magnolia · 3 Feb 2013 at 21:53

Oxy said:
That was before I found a career I liked/wanted to progress in. Now I have no desire to rush away to NZ without a quality job offer exceeding my current salary by some margin.

So your emphasis is on job rather than lifestyle? I can see this aligning better with your OP but I can't offer any advice because I know nothing about your field.

Hope it works out though :-)

craptakular · 3 Feb 2013 at 21:56

At my time of life, yes. I have found an area of work I find interesting and challenging and can finally see some progression and the potential for a varied career.