Master's

[cesiumboy]

I'm trying to figure out if I should go for my Master's degree in Computer Science. I don't really want the title, but I do want to take some of the advanced distributed-systems-and-databases classes, and do some research in that field

Comments

[beeblez]

Well, if you have a job that allows you to enjoy the fun of research and get paid for it then that's worth taking advantage of.

If you're happy with what you do theres no reason to rush in this March. Extra training and skillsets (and extra paycheques that result) are all great and awesome things, but if you're picking up the skills and knowledge on your own, and you're not in it for the money, it might be a bit excessive.

I'm a big fan of post-grad degrees overall. And do really encourage them, but only if you're desperate to go. Getting into an obligation and a long term painful commitment like that should be something you do out of foolish love, it sounds like you're into the material so maybe that's the case. But if you're not really dying to do it, the suffering will be all the more bitter and frustrating. Letting life get itself more in order first might be the ticket to motivating you to do it properly, or maybe it will flow the other way for you, and going for it will give you the motivation or the key to getting what you want in life.

Yet, life is nothing if not unpredictable and resistant to setting still. Who can say how things will be in a few years or a few months. If you're on the fence I'd still lean towards going for now and withdrawing before march if you decide that your life has more important priorities.

This comment probably wasn't much help, what with my fascination on sitting both sides of the fence, but I've always found that with myself, no matter how I reframe questions like this, theres always the one side I'm secretly yearning for and the other I'm considering because of my mind's nagging tendency towards rationality.