Thinking of a Masters in 2015

[cookderosa]

Thanks for all of the replies! At 43, I have kind of lost my way for sure. I have looked into PA school and really wish I would've gone that route years ago. We have a great 2 year program here. It is extremely competitive. They only accept 50 students out of thousands of applications. Same goes for the RN program at the same school. You cannot work if you get into them and that is not an option for me. We have no ultrasound programs anywhere near where I live. I've have also looked into that. I originally thought I could roll my medical experience into something but have had lots of doors slammed. Another of the problems is that no school will take my old A & P , medical terminology, etc courses. All of those would have to be done over provided I could even get in somewhere. I've looked into physical therapy/occupational therapy/respiratory therapy and am not much interested in those (ironically enough there are openings in those programs) I do miss the medical field somewhat. My passion is history though. I agree that I can't justify spending a lot on a history degree when I need to make money. I still have a 15 year old son at home that will be going to college in a few years. I keep sending out my resume for jobs in editing, non-profit, etc. and no replies. I'm really peeved that now everything has to be such an expense and a hassle. Gone are the days of getting an add-on certificate that can actually land you a decent paying job. It's frustrating!!!!

When I was where you are, considering various programs, I did an exercise that worked really well; you might find it helpful.
Pretend that you already have the degree- whatever it is, MS History, or otherwise. And start looking for a job. If you had that degree, what kind of actual jobs would you be eligible for? Don't change any other variables (example, if moving out of SC isn't an option, don't look at job boards for NY). Do that for each of the various degree options you're considering, and see where you'd land. If you can't find salary on the job posting, use the Department of Labor site, it lists actual wages (not the hype people tell on the internet ) http://www.bls.gov/ooh/

Create a list of degrees that would qualify you for these jobs you're finding, and then back fill with the info you collect - like salary- and then see how hard and expensive it would be to get that training. Furthermore, as you search for jobs, you may find that there are alternatives to degrees for some fields. A master's degree might not be necessary, and in my opinion, there are very few jobs that actually require a master's degree.