Hello everyone,
I have to ask you all the age old question "Should I pursue a Masters degree?"
My situation is as follows:
I completed my HBSc specializing in Bioinformatics back in April of 2012 and have been working as a Bioinformatician at an academic institute since August of 2012 (just over 13 months). Currently I have just signed on for another year and am considering furthering my education at the end of this work term (September of 2014), at which point I will have 25 months of relevant work experience under my belt. I am confused as to whether a Masters would help me in advancing within the field of Bioinformatics in terms of job prospects and salary range more than extra years spent working. I am located in Canada, thus the degree would take me two years to complete and it leads me to ask the question, what is more valuable, two years of work experience and a masters degree or four years of work experience? I am really enjoying working, but would not mind putting in another two years of schooling and would like to stick to the field of Bioinformatics.
I would love to get all of your thoughts and opinions on my situation and any help or insight is greatly appreciated.
Thank you all
This question comes up all the time (e.g. Will A Masters In Bioinformatics Help Me In Getting A Job?, How Pivotal Is A Masters When Getting A Job In Bioinformatics?, M.S In Bioinformatics?) but I don't think someone viewing this post has enough background to give you any reasonable insight into what direction your life should take. I guess the answer is: maybe, depending on a huge list of factors.
Thank you very much for pointing me to those pages. I have actually viewed those in the past and was just curious to see if having already had work experience would weight certain factors differently in the opinions of those with more experience than I.
It does not have to be a 'work or study' question - you will need to do both to keep up to speed. Look out for training near you, or take distance courses. If the courses are not accredited you will need to keep records to go on your CV.
Very very true, that was one of my main concerns, falling behind. That is what has me leaning towards a masters degree, primarily for the skills I could gain. Thanks for the response!
When I was attending conferences as Master student of bioinformatics, quite common question I was asked was: "Are you a PhD or postdoc?". So, from my perspective, higher academic degree is somehow expected (I am not saying needed). Moreover, it is somehow easier to study when you are younger, so you should probably consider long-time perspective of your job/career expectations.
Even now as a bachelors, every one assumes I am a post doc or PhD also.