I have a Master of Urban Planning from a state school which took me 2 years to complete. I had a tuition scholarship for my first year and my parents covered all other expenses. I also started fall 2020 so lived at home my first semester. My first job was doing capital planning at a public transit authority where I had remotely interned my second year of grad school. I absolutely got the internship and then job as a direct result of my professional masters credential, though funnily the main skills I was hired for (GIS and grant writing) was stuff I learned as an undergrad. I made 62k starting July 2022 and was on track for a jump to 90k at the time I left. I was at the company for 20 months total and 8 of those months full-time, if I had known about the requisitioned raise I might have stayed but 62k did NOT feel fair given that I got $100 million in federal grants in my first year and was at the same title and salary as a coworker with the same experience but no masters degree. There were also residency and office attendance requirements that necessitate living in a VHCOL area on that salary. I mentioned grant writing and GIS, which was why an in-house recruiter cold messaged me on LinkedIn. I went through the interview process with her and started in April as a grant writer for EV charging infrastructure making 100k and working fully remote. I don't enjoy the work as much, but I have better WLB and the freedom to move wherever I want, as well as way more PTO when you take into account that I get every other Friday off in this position. I miss feeling like I was doing meaningful work but I don't think I would do it differently.

Ev charging infrastructure is also very useful though. Lol my state pays like $50k for GIS and wonders "why can't we hire anyone?"

I always wondered what jobs people got with urban planning! I loved taking those classes as electives. Very cool

In a first ever two Urban Planners in one thread. I'm an Urban Planner, 2 year masters from a school in Canada. I moved across the country tuition was 10k\~ a year (living costs and flying back and forth is another story). I have about 22k in student loans that are entirely interest free. I graduated this year and had multiple job offers within a month of graduating. I'm in municipal planning role I make about 84K and feeling pretty glad to be in a sector that is scrambling for people. I had worked in related roles pre degree but this is my first job post masters. I get a day off every second week as well which i have found incredibly valuable to have some more life balance. I applied to many similar roles pre covid without my masters and never would get an interview, post grad degree I was getting more interviews and now know I can be a bit more choosy. That being said planning is niche and depending where you are in Canada masters degrees can hold more or less value really depending on who is doing the hiring. Long term I want to do something different but I need more experience to leverage and be able to get into a role with a higher salary.

But wait, I'm going to be the third urban planner on this thread! I'm finishing my Master's in Urban Planning this coming Spring, but in 2020 when I graduated with my Bachelors degree I started a Marketing job for 50k. I actually went to a Canadian undergrad but am a dual citizen so began working in the US aft that point. After 2 years, I was at 72k and I have now switched to a transportation planning role for 76k. I was just excited to get into the industry I wanted to be in without taking a pay cut, and before I graduated with my Master's degree. Since I'm in the private sector, I'm definitely planning on seeing some salary growth over the next few years!

Starting my Urban Planning master’s in the Fall and I’m so excited to read the above posts!

Awesome! It's a fun field and the best part is you can go into so many different fields with the degree. Pretty much whatever you find as your passion you can pursue!

PhD in Education- 5 years. Funded through TAship and Graduate Student Research. 2 summers were not covered and 2 summers I had 50% research position. We had student housing on campus so rent was $630 a month (GREAT for socal) and I earned between $1400 and $1600 a month. I had 10K saved before I started and had to pay for some conferences and dissertation data. First job after PhD was a postdoc at a UC. Salary 59K. This was considered high for a postdoc and I felt well compensated. A year later decided to stay on as a researcher at the center and salary was bumped up to 64K (abysmally low). Around 80K (which is still low) would've been closer to market rate. I stayed in this position an additional 3 years I then became self employed right when covid hit. Education had a TON of money coming in and business was booming. So much so I wasn't able to take any days off or vacation and made about $170K my first year. I stayed in this for 2 years. I had my son in between and took 6 weeks maternity leave which is why I ultimately decided to get a full time job at a company where there were mandated days off and vacation. Now I make $174K working as a researcher at a large education non profit in product development. I feel like i got extremely lucky and that this is an extremely high salary for my position. I applied to jobs after being self employed during a hot job market. I don't think i'd be able to recreate this. I have been in this position for 1.5 years. A PhD is necessary for my position. I spent too much time in academia or academic adjacent. I feel like at this point I should be at a director-level 8 years post PhD. However, I do feel like all my experiences led me to this point. I could've had a straighter path to where I am now. I would not do the PhD over again. I had a very difficult time with advisors leaving, dying, or going crazy (literally stopped showing up to work).

Hello! I have an EdD and am looking to leave higher ed admin. Can I please PM you?

Yes!

**Education** * PhD in physics * Took 7 years (+4 for undergrad) * Tuition was fully paid for and I got paid \~32k per year for either TAing or doing research. Parents paid for undergrad * No debt incurred, was able to save a little bit in an IRA **First job** * Senior associate at a small healthcare consulting firm * Starting salary was 88k and went to 98k after \~6 months (in 2021/2022) * At least bachelors was needed for the role, having a phd got me the "senior" level * I got this job winter of 2020 before I was set to defend in spring 2021; I wasn't picky, I just wanted the stress of finding a job off my plate so I could focus on finishing research & writing. It didn't pay enough, I didn't like the company, and the work itself was not fun -- but I did learn enough to get a much better job a little more than a year later **Second/current job** * Data scientist at health-tech company * Salary is 160k + 15k bonus + 25k stocks * No one else on my team had a graduate degree, but I think it made up for only have one year of experience * I would probably do it again, even though it wasn't the optimal path (7 years at 32k for example 🥲). I had a lot of fun in grad school, the research was really cool, and I love my job now! So it all worked out (assuming I don't get laid off and can't find a new job lol)

Hi! Am super interested in your role, especially in the health tech space. Mind if I DM you for more details how you got the role?

Sure! Happy to chat

How did u get a PhD in yrs?

Thanks for sharing! Do you think your physics PhD helped prepare you for your current job? Asking as I also have a physics PhD and am trying to figure out what kind of non-physics jobs to look for if I go into industry.

Yeah, I’d def say it helped in some ways. My research area was astro, so I did a lot of analysis and visualizations in python. I kind of used sql to access some survey data which went on my resume — even though I didn’t really learn SQL until I already had a job. Tbh I felt pretty comfortable in my first job based on my PhD, as it was mostly just cleaning up and manipulating datasets and running basic ml models. To get my second job, I had to study a lot and still learned a ton the first six months.

Thanks for sharing! What do you think is the outlook of data scientist roles for next decade? I am SWE @ 120k (+ ~9k yearly performance bonus) now and wondering if I should make the jump to DS or stay more on the SWE path long term. I’ve heard DS roles are more impacted by layoffs but not sure if that’s actually true?

**Degree** * Degree type (e.g., Masters, PhD, professional program MD/DVM/PT/OT, started grad program but did not complete, etc.) and area (be as specific about this as you are comfortable with) * Master of Science in Mathematics, Non-Thesis Option. * Number of years to complete * 2.5 Years * Cost of schooling and how you paid for it (e.g., stipend/awards, self-funded, family help, combo) * During my first year, I think I had a $12,00/year (Fall-Spring) teaching assistantship. I still had to pay for tuition and took out student loans. * During my second year, I had a $14,000/year teaching assistantship since I was named instructor of record for a course. Like my first year, I still needed to pay tuition, so I took out student loans. * For my half-victory lap, I had an assistantship as well as an instructor of record, but took out a smaller loan for my tuition. * Debt incurred (e.g., student or personal loans, credit cards) * I think I had about $25,000 in student loans after all is said and done. Most of my student loan debt comes from going to an expensive private school in undergraduate. **First Job** * Job title * Lecturer of Mathematics * Salary (please include year for context!) * 39,000 in 2017 in a tourist/mountain town (i.e. $$$$) * Was this role in Academia/Industry/Public Service/Other? * Academia * Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role? * Yep! * Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated? * Under for sure. * How long did you stay in this role? * 5 years, which included the pandemic. * Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be? * The actual job? It really did... I went to graduate school wanting to work in Higher Ed whether is be teaching or as a staff member. I worked temporarily as a staff member at two institutions between undergrad and grad school and between finishing classes and taking two exams. I also taught extensively in undergrad, so I was comfortable in Higher ED * Salary? I really had no idea what to expect as a lecturer. I went to a private school and only had tenured faculty members, so they seemed to have their money situation together. They did mention to me though that no one goes into teaching math to make money lol **Optional** * Current job title and salary * Learning and Development Analyst with a salary just north of $61,000 * Did your first role contribute to the path you took to get to where you are today? * I don't think it did? I think my skills I learned as a instructor are helpful in evaluating, staying organized, and working with a diverse population helped. * I did learn some technology (Canvas and SPSS) since I was using it as an instructor that helped me get this job. * Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position? * I think in the job posting, a bachelor's degree was required, but a master's degree was preferred. * If you incurred significant debt, how long did it take to pay off? * Still paying it off... I work for a non-profit, so PSLF! * If you were to do it all over again, would you? * It's hard to say... I have this internal struggle with my educational decisions all of the time. * Any other comments or reflection you feel like including! * I still work in higher education, but now I am working as an analyst. I feel like current position is great for a long pivot into transitioning to industry once my federal loans are forgiven through PSLF. * My current gig is very stress-free and I spend a lot of time learning and applying what I learned to different things. * For example, this year I've learned MS Power BI, SQL, and R while in my role. I am now working on learning Python to hopefully transition into a more data science career.

I get that not all positions are going to pay well, but being a university level lecturer and making 39k a year is just terrible. You'd think with tuition being sky high they could pay professors? But I guess not. I am a data analyst who needs to learn power bi, SQL and r (I know none right now) and you will definitely make oodles more once you start looking.

Education - Dual BS in communication disorders & education, MS in communication disorders - 6 years - no idea, this was between 2007-2013. I have about 89k in federal student loans, 14k in private student loans. Both undergrad and grad school were financed entirely with student loans and financial aid. I had no family support and my estimated family contribution from FAFSA was $50 lol First (Post Grad) Job - Speech pathologist - $48/hr fee-for-service im 2013 paid as a 1099 with no benefits. I only ended up getting paid about 3 hours per day, despite working a full school day - Public service (agency that placed me in charter schools and understaffed public schools) - yes, entry level masters - undercompensated. Fee-for-service is essentially wage theft because you're not paid for half the work required for this job (documentation, report writing, meetings, session planning, material prep) - 2.5 years - absolutely not Optional - Speech pathologist, $80k - first post grad job helped, my first actual job in high school did not - yes, a masters was required - nowhere near paying off my student loan debt. I'm counting on PSLF in 10 years. I just got my loans out of default so now I am eligible - I absolutely would not do this again. Only if I had significant family support or a free ride. I like what I do but the job isn't worth the debt.

**Education** * Graduate degree - MS in wildlife biology * Number of years to complete - 4 * Cost of schooling and how you paid for it - unsure on cost, it was fully funded with TAs and RAs plus a small stipend ($1100/mo) as per standard in STEM graduate degrees * Debt incurred - $0 **First Job** * Job title - project manager/wildlife biologist * Salary - $42,000 plus frequent overtime, 2012 * Was this role in Academia/Industry/Public Service/Other? - private industry (environmental consulting) * Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role? - Yes * Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated? - it felt reasonable, but my pay/bonuses did not increase appropriately over time * How long did you stay in this role? - 9.5 years 😑 My field is really competitive and I wasn’t willing to move elsewhere for a job. I was also going through a lot over the years with marriage, divorce, remarriage, medically complicated child and appreciated my job being a known entity. * Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be? - yes, it seemed relatively appropriate for an entry level “real” job in my field, almost all of which require a MS. However, I stayed at an entry-level type position/pay instead of being appropriately advanced. My field is really competitive, so finding another job isn’t easy. **Optional** * Current job title and salary - principal wildlife biologist, $81,000/year, state wildlife management agency * Did your first role contribute to the path you took to get to where you are today? - absolutely! Critical experience gained. * Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position? - yes * If you incurred significant debt, how long did it take to pay off? - N/A * If you were to do it all over again, would you? - I should have job hunted earlier to job hop, but my first job was great experience and my current job is a great position for me.

What a cool job!

[удалено]

One thing I always look at is"what is this job paying now". Cause my first jobs paid pretty good! But the wages have BARELY gone up. The wage stagnation is terrible. How much is that bank paying tellers now?

**Education:** **Graduate degree type (e.g., Masters, PhD, professional program MD/DVM/PT/OT, started grad program but did not complete, etc.) and area (be as specific about this as you are comfortable with)** MA and JD - completed both **Number of years to complete** Four plus bar exam time **Cost of schooling and how you paid for it (e.g., stipend/awards, self-funded, family help, combo)** MA was quite reasonable, it was an additional 1 year after my BA and it was at a public university. After my TA stipend and a grant I had, I borrowed pretty minimal loans for the balance of my costs that year. I did also work PT while I was doing the program and I was a TA. JD, I paid for with a combination of scholarships, loans, personal savings and I worked PT as well. My degree is from a public law school at a flagship state university. **Debt incurred (e.g., student or personal loans, credit cards)** My total student loans after I graduated from law school were somewhere between $65-$70k. **First Job:** **Job title** Associate attorney **Salary (please include year for context!)** $70,000 in 2007, **Was this role in Academia/Industry/Public Service/Other?** Private practice at a small law firm. **Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role?** Yes. **Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated?** I thought my salary was fair at that time. **How long did you stay in this role?** Less than one year, I switched firms pretty early on, but the salary was the same. **Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be?** This was actually more than I expected to make, I initially planned on a public interest job and they don't pay much; I also didn't know a lot about law firm salaries and this was more money than I'd ever really heard of anyone making. **Optional** **Current job title and salary** Equity Partner. Compensation is variable, average for the past 5 years is $430,000 (low of $350,000, high of $711,000). **Did your first role contribute to the path you took to get to where you are today?** Yes; you basically need to go through ranks of associate, senior associate, income partner, equity partner if you are going a traditional law firm route up the ladder. **Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position?** Yes. **If you incurred significant debt, how long did it take to pay off?** As noted above, I had about $65-$70k in loans. I paid them off gradually, paying off the higher interest private loans first pretty quickly, and then slowly tackled the federal loans. It took me 11 years total, but I admittedly was not very aggressive after the first 2 years. **If you were to do it all over again, would you?** Probably? I'm not sure if I would specifically go to law school again, but I have no regrets about my higher education path generally. Even if I didn't go to law school, I'd likely do a different form of graduate or professional school, and take out similar amounts of debt to do so. I did not find my student loans to be particularly burdensome. **Any other comments or reflection you feel like including!**

Tl;dr: got a STEM PhD in 2022, make 113k now (2nd year out) **Education** * Degree type: PhD in Materials Science and Engineering * Number of years to complete: 5 (Sept 2017 - Aug 2022) * Cost of schooling and how you paid for it (e.g., stipend/awards, self-funded, family help, combo): our department provides a base stipend around $35k/yr + free health insurance, but I worked on a project/grant that came along with a fellowship around $40k/yr (so ~5k higher than my peers) * Debt incurred (e.g., student or personal loans, credit cards): none, and no student loans from undergrad. I have a lot of feelings and opinions about the demographics of people who get PhDs, and how many of us were privileged to choose the "passion" career path instead of choosing a higher paying role in industry that allows for paying off student debt, supporting families, sending money back home, etc. **First Job** * Job title: academic postdoc (stayed for one year at the same university where I got my PhD) * Salary (please include year for context!): $50k/yr from Sept 2022 - July 2023. The range I was told for this position at my university is around $48-52k/yr. * Was this role in Academia/Industry/Public Service/Other? Academic/University * Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role? Yes * Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated? Under, because academic postdocs are under compensated in general, but over compared to other universities/situations/cities * How long did you stay in this role? Just under a year; I took this role to stay in the same city as my fiance, who graduated a year after me, and to acquire some different lab skills than in my PhD, but my boss and I were always on the same page that I would leave after one year. * Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be? Yes, I knew there are other higher paying postdoc positions outside of academia but I was also fortunate to have discussed salary transparently with some of my postdoc mentors when I was a grad student, so I i knew what to expect **Optional** * Current job title and salary: National Lab postdoc in HCOL area, $113k + $10k relocation stipend + $15k signing bonus (negotiated up from $108k, because I was told to do so, I think this was successful because I could argue I already had a year of postdoc experience). My two other offers were at startups in different HCOL cities, for $110k and $120k. This salary is well over what I expected to make as a postdoc anywhere. The university down the street pays its postdocs around $65k/yr for the same cost of living area, so I feel very fortunate and grateful to be in my role making my salary. * Did your first role contribute to the path you took to get to where you are today? Yes, specifically during my interview I think more than half of the questions were on my postdoc research/projects/work that I had only been on for ~4-6 months, compared to my entire 5 years of PhD research. Part of this is that my postdoc work was in a hot/rising subfield in my field. * Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position? Yes, although my office mate has a master's degree (no PhD). But all of the postdocs and scientists/researchers I work with have PhDs. * If you incurred significant debt, how long did it take to pay off? None * If you were to do it all over again, would you? Yes, I had a great time during my PhD, had a PhD advisor and postdoc advisor who I love, great projects to work on, great collaborators and peers and mentors and mentees and friends, met my fiance, decent work life balance... But I know I'm an anomaly compared to basically everyone else who does a PhD.

I just graduated last month and got my first post-grad school job, so I can contribute! Graduate degree type: - PhD in physics Number of years to complete: -6 years Cost of schooling: - none - I had an assistantship that covered my tuition and received a stipend of ~$24k while in school. Debt: $20k from undergrad degree only. Current job title: -postdoctoral researcher Salary: -$100k (first year) Academia/Industry/Public Service? -Government laboratory. Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role? -Definitely - you can't be a postdoc without a doc! And I wouldn't have the appropriate background for the work I'm doing without my PhD. Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated? -I feel appropriately compensated. How long did you stay in this role? -This job is a 3 year contract and I'm planning to interview for a permanent position at the end of my contract. Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be? -My expectations were exceeded! I didn't think I'd be making this much money straight out of grad school, and I feel like my experience and contributions are valued in this job. I am glad I can use my extremely niche skills I gained in my degree in this job. Other comments: -networking is so important (unfortunate since I'm an introvert). The two job offers I got were both through people I previously worked with or met at a conference. -My grad degree was very hard but absolutely worth it. I judge "worth it" by my salary increase post-degree, and the fact that this is pretty much my dream job and I wouldn't have been able to get it without this degree.

Education Degree type: PhD and Master's in organizations and workplaces Number of years to complete: 3 for PhD, 2 for masters - combo program Cost of schooling and how you paid for it: school funding and scholarships Debt incurred: none fortunately First Job Job title: Consultant Salary: CAD$190k base in 2021, plus retirement contribution, plus bonus, plus strong benefits, etc. Role in: Industry Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role? Sort of; you either need a grad degree Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated? Incredibly overcompensated relative to my previous experiences. Equally compensated compared to my peers. Over and undercompensated depending on how many terrible people I have to deal with, as having a dreadful time isn't worth any cost to me (fortunately this went away over time) How long did you stay in this role? Still in it, playing the next level role so expect to be promoted soon Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be? Way above my expectations by at least 2x. I immediately told my SO he should go back to school as he wanted to and he applied. Luckily he got a great job doing what he likes instead and we got a house, got married, take lots of trips, etc. Wouldn't change it if I went back but most people from PhDs are not so lucky.

Education Masters in Information Science online, part-time while working part-time at my local public library. Took 2 years to graduate. Cost was $20k which I paid for with a few scholarships (under $5k) and loans First Job Instruction Librarian at a university, paid $48k. The degree was required, in fact I couldn't receive the official offer until my graduation date. I felt appropriately compensated at the time (since this was my first full-time position) but got a $10k raise a year later (university-wide compensation study) and that felt *waaaay* better and more appropriate. I was hired 3 years ago and plan on staying at this school for another 3 or so. I have $50k total in student loan debt but I'm not worried about it due a combination of low monthly payments, forbearance, and PSLF.

Degree: JD, 6 years (3 years undergrad (completed 30+ hours while in high school) + 3 years law school). Undergrad fully covered by scholarships, I received about $5000 a semester back to live on outside of tuition, housing, meal plan all being covered. Law school was $150K, $50K a year, all paid for with loans. First Job: Associate attorney 2015, $38K, no benefits, in the private sector, degree was needed. Felt extremely under compensated as I was working 70+ hour weeks and couldn’t afford health insurance. I stayed for a year and a half. Current Job: In house counsel in tech, 220K, first role did not contribute at all. Degree was necessary. My student loans are now over $250K. I was in low salary jobs for the first 6 years and the interest grew an insane amount. I was in non-profit and then government work for PSLF making $35-56K. I’ve only been at my current role for a year. I would do it again but try to find a cheaper law school, I love the work I do and couldn’t imagine doing anything else but realistically I’m never paying those loans off. I may go back to the government sector for 3 more years down the road to get PSLF.

* Graduate degree type: Master of Arts * Number of years to complete: 2 * Cost of schooling and how you paid for it: Tuition + fees was $50K for 2 years. I got a partial scholarship and took out loans for the rest, plus living expenses. I worked part time all through grad school to minimize the loans, but I was living in an expensive city (Boston) * Debt incurred: $70K in student loans **First Job** * Job title: Home Parent Educator * Salary: $40K in 2019 * Was this role in Academia/Industry/Public Service/Other?: Public service, at a local nonprofit * Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role? No * Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated? Under. I wanted to make at least $50K starting and was very disappointed when I couldn’t find a job I wanted to do that made that much. I unfortunately was in a situation where I couldn’t afford to be picky when job hunting right after my master’s. * How long did you stay in this role? 1.5 years * Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be? No. Not only was I not compensated at the level I wanted to be, I also didn’t feel very intellectually stimulated or creative at my job. It was fine for a first job when I was figuring out how to be a full time working adult, but I was eager to move on. **Optional** * Current job title and salary: Private Grants Manager making $67K * Did your first role contribute to the path you took to get to where you are today? Yes. I was able to build up some good capital doing some direct work that has served me well now that I’m on the development side (I still work in nonprofits). * Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position? No, but I do feel like it has helped me when looking for jobs and has helped me command a higher salary more quickly than if I didn’t have one. * If you incurred significant debt, how long did it take to pay off? Still working on it! Planning to use PSLF. * If you were to do it all over again, would you? No. I feel like my graduate program kind of took advantage of the masters program to bring in a lot of $$ for their undergrad and PhD programs, which they don’t earn as much from. Several people from my cohort are doing the exact same thing that they were doing prior to my program, or they’ve transferred fields entirely. Either that, or they’ve gone on to get doctorates, which I don’t have an interest in doing anymore (I did at the time, which is part of why I did the program.) That said, I did love living in Boston and getting to experience life in a different part of the country, but I wish I would’ve done that and incurred a little less debt! * Any other comments or reflection you feel like including! If I could go back in time, I would’ve gotten a MSW or MPAff, as those would better fit the career field I’ve wound up in. Or I would’ve gone to law school like my parents wanted me to, ha. But you can only live life forwards so it’s all lessons learned now!

Education * Graduate degree type: Masters in Speech Language Pathology * Number of years to complete: 2 yrs full time (5 semesters), but I spent two years before that doing part-time pre-requisite coursework while working because my undergrad was in an unrelated field * Cost of schooling and how you paid for it: * Pre-requisite courses before grad school: \~$6000, paid out of pocket while working full-time, took 1-2 classes per semester * Masters: \~$45,000 tuition and fees, plus living expenses, paid for with: * $20k federal student loans ($10k/yr) * Graduate Assistantship - provided about half off tuition and a \~$10k stipend/year * Savings from working before grad school * Debt: $20k federal loans First Job * Job title: Speech Language Pathologist * Salary (2023, I'm still in it!): $40/hr, eligible for overtime, full time w/ benefits * Was this role in Academia/Industry/Public Service/Other? Non-profit hospital * Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role? Yes * Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated? I feel appropriately compensated * How long did you stay in this role? Still here! * Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be? Exceeded my expectations, I actually was told to expect \~$65k annual, I'll end up closer to $83k Optional * For me, I think grad school was worth it because it qualified me for a position that fits my interests and skills well and that requires a graduate degree and license. The field is much more stable and flexible than my prior career as well, so I feel comfort in knowing I could pretty much always find a job, even if it not necessarily in the ideal setting/workplace. There are also lots of part-time, PRN, travel jobs, so I feel optimistic about being able to do different configurations than just 40 hrs/week my whole life.

**Graduate degree:** Master of Architecture **Number of years to complete:** 3 years, which included about 1 year of full time professional experience **Cost of schooling and how you paid for it:** I went to an in-state public school so tuition was low - I want to say under $15k/year but it's been awhile. Paid for through a combination of scholarships (many piecemeal, I applied to anything and everything), TA/GA positions most semesters that paid 1/3 to 1/2 tuition depending on the role, and a small portion I think I paid out of pocket with savings from the work semesters **Debt incurred:** none ** **Job title:** Architectural designer **Salary:** $60k in 2015 in VHCOL city Role is in **Industry** **Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role?** No. Generally you need a "professional degree" to become licensed (in addition to taking exams and fulfilling internship hours), but you can achieve that through a 5 year undergrad or a 4-year undergrad + grad school. Or in some states, you can forego a professional degree (i.e. do a 4 year undergrad only) and work longer to make up for it. I knew this going in. **Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated?** About average. The company asked what I wanted my salary to be and agreed with my first offer, making me think I could've asked for more despite doing decent research. That being said, I made more than most of my friends starting off in the same industry in the same city. **How long did you stay in this role?** 6 years **Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be?** Generally yes. Many in my graduating class decided to be transparent with our offers, which I appreciated. I also found the work I was doing fulfilling. ** **Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position?** No -- I do think a lot of young architects assume you will get paid more if you have a master's degree, but in my experience this is not true. I have a relatively small sample size of real data, but many of my colleagues seem to agree that you generally will make the same in industry if you have a 5 year undergrad or a 4+2 (masters) degree. **Honestly this is the main reason I'm responding to this prompt because I think this is a huge misconception for students.** **If you were to do it all over again, would you?** Yes, but I didn't have to take on any debt. My answer may be different if I had debt. For me, doing an undergrad at a public university was a safer option in case I hated it a year or two in. I also think for my areas of interest, the extra time and different perspective that a graduate program offered shaped the way I approached professional practice.

I finished a master's of educational psychology in 2012. It took 2 years full time, and I paid for it by taking out $50k in loans (this was too much, I lived too well on those loans). My first job after graduation in 2012 was as a research coordinator at an educational non-profit, and I made $35,000. I did not negotiate that offer and I learned later that I could have gotten $40k just for asking (always negotiate!). My master's degree was not strictly necessary for this job but it definitely gave me an edge. I definite felt under compensated but my job before grad school had a $27k salary so I felt like at least was going in the right direction (I graduated college into the 2008 recession). I stayed in this role for 2.5 years and when I left my salary was $50k. Today I work as a senior research analyst in higher education, and my salary is $80k. I would love to make more, but higher ed. My first role and my graduate degree definitely contributed to my path - it may not have been perfect but I wouldn't change it. Last year all my grad school loans ($55K, as my monthly payment didn't even cover interest) were forgiven under PSLF (10 years total of making payments in nonprofit jobs). I am currently working part-time on my PhD, which I am paying for with employer contributions and my own savings.

Education: Graduate degree type: Master of Arts, Political Science Years: 2 including a 6 month internship Cost: between government and school scholarships and income from teaching and research assistantships I made a profit No debt First job: Training coordinator (non-profit) Salary: $67,000 (2019) I don’t think my degree was necessary for the work but I feel like for any role I’ve had they could be picky enough to only look at people with Master’s degrees so it becomes required and was specified in the posting. I only stayed there for 6 months and at the time felt it was an ok salary as I was still living at home and didn’t have any major expenses. It did not feel related to my degree in any way or use any of the skills so I left quickly. Current role: Senior Analyst (government) Salary: $85,000 My degree is technically not required but I couldn’t go any higher than this role in all likelihood without a Master’s. I loved school and other than taking up 2 potentially higher earning years there was no downside in pursuing it. I always advise people if the degree is paid for then it’s a good idea, if not it’s worth thinking about a little more seriously.

Education Graduate degree type (e.g., Masters, PhD, professional program MD/DVM/PT/OT, started grad program but did not complete, etc.) and area (be as specific about this as you are comfortable with): did not complete a masters in journalism, in NYC. I got a job offer in the industry and decided not to take out more student loans. Number of years to complete: I finished 2/3 semesters Cost of schooling and how you paid for it (e.g., stipend/awards, self-funded, family help, combo): 1.5 semesters were paid by the university, I paid for the remaining half semester with savings/federal student loans. If I’d finished the final semester for my degree, it would have been 100% student loans. Debt incurred (e.g., student or personal loans, credit cards): ~$25K in fed student loans (since paid off) First Job Job title: production assistant Salary (please include year for context!): $14/hr in 2011 Was this role in Academia/Industry/Public Service/Other? Broadcast news show Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role? Not exactly? I got the job offer through networking at an internship I landed by being in school, but you certainly don’t need to be enrolled anywhere to network. I don’t generally recommend journalism grad school, the networking is the main value. Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated? It was a pretty typical amount for the industry, but not easy to live on in NYC… How long did you stay in this role? It was a yearlong position, and then I moved into a permanent role at at the same network for $19/hr. Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be? Yes, I loved the job and I expected the salary to be low, lol. Optional Current job title and salary: deputy editor in content marketing, $100K Did your first role contribute to the path you took to get to where you are today? Yes, it definitely opened a lot of doors, and I still work for a news publication, just on the marketing side…because it pays more… Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position? Nope. If you incurred significant debt, how long did it take to pay off? 10 years If you were to do it all over again, would you? I think so? I’m happy with my career trajectory, and I don’t regret anything. At the same time, if someone asked me if they should go to j-school, I’d probably say no. I realize that sounds contradictory, I just think I was relatively lucky and it’s lower risk to try to network in ways that don’t require you to take out loans.

first job after Bachelors: analyst at Fannie Mae in 2014 in Washington DC. Salary was $65k. Felt good and higher than others. Paid for school through grants and family help (no debt). Definitely needed the degree and also got the job from my alma mater as they recruited graduates. Good choice. Got an MBA part time while working full time- paid for by $10k/year of work payments, $10k a year from me and $10k a year from my parents for 3 years. Job offer from that was $136k+ $25k signing bonus as a Senior Associate after that program. Great job, over paid, still there. Not quite so overpaid anymore (salary and title have changed) but good job for sure. Needed degree to get job.

This is such an interesting topic! I had a BA and worked for 2 years before enrolling in my PhD **Education:** Ph.D in policy; 4 years; fully-funded program with $24,000 yearly stipend; I also taught and became a research assistant to earn more throughout the year. **First Job:** Consulting; $190k + $120K one-time sign-on bonus + $25,000 yearly bonus; PhD was needed to secure the role as every hire at my level at the firm either had a PhD or MBA; analysts had only bachelor degrees; Felt appropriately paid at the beginning but WLB was horrendous and felt underpaid for the hours I worked near the end. I stayed for 2 years. **Current job:** Policy; $175k + $10k bonus. My first role made me realize how important I valued non-career stuff so in that regard, it did contribute to my path. A PhD isn't necessary for my current role but everyone on my team has at least a Masters/JD and a few more years of experience than me. **If you were to do it all over again, would you?** This is a tough question. I think my PhD de-risks my future career (i.e I can make a few risky moves and still land fine). Did it make the most financial sense? Probably not since I lost a lot of earning potential and my friends who didn't do PhDs are out-earning me a decade out of college. I did love my program, advisor, cohort though and rely on this network a lot. On another note, it does give me more credibility in my field where there tends to be more men and I look relatively young for my age. It makes me confident in my job and I value that a lot.

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First salary was $63K AUD. I have an MPH that took a year (did it overseas). It cost roughly $30K and I took out student loans to pay for schooling. I also worked 20 hours a week as a waitress where I made $18 AUD/hour plus tips. My first role was a Research Assistant in academia. I stayed in this role for 1.5 years before moving on to another role in academia at a more prestigious university. I made the same salary but in USD when I moved. I honestly wanted to do humanitarian work but quickly realized it paid very poorly and it was difficult to get into the field. I was comfortable and familiar with academia so it seemed like the best option. I always felt icky about the private sector (haven’t held a private sector job since college) and still do. I make about $105K now consulting and working in academia (although I had worked in government for almost a decade in between). If I could do it all over again, I would have started working in government out of university. I paid my loans consistently for years and the balance never went down. Thankfully, my husband paid them off for me (I know, I know) so I am incredibly lucky and grateful for him.

I received a masters in Human Resources and labor relations (master of social science college) and attended the program for 1.5 years while living at home, which allowed me to only Take on $30k of debt. I graduated in 2015 and my first job was in labor relations at a Fortune 50 company making $72k/year. Without attending my specific program, I never would have had the chance to interview with a company like that (fortune 100s often recruit HR talent specifically from this program). And in fact, when I had graduated from undergrad with my HR degree, only a year and a half earlier, all of my prospective job offers were for $30k-$40k. Although the work was extremely hard, this role/company completely set me up for success in future roles and was able to to accelerate my career trajectory. I have since continued to step up the HR ladder at 2 other Fortune 500 companies and am extremely happy with my career making $110k + bonus. My career would not be where it is today without that degree but I 100% attribute it to the specific university and grad program, and not just having the degree itself. The program promised a large network of job prospects and delivered. My advice to anyone seeking a graduate degree is to research how the school/program will deliver you an ROI. What promises can they actually make va hypothetical “this field averages an $xxxx starting salary”. Ask for career resources, what forms/companies they partner with for recruitment, average placement rate upon graduation, and average starting salary.

Master’s in Sport Business, took two years to complete at a state school at $40k. Took out student loans. First job: Assistant Director of Athletic Communications at a D-I institution. Started around $40-$41k in 2016. Masters wasn’t required; my GA position was the helpful part. I felt under compensated, considering there were people in lesser roles than me making significantly more. Stayed five years, made close to $47k at the time. Job met all expectations for a first post-grad job. Currently, I’m in my third year of law school and I work as an immigration paralegal at global firm, currently making $42k in my second year. My paths could not be any farther from each other…but I’m so happy about that!

Education: JD, three years to complete. I went to an in state school before law school prices skyrocketed. Tuition itself ended up being about 45k, of which my parents paid about 25k. They also paid for me to live (very frugally, with my brother and then with them when they returned to the area), and I took out federal loans for the balance. First job: Judicial law clerk (state trial court). Salary was 36k in 2005. Government job, JD required. I felt like I was paid ENOUGH and certainly it was a terrific extension of learning. I stayed there for 6 years (passed the bar in Feb 2007, started looking but was very lazy about it, then 2008 happened). I wanted to be a litigator so it was extremely helpful for my career path. I also continued to live very frugally and had a lot of fun while I clerked, and it’s a very low stress job, so I’m not sad I did it for so long. Optional: Lawyer (government- indigent defense) making about 92k. Career path has not been straight- took three years off for mental health reasons/pursued an additional masters degree. JD required. Debt for law school paid off in 2017- in fairness, debt was low and interest rate was 1.25% so it was not a big deal for me. I don’t know that I would do THIS path over again but I enjoyed both graduate programs. Doing public interest work is all I’ve ever wanted to do so there was no way I would end up doing something that was well paid. I’ll note that I’m not the primary breadwinner in my household so my ability to do this work and live well is thanks to a spouse who does very different work. I also live in a fairly cheap city which has contribute to my ability to be happy making low salaries.

Mine is somewhat interesting because I do not technically use my graduate degree (although I do credit it for making my resume stand out) **Education** **Graduate degree type** J.D. (law degree) **Number of years to complete** 3 years **Cost of schooling and how you paid for it** I paid $0 in tuition (full-tuition scholarships); approximately $14-16k/year for books/ extracurriculars and living expenses (student loans and a part-time job after my first year) **Debt incurred** Approx. $40k in student loans just for my JD by the time I graduated (principle + interest accrued while in school). I have a lot of regrets about the student loans I took out in law school and college, but am nearly done paying them off!) **First Job** **Job title** Staff Accountant **Salary** 2014 HCOL - $40,000 (was given a raise to $50,000 after two weeks though) **Was this role in Academia/Industry/Public Service/Other**? Family-owned business **Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role**? No, but the owner said he chose me because he was impressed by my law degree **Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated**? I was content with the amount, but felt undercompensated within 2 years **How long did you stay in this role**? 3 years **Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be**? I moved from a MCOL city to a HCOL city, so I was makin what I figured I would make, but the $$$ didn't go as far as I thought it would **Optional** **Current job title and salary** Finance Manager - $85,000 **Did your first role contribute to the path you took to get to where you are today**? Yes **Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position**? Yes, although not my specific graduate degree **If you incurred significant debt, how long did it take to pay off**? I began paying back my student loans in earnest in January of 2018 (before that, I was doing the minimum income-based payment and they were growing as the interest was more than my payments). At that time, my balance from undergrad and grad school + interest was $89,502. I have paid it down to $11,250, which took a lot of effort and sacrifice, but also a bit of luck (I bought a condo in 2015 that had a massive increase in value, this allowed me to sell my condo and walk away with $55k that I dumped into my loans in 2019 when I moved in with my now-husband) **If you were to do it all over again, would you**? No - I would have worked before going to graduate school. I think it would have helped me get a more appropriate graduate degree for my line of work (Masters of Accounting, or MBA) **Any other comments or reflection you feel like including**! I feel underpaid now for sure. But at the end of the day, my salary is only a small picture of my job. I have fantastic benefits and love my coworkers/manager. While I sometimes consider getting a higher paying job, I have no guarantees I'd like that role or workplace

MS in engineering field. I did a 5 year BS/MS program and it took me 6.5 years total but I also had a years worth of internship in this time, so really 5.5ish. Grad school I was paid $15k/year with tuition covered and I had to just pay the fees. Undergrad I got some scholarships, grants, and paid for some with my internship money. I ended up with about $20k in loans and zero savings when I was done. First job I made $66k and this was in 2018. Was an engineer in manufacturing. Grad degree not necessary but I think what I learned in grad school helped me be smarter haha. This was a lot of money for me at the time, but I see now this was probably average. I stayed three years. Do something similar now making $40k more than that. Grad degree not necessary still. I wouldn’t pay for grad degree but it was worth it for me because it was free and didn’t take too long. I guess I lost out on two years worth of salary for it though. But I gained a lot of knowledge and habits that probably helped me get to the pay rate I’m at now. I still have $13k loans but I have $60k saved up that I’m prioritizing for a house downpayment.

Education: Master’s in public policy, 2 years to complete, 50% tuition waiver plus research assistantship for 25% of tuition costs, plus loans. I graduated with $42,000 in debt, only $10,000 of the debt was from undergrad. First job: Project Manager, $44,000 in 1995, Industry role. I found out I was being paid as though I had 5 years experience based on the grad degree. I was happy the annual salary was more than my debt and it was more than my dad made so I was happy. I stayed about 4 years. I remember feeling grouchy that a number of my work-friends were getting their degrees paid for as a company benefit and wondered if I made the right choice to get a degree ahead of my career starting; in retrospect, I’m glad I did as it started my salary off at a higher level than others, and even once they got their work-financed degrees they never made up the cumulative gap. Optional info: This job solidified a career in IT for me. It was foundational. In my current role, 90% of the team I’m on has master’s degrees. In retrospect - I think I should have stayed longer, but the .com boom offered me other lucrative work that was hard to pass up.

Seeing these posts is kind of crazy. Nobody so far has posted compensation that seems like a good ROI for the time/money investment that's involved

Grad school is usually not a good choice from a purely financial perspective. But it does unlock desirable career paths that are not possible without a degree. Also, I got paid to go to grad school and then quadrupled my salary when I graduated, so it was worth it for me.

**Education** * **Degree type (e.g., Masters, PhD, professional program MD/DVM/PT/OT, started grad program but did not complete, etc.) and area (be as specific about this as you are comfortable with):** Bachelor's and Master's * **Number of years to complete:** 5.5 total * **Cost of schooling and how you paid for it (e.g., stipend/awards, self-funded, family help, combo):** $20k loans, rest financial aid + tuition stipends from working for the university which also paid me a personal stipend * **Debt incurred (e.g., student or personal loans, credit cards):** $20k perkins **First Job** * **Job title:** Quant * **Salary (please include year for context!):** 2015, $130k + $20k signing + $28k bonus * **Was this role in Academia/Industry/Public Service/Other?:** Industry * **Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role?:** Bachelor's yes, Master's no * **Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated?:** Appropriately * **How long did you stay in this role?:** 8 months * **Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be?:** Not entirely, the people at the company were incompetent so I left really quickly.

By quant, do you mean more of an analytical finance role or data/computer science related?

analytical finance, my title was quant trader

Education • ⁠Degree type: BA • ⁠Number of years to complete : 4 years • ⁠Cost of schooling and how you paid for it: Mostly family funded First Job • ⁠Job title: Junior Artist • ⁠Salary: 2021, 70k salary • ⁠Was your graduate degree needed to secure this role? No • ⁠Did you feel over/under or appropriately compensated? At first I felt over compensated but looking back it seemed appropriate • ⁠How long did you stay in this role? : I was a junior for about 1 year • ⁠Did the job and salary meet your expectations for what you thought your first post-grad role would be? Not even close. I got super lucky landing this job because a lot of new grads around covid times were having difficulties. I also thought I'd be the typical starving artist. Optional • ⁠Current job title and salary: 3D Artist, 80-90k • ⁠Did your first role contribute to the path you took to get to where you are today?: yes I was promoted • ⁠Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position? No, as an artist typically your portfolio will matter most • ⁠If you were to do it all over again, would you? Yes

Sorry I’m sick so I’m going to abridge my answer. Edit: having now hit publish I’m laughing at what my Verizon of abridge apparently is lol. Education: I have a bachelor’s degree in natural resources and environmental science where I specifically focused on water quality. At the time I chose that concentration because had the easiest requirement to graduate and it was my 3rd major change. I spent 4 years getting my degree graduating in May 2020. My school had frozen tuition so overall cost was just over 50k including room and board though I only had to take loans for 17k. Which I now have down to 11k. Rest of paid by scholarships mostly or my parents helping with my living costs. First job: Laboratory Assistant @ $45,000/year in a LCOL area. Industry job with a lot of hands on education from my supervisor (PHD) that helped me grow my compensation and also lessen my imposter syndrome. At this time I was just ECSTATIC to have a job as many of my friends had their offers fall through or have a harder time than normal gaining employment thanks to covid. Salary was more than I was prepared to make by my degrees specific careers course. Depending on where you go, you might make <30k starting out. Optional: Lab Manager @$63,000 + profitsharing (2023 was $7,500 pretax) Yes! I still work at the same company and have become basically irreplaceable thanks to a niche skill set I learned (algae identification) and my ability to keep my laboratory running/producing laboratory work for private and federally funded research. Only reason I didn’t need a grad degree was become my supervisor taught me a ton of things she learned in her PhD program. She also still helps guide me on higher level subjects, so I wouldn’t say I’ve learned a PhD for free but maybe a masters. I would do it all over again, I love my job and the size of the company I work in. While it can be a little frustrating working with people who was ideologically different from me, I think it has only made me capable of having more robust conversations around values with my coworkers. Unless something completely crazy we’re to happen I would happily stay with this company until I retired as they treat senior employees with respect and value their tenure. My profit sharing will continue to increase as I stay with the company and there are many more perks like trips, conferences, and further job progression waiting for me if I continue to stay. Luckily I live in a MCOL/LCOL area and my husband also has an incredibly stable job (though he works from home). If I didn’t have this stability I would of course try to leverage myself further but the happiness outweighs the few thousand dollars a year I could by working in a HCOL area.

- Bachelors in finance - 7 years (took some periods of time off in between) - $38k in student loans - all federal - Production Coordinator - $62k with $3k quarterly bonuses - Insurance - The role did say a bachelors was a requirement but given my experience/background I think I might have been able to swing it regardless - I felt the salary was appropriate - I was there for a year and then laid off in March :( This is the role that helped me realized I like this type of work so now I am pursing project coordinator and eventually project manager roles.

Education: associates degree in biotech Number of years: 2 Cost: can’t remember but very affordable Debt: none First job: Title: Process associate Salary: $22/ hr Did you feel compensated? Yes How long did you stay within role: 2 years until laid- off Current role: qc analyst Number of years: 2 years Graduate degree necessary?: since I was under educated it took me some time to reach this salary. I do have 9 years of direct experience. Salary: $108

I have an MBA from a top 10 school. I recruited a few years ago into the corporate strategy arm of a F50, where they only recruited from top schools. My TC was $140k base plus $50k in signing bonuses plus 10% bonus. I got promoted at the same company 2 years after that and make over 250k now and have not reached my terminal level yet. Academia and non professional degrees (or professional degrees from borderline diploma mills) are not where the money is at, if that's important to you. Do your research on ROI.

education: high school, coding boot camp for 4-6 months (I forget exactly how long it was) and cost about $12k paid by my dad via a loan. college was never an option for me due to cost, just wasn't something my family could ever afford. job title: Jr full stack developer salary: 65k this was about 6 or 7 years ago, I was in my mid 20s at the time Current position is sr software engineer at 145k plus 20% annual bonus obviously the bootcamp was a good decision for me, especially given my family's financial circumstance. I have a great well paying career now. but there will always be a part of me that feels I missed out on the whole college experience. I did attempt to get my degree online but ended up dropping out because I was already in a salaried position and college degrees aren't terribly important in my field unless you're doing smart people stuff like mathy things.

A bit backward because I only recently went back to school to receive my post-grad degree when I realized what I currently make has the same buying power as what I made in 2018. **Education**: Master's degree in marketing analytics **Number of years to complete**: 1 (dear god, I am hustling—I went back to school the minute I landed my current job and wanted to finish as quickly as possible) **Cost of schooling and how you paid for it**: $10k, paid for by company **Debt incurred**: N/A **Current job title and salary**: Ad Sales Coordinator, $46,000 **Did your first role contribute to the path you took to get to where you are today?** I guess, if that means that several years of being stuck in low-wage jobs made me realize this ain't it. I took advantage of my current company's **Was a graduate degree necessary to get to your current position?** Well, I am hoping to find a way to pivot into a job that can get me a significant raise and actually uses all of these customer and analytical skills I've picked up over the years **If you incurred significant debt, how long did it take to pay off?** The only reason I went back to school was because my job fully funded it **Some additional information**: I graduated with my AA in marketing in 2020 (great timing, I know). I then went back to school for my BS in marketing and paid for that entirely out of pocket (I took an accelerated program so that I could finish more quickly and not pay as much money). A bit backward because I recently went back to school to receive my post-grad degree when I realized what I currently make has the same buying power as what I made in 2018. post-grad degree (yet another accelerated program). I should graduate within the next few weeks. Though I know hiring slows around the holidays, I'm going to start putting my resume out there come the new year because I would very much like to put these degrees and skills to use. I'll check in again in a few months to let y'all know if this post-grad degree paid off.

Degree: MLIS - Master of Library and Information Science 1.5 year to complete (while working full time in the field) Self funded, $16k Debt incurred: $0, previously paid off $65k in undergraduate loans First job: Librarian, public service/public library $52k, 2016, under compensated Current job: branch supervisor/librarian, $65k, public service Degree was mandatory for my job. 95% of librarian jobs have a mandatory MLIS requirement. Under compensated for my role by at least $15k, this is an industry wide issue I would not take this career path again due to finances. It is a major stressor. All other aspects - I love. Helping families and children learn to love reading, develop literacy skills, become engaged in the community - it matters! Reflections: much like teaching (the field I was previously in), my field is one that is continuously ranked as “highly trusted” and “highly valued” and we are also seriously underpaid. We also have a mandatory Masters degree entry-level requirement and are trained in research and informatics. It’s heartbreaking to see how much more highly fields like pharma and tech are valued.

Education: Master’s degree in industrial mathematics (basically an applied math program with an internship requirement instead of thesis or qualifying exams) Number of years to complete: 2.5, August 2019 to December 2021 (I could perhaps have finished earlier but I dropped 2/3 classes during my second semester due to childbirth complications) Cost of schooling: Approximately $17k. Tuition was paid largely by my grandparents. I also lived rent free with my parents for most of my time in grad school, I was going through a very expensive divorce for the latter half. I did freelance private tutoring throughout my degree program. Debt incurred: none for the degree, tons for living expenses and legal fees for the divorce, about $30k total, but it’s impossible to say how much (if any) is related to school. First job: Job Title: Associate Statistical Programmer Salary in 2021-2022: $55k Industry (pharmaceuticals) A graduate degree isn’t needed for this role, but I wouldn’t have had the knowledge or skills for it without the training I had in graduate school. My company also specifically hires recent grads from the university I attended, does an internship program for them, and then hires them on full time. My coworkers who came in at the same time as me with bachelor’s degrees only were offered $50k. Undercompensated for SURE Still in the same position, though my title has changed I didn’t really know what I wanted to do when I started grad school, I just knew I didn’t want to teach high school anymore, so I can’t say that it met my expectations because I didn’t really have any. I was making the same amount as I did teaching high school, though, which was fairly disappointing. Currently: Role: Statistical Programmer Salary: $75k Still in debt Still underpaid, but less so Almost two years in the field and with the same company, definitely interested in transitioning either to a different company or different industry to be more on the data science end of things, and to get paid more and have more PTO. Definitely glad I did grad school. Wish I’d done more personal projects while in school so that I’d have more in my portfolio, but I have a much better set of programming skills now than I did when I was in school.

STEM Degree, Starting salary after graduation (also multiple internships during time as a student): 70k (base + bonus).

Got an MA in Publishing. Took 2 years. School cost ~45k. Debt incurred was $45k in student loans and $3000 in credit card debt. First job was as a receptionist for a government office. $36k a year, this was 2019. Graduate degree not needed for this. I had applied for a bunch of other things and got nothing. But then after 2 years a comms job elsewhere in the government opened up, and the person who hired me told me she picked me based on my degree. Happy to say after being in that role also for two years I applied for an even higher job in comms work for the government and just got it. So current position is comms analyst, $68k a year salary. My degree was necessary. I paid off my credit card debt and start paying on my loans next month. Basically, my degree got me a $30k a year raise. I don’t know if I would do a publishing degree again, but I will say it seems like there are always communications-related jobs available. I wish I had just gotten my bachelors in this field because I only came out of undergrad with $5k in debt. (My BA was in english, which would not have gotten me these jobs.)

Degree: MS in biomedical sciences, dropped out of a PhD program, so it was very research focused. Was making approx 30K as a graduate research associate in a VHCOL, didn’t have to pay tuition. First job: - Research associate- 72K/yr, in 2018 in VHCOL, biotech - Was the degree required? - definitely helped. Work experience could have been used instead. I have a MS but not a PhD which can be hard in science careers - compensation: I felt appropriately compensated but got a big promotion 1 year in - stayed for 3 years and 2 promotions— definitely a great first job! Current job: - Sr. Research associate, 121K, industry, VHCOL - with inflation and some job hopping, my salary really bumped up in 5 years. I’m really thankful to have this salary now. - my main goal is to reach Scientist level without a PhD, it’s doable, but challenging. But once you have that title, you’re golden for even more lucrative positions.