Related Posts
More Posts
Visual Storyteller
The LinkedIn headers have gone too far now
Visual Storyteller
No, you’re not. Better yourself.
Additional Posts in Government
DOT VIRTUAL CAREER FAIR
What's the salary range for a director at the Gilead Sciences foundation? There is a position perfect for me, but I don't want to throw my hat in the ring if starting salary isn't $180-190k. Also, any thoughts on the stability of their philanthropic commitment? There's talk of a recession; I don't want to go private to be cute a few months later.
New to Fishbowl?
Download the Fishbowl app to
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
It depends about what you’re trying to do. If your goal is to progress in your current organization, no. If you’re trying to move into a different organization, different schools will attract different types of people, which will affect your alumni network, but for most jobs the where won’t matter. If you’re trying to get into an elite position (say White House or consulting, etc.), then you may need a degree from a prestigious university just to get in the door (if you don’t know anyone before). Same if you want to pursue a doctorate—pedigree matters. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule, and if you are dedicated enough you can probably get to where you’re trying to go regardless of where, but you may have an easier path sometimes with a “better” degree.
I can’t say so much for a masters in your area- but a PhD or Postdoc, yes. Many will say it’s more important WHO you did this work under and the productivity you had rather than the school… and while not untrue, I have a top 15 school and a prestigious institute for my PhD and postdoc… no one once has said “oh you worked under blah blah blah”. But I do get “oh, you went to X Uni and X institute!”
My boss will openly admit she hired me because of reputation of the school names on my CV.
TLDR: does it matter? A little. Building a brand can have tremendous impacts on your career.
Further illustration (though again anecdotal)… the majority of my colleagues and collaborators also have degrees from prestigious Unis.
Bio/neuroscience degree, working in defense contracting
Why are you getting the degree? Is it because you want to work in that field or because you are checking a block for your current employment?
If you want to continue in the field, where you study and who you study under matters. If you are just putting Masters Degree on a CV, not so much.
The reasons you give are reasonable. Depending on how early in your career you are, the more valuable that alumni network can be. Liking your program is good because you are more likely to get more out of it. Clout? That's in the eye of the beholder.
In engineering, I've yet to hear anyone mention the school, except in reference to networking.
A good friend of mine's MOTHER (who did well, CSuite) told me this when I asked her the same question. IF you want to be CXO in your field, join the c-suite, high level senior management, it is imperative that you get an MBA from a big 10 school. It must have name recognition and it must have strong alumni. It must be nationally recognized. Then you must job shop NATIONALLY to gain the benefits. IF you do not want C-Suite and are happy just getting a salary bump, IT DOES NOT TRULY MATTER WHERE AS LONG AS IT IS IN THE SAME COMPETITIVE SET FOR YOUR AREA. A Competitive Set (or CompSet) is a group of programs that are seen as direct competitors in your area. Programs will often compare their performance against Compset programs in order to find ways to make their own offering more competitive. In my area in Chicago, there are about 5 schools of all different price ranges but they are in the same competitive set so I chose the cheapest possible option knowing I was going to stay in Chicago. So you need to decide - are you cut out to go for the C-Suite? If not, you should def not spend the money on a pricey program. If you want the salary bump you need to find out what programs are considered 'safe' in your zip and choose the cheapest option. I am not sure I would do an online program, I would hesitate there. but among MBA programs this is my advice. Also be careful about specializing too much. I believe broader is better when it comes to Master's. Too much specialization can box you into a career you cannot leave.