Friday, 5 July 2013

Postgraduate study - the pros and cons

Now you’ve finally got your degree, have you made a decision on what to do next? Maybe you are already set up in your dream job, or heading abroad for wider life experience. But if your undergraduate degree has introduced a passion for something which you would like to study further, why not consider a postgraduate degree?
Many students embark on their undergraduate degree with only a general idea of what it involves, and in the UK students begin to make decisions about their future careers as early as 15 when they commit to their A level choices.
But after 3 years’ experience at university students have been introduced to a wide range of influences and possibilities, including potential career choices which they would not have previously been aware. For some, a postgraduate course is the opportunity to pursue more advanced study in the same area as their first degree, for others it can be a complete change of direction.
A postgraduate qualification could give you an advantage in the employment market – in fact is essential for some careers, and for many students a master’s degree which focuses on a specific vocational area is very useful. And your first degree doesn’t have to be related to the area of postgraduate study – as an undergraduate, you will have developed a skills base which is readily transferrable to a wide range of careers.
Apart from deciding on your subject, it is also important to consider how you want to study: there are various options including taught courses where you spend most of your time at the university, or distance learning where you study mostly at home with only occasional attendance required. Some courses have a specific curriculum, others are based on your own choice of independent research – it depends on your aims and requirements.
On the down side, committing yourself to a postgraduate course can be expensive  – particularly on top of undergraduate debt. Tuition fees for a master’s degree can typically cost around  £4,000, but there are funded studentships, bursaries and scholarships available.

There is a huge amount of information online regarding the various postgraduate options and funding possibilities; apart from looking at the courses offered by individual universities and other HE institutions, the following websites are very useful:








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