Was it worth it?

This article hit home...

After undergrad I thought of going back to school. I was probably at my first job making no money. I began gathering information from colleges all over the country. My goal was to get my Masters in Social Work.

At the time I was dating someone, long term, who had no desire to leave his home town. Not that I felt like I had a future with this person, but, I did have what all people want out of a relationship... Support, security, and well.... Comfort...

As I went over these brochures and packets from all of these schools I just didn't know how I was going to leave my comfortable life and pick up and leave. Not only that, but the GRE testing scared the crap out of me. I hate math, I absolutely suck at it. At that point I had not taken a math class in 5 years.

So, as my friends start applying and getting into grad school, I'm thinking to myself... I need to get moving. I enrolled in a school that did not require GREs and was known to be a little more lenient with it's academics. It was not a university where professors had tenure. Many of the professors were hired because they had he work experience to fit the class.

So, I sign up for a field that I have no experience in, and looking back, I did not do my research on what it would take to actually find a job. I did vey well in grad school. I pretty much made all A's with an occasional B - in what area, I don't know.

Did furthering my education help me?? Hell no... I have no experience in the HR field to even apply for a job. Not only that, I don't even see any decent job postings in my area. My Masters in Human Resources was a waste, the other one in Public Administration is helpful only because I work for the government. Will I ever be able to apply what I learned in Public Administration in my current job... Definitely not.

The fact that I pay an estimated $150/month in student loans irritates the hell out of me. Did I grow personally... Heck yes, in more ways than I could ever share. Did I learn about myself and my abilities in grad school?? YES, I sure did! If I were ever able to consult and problem solve issues in a workplace, I would be awesome.

Would I ever consider going back to school?? Maybe. In this state you have to have a social work degree to get a license. Do I feel like it would be worth it?? Who knows. Not that I actively job search but I'm sure that not many places are hiring. Would it be the worst thing to stay in my current job?? No, I am very fortunate to have a job, with benefits. Would I like to have the same salary that I have had in the past?? YES. But at this point I am just so thankful and count my blessings that I am working. And actually enjoy my job (for the most part- minus those typical office issues).

Very interesting article that I found last week on my lunch break.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/my-master-s-wasn-t-worth-it-173855765.html?page=all