The Student Room Group

Postgraduate distance learning or full time?

I am currently working in a architects/building surveyors as a technician and want to study building surveying at postgraduate. My choice is to either leave my job and go study full time or do it by distance learning, I currently live an hour away from work and commute, earn just above min wage so if I was to do distance learning I would have to relocate closer to work. I have secured funding to do the masters full time however I have told my company I have been considering going to do it full time and they have offered to pay the course fees if I stay. It isn't a massive company and I'm not sure if I'd want to work there forever.. So just not sure which is the best route to take. Anyone have any ideas? I worry if I start the distance learning I might really struggle with it working full time. There also isn't any unis nearby which I could attend part time either.*
Thanks for any help or advice *
Original post by ad12345
I am currently working in a architects/building surveyors as a technician and want to study building surveying at postgraduate.

My choice is to either leave my job and go study full time or do it by distance learning, I currently live an hour away from work and commute, earn just above min wage so if I was to do distance learning I would have to relocate closer to work.

I have secured funding to do the masters full time however I have told my company I have been considering going to do it full time and they have offered to pay the course fees if I stay. It isn't a massive company and I'm not sure if I'd want to work there forever..

So just not sure which is the best route to take. Anyone have any ideas? I worry if I start the distance learning I might really struggle with it working full time. There also isn't any unis nearby which I could attend part time either.*
Thanks for any help or advice *


Full time learning is a much richer experience that distance learning. If you have funding, then that's brilliant.

You wouldn't have to work for the company forever, part of the deal would include an 'amortization' or how long you'd have to work for them without having to pay some of the money back. I'd guess it would be 2-4 years - not sure you can even have an amortization of longer than 4 years.

If you've got a company prepared to sponsor you like that, it's a nigh on perfect situation, because you get the post degree experience all wrapped in. I'd grab it with both hands and hold on tight to an offer like that!
Reply 2
I would take the sponsorship they're offering. You're not obliged to work there for long after you've finished and it will look good that they sponsored you. They clearly want you to stay on. Given the way that the housing market is going it's a bad time to be cutting ties with potential employers. Also, if they're sponsoring you, they have an incentive to help you to finish. If it's getting too much for you, they're going to want to make sure you get through and I'm sure they'll be supportive. They don't make that kind of offer to just anyone.**
Reply 3
Original post by threeportdrift
Full time learning is a much richer experience that distance learning. If you have funding, then that's brilliant.

You wouldn't have to work for the company forever, part of the deal would include an 'amortization' or how long you'd have to work for them without having to pay some of the money back. I'd guess it would be 2-4 years - not sure you can even have an amortization of longer than 4 years.

If you've got a company prepared to sponsor you like that, it's a nigh on perfect situation, because you get the post degree experience all wrapped in. I'd grab it with both hands and hold on tight to an offer like that!



Thanks for your reply and help, I know I should be and I am extremely grateful for them offering, just weighing up whether the cost of relocating to where I work for at least 2 years will outweigh the money spent doing the course full time. I'm probably overthinking it all, just dread getting started and finding it really difficult without the library lecturers etc that usually comes with full time!*
Original post by ad12345
Thanks for your reply and help, I know I should be and I am extremely grateful for them offering, just weighing up whether the cost of relocating to where I work for at least 2 years will outweigh the money spent doing the course full time. I'm probably overthinking it all, just dread getting started and finding it really difficult without the library lecturers etc that usually comes with full time!*


I'm not sure I understand, if you do the course full time, why would you need to relocate closer to work - i though the relocation was to allow sufficient time outside work to study by distance learning?

You need to look longer term - how much would having a postgraduate qualification add to your earning potential over the course of a full career? Almost certainly way more than the financial costs over the next 2 years of working part time as a student, then going back to the small company and working on a low salary (but presumably more than now - negotiate that!) for a couple of years.
Reply 5
Original post by ad12345
Thanks for your reply and help, I know I should be and I am extremely grateful for them offering, just weighing up whether the cost of relocating to where I work for at least 2 years will outweigh the money spent doing the course full time. I'm probably overthinking it all, just dread getting started and finding it really difficult without the library lecturers etc that usually comes with full time!*


If it's a course designed for distance learning then you shouldn't be at a disadvantage. They can't be recommending texts you can't easily get hold of, for instance.*

I don't think it's an opportunity you can really afford to say no to. It's all experience in the bag and that's something that will make future employers champ at the bit to offer you a contract.*
Reply 6
Original post by threeportdrift
I'm not sure I understand, if you do the course full time, why would you need to relocate closer to work - i though the relocation was to allow sufficient time outside work to study by distance learning?

You need to look longer term - how much would having a postgraduate qualification add to your earning potential over the course of a full career? Almost certainly way more than the financial costs over the next 2 years of working rt time as a student, then going back to the small company and working on a low salary (but presumably more than now - negotiate that!) for a couple of years.


Theres no doubt I want to do the course one way or another. If I *was doing the course whilst staying with my employer I'd want to move closer to avoid travelling a hour to and from work as I am doing at the moment, I'm living with parents at the moment and obviously renting is expensive . I work in a small town too so things like room lets are quite rare.
Thanks for your reply *

**staying with my employer would mean doing the course distance learning
(edited 7 years ago)
Reply 7
Original post by giella
If it's a course designed for distance learning then you shouldn't be at a disadvantage. They can't be recommending texts you can't easily get hold of, for instance.*

I don't think it's an opportunity you can really afford to say no to. It's all experience in the bag and that's something that will make future employers champ at the bit to offer you a contract.*


Yeah I suppose doing a degree online just seems like it could be difficult logistically but then so many people do them. I also wanted originally to go full time just to experience living in a city and meeting new people, but not sure how much socialising goes on during masters courses haha.*
Original post by ad12345
Theres no doubt I want to do the course one way or another. If I *was doing the course whilst staying with my employer I'd want to move closer to avoid travelling a hour to and from work as I am doing at the moment, I'm living with parents at the moment and obviously renting is expensive . I work in a small town too so things like room lets are quite rare.
Thanks for your reply *

**staying with my employer would mean doing the course distance learning


Ah, so the employer is offering to pay for the distance learning course, not for the full time course? That wasn't clear in your original post. I was working on the principle that the employer would fund the full-time course on the proviso that you returned to work for them for a set period of time afterwards.

I'd still recommend trying to do the course full-time, rather than part-time, but it does depend on your finances.
Reply 9
Original post by threeportdrift
Ah, so the employer is offering to pay for the distance learning course, not for the full time course? That wasn't clear in your original post. I was working on the principle that the employer would fund the full-time course on the proviso that you returned to work for them for a set period of time afterwards.

I'd still recommend trying to do the course full-time, rather than part-time, but it does depend on your finances.


Yes employer will fund it distance learning. Full time I'd have to find it myself and more than likely wouldn't return to work for them due to the fact I could probably then earn a significantly higher wage elsewhere.*
Sorry to confuse!*
It sounds like your employer is offering an excellent opportunity.

I have done both campus and distance postgraduate study. To be honest, the academic difference isn't that big because either way a lot of self study is required.

Sure, it's more sociable to be physically going into uni to do the course but outside of lectures a lot of people are too busy to go out as much as I recall doing at undergraduate level.

I think employer funded distance learning is a good opportunity. For a lot of subjects, the internet is a goldmine of academic journals that can be referred to in coursework.*

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