Should I drop out of my Masters if I get offered a job?

Ok, this is a really big 'If'. But when I started my MA the plan was to do a PhD afterwards and then try for a career in academia. However, it's become apparent that it's not for me. I mean I'm pretty sure I can come out of this MA with a decent classification but I've just realised that I don't want to spend the rest of my life "studying".

So my back-up plan is a career in the publishing sector. I've been looking through job listings for editorial assistants and most of them require previous experience. Considering I'm up North at the moment and most of the publishing houses are around London, my prospects look pretty bleak. I looked around a bit for work experience and there doesn't seem to be any. But I came across a position in Surrey that offers on-the-job training. I think I'm going to apply but I don't know what I would do if they actually offered me the job.

I've been weighing up the pros and cons in my head. The pros would be that I might be able to salvage some of my tuition fees and find a replacement tenant for my room as I'm only 3 weeks into the course. Cons are obviously having to explain to everyone that I haven't gone crazy and then there's the possibility that I could be making a huge mistake :/

The other thing that is pushing me to try to find a job at this stage is that I'm from Northern Ireland. So if I don't have something lined up by the time my degree finishes, I'll be broke and have to move back there to my parents' house and it's going to be a lot more difficult to apply for jobs over here.

I know this is all speculation but does anyone have an opinion on what course of action I should take?

Reply 1

Klix88

17

I can only really speak for what I'd do in your shoes, so this doesn't constitue "advice" as such!

There are very few jobs which specify a Masters as a pre-requisite. It sounds like your preferred field would value work experience more. Just on that basic judgement, it would seem that the Masters as a practical qualification, isn't important.

Bear in mind that you can apply for the job, be interviewed, be offered the job and still decide to turn it down and carry on with the Masters. It's always worth applying, just to find out what the job entails. You never know, you could get to the interview and find that your future boss is unbearable and the job is much worse than the details they've advertised. The Masters might end up seeming like a better option. Remember that a job application process is a two-way street, so you can use it to determine whether you actually want the job. It's not just for the employer's benefit.

Reply 2

jpowis123

2

Original post by wordjunkie

Ok, this is a really big 'If'. But when I started my MA the plan was to do a PhD afterwards and then try for a career in academia. However, it's become apparent that it's not for me. I mean I'm pretty sure I can come out of this MA with a decent classification but I've just realised that I don't want to spend the rest of my life "studying".

So my back-up plan is a career in the publishing sector. I've been looking through job listings for editorial assistants and most of them require previous experience. Considering I'm up North at the moment and most of the publishing houses are around London, my prospects look pretty bleak. I looked around a bit for work experience and there doesn't seem to be any. But I came across a position in Surrey that offers on-the-job training. I think I'm going to apply but I don't know what I would do if they actually offered me the job.

I've been weighing up the pros and cons in my head. The pros would be that I might be able to salvage some of my tuition fees and find a replacement tenant for my room as I'm only 3 weeks into the course. Cons are obviously having to explain to everyone that I haven't gone crazy and then there's the possibility that I could be making a huge mistake :/

The other thing that is pushing me to try to find a job at this stage is that I'm from Northern Ireland. So if I don't have something lined up by the time my degree finishes, I'll be broke and have to move back there to my parents' house and it's going to be a lot more difficult to apply for jobs over here.

I know this is all speculation but does anyone have an opinion on what course of action I should take?

I stumbled upon this great volunteering opertunity called Project Guternberg, it is an online library of print books being converted to digital format. Volunteers can proof read pages, book's ready for formatting. It's like finding errors that OCT has produced from Scan and inputting the correct character, word, symbol by looking at the original page. It's worthwhile lookin at and having a go. They also give you feedback at the end of the week.
My advice is to go try Project Guternberg whilst studying and if you like it, carry on volunteering and go to the interview, hear them out, at the end of the day you can always say no to an employer and carry on studying. If you are interested in publishing volunteer online and look at free lance jobs,

Reply 3

Little Jules

12

Tough call, but probably worth applying, and making the decision when you have the option. The application process will also probably help you work out if that's really want you want to do.

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Reply 4

Nathanielle

15

I would definitely apply and then proceed as Klix88 said. At the end work experience weighs over a degree in fields, where you don't need a degree to even get in and which is not directly related to a degree. Furthermore, when you say, you want to go back into education after e.g. two weeks, you will be able to rely on your work experience, when you reapply after another Master. So you can't loose anything by applying now.

Should I drop out of my Masters if I get offered a job?

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