Unsure About Studying A Masters? Here’s What You Need To Know:
I promise this wasn’t designed to scare people away from doing a masters! However, for me there was a lot of things university didn’t prepare me for when it came to starting up a masters. These are just some of the key things to think about if you’re a uni student who’s unsure whether a masters is for them
See if your university offers you a discount - This was something that applied to me and helped me make my decision on whether or not to do a masters. A lot of the time, if you’re staying at the same place you did your undergraduate degree, your university will offer you a discount on tuition if you stay and continue on with them. It depends on whether you’re choosing to do a full-time or part-time course, but this can typically be anything from 10-20% discount! This is a major deal if you’re wanting to minimise your loans or payment in general, plus who doesn’t love a good deal?
Be prepared to be independent - It sounds kinda obvious, but you don’t really realise how much help you receive at an undergraduate level compared to postragduate. Depending on where you are and what you’re studying, a big chunk of the time, you’ll have to find stuff out for yourself. That involves emailing about supervisors for dissertations, contacting them DIRECTLY to see if they’re available rather than being assigned someone and having them contact you first. It’s a little daunting at first, but usually these people are super chill and friendly! Just be prepared to send a LOT of emails.
Be prepared to be creative - I’m currently doing a sciency research masters, which you wouldn’t initially think would require much creativity, but it does! You’ll be helping to develop and expand your field of research for whatever you’re pursuing, so being unique and creative with your ideas will not only be beneficial, but make things much more interesting! There won’t be a list of questions to choose from for your masters dissertation, it’s gotta be something fresh that hasn’t been done before with a reason for why it should be done! This doesn’t necessarily mean being the next Issac Newton and developing your own theories, but expanding and adapting old research counts too. You may already have an idea in mind, so see if you can evolve that into a dissertation idea! Talk to lecturers about it and see if it’s feasible to do too, it’ll be a massive help.
Organisation is KEY - Again, another obvious one, but you’d be surprised how many deadlines you’ll receive within the first three days of induction. For myself, I had 6 deadlines as soon as I arrived, all which need to be completed within the span of a month or two. Write all these things down somewhere and put them into chronological order so you know which things are due to soonest. Set yourself enough time to email lecturers about things you’re unsure of or to enquire about supervisors for certain modules. Start your work EARLY, otherwise things will get overwhelming very quickly, especially if you’re also working part-time.
A lot of work in a small amount of time - With undergrad, you can kinda afford to miss a day or two when it comes to lectures, no biggie. With postgraduate, you cover a lot of content in a small amount of time. Lectures will typically be over the weekend, usually with a 9-5 setup with an hours break and that’s pretty much it. Your teaching time is extremely limited in comparison and it’s super important to be there so you have the chance to ask your lecturers directly if there’s something you’re unsure about! There will be times where you’re ill and missing a day can’t be helped, but if it’s just because you’re unmotivated then PLEASE GO IN ANYWAY, even if it’s not for the whole day. Your future self will thank you for it!
Have a passion for what you’re studying - Although it might seem wise to get a masters under your belt, if you’re not passionate or motivated about what you’ll be studying then maybe a masters isn’t for you. If you’re driven and passionate about what you’re doing, then I would definitely encourage a masters! It will be a lot of work, but it will be super interesting! If you’re interested then you’ll be more engaged and your grades will benefit in the long-run. Sure, there may be some modules that are a bit of a bore, but you’ll also have the opportunity to potentially meet professionals in the field that you’re wanting to explore. That alone can be a HUGE thing!! Especially if you want to hear about the real-world experience of that job role.
