I would concur with the other answers so far. For work vs. reward, I think an MS is more useful than a further degree. As the others have noted, outside of academia, the degree is less important than how good you are at science (plus who you know). When someone would query him about getting a Ph.D., a former advisor of mine would quip, "A Ph.D. is only good if you want to teach college or be king". This is always the advice I give to students debating on what to do with their lives, academically speaking.
Good luck with everything. -david ____________________________________________________________________________ _ David Gillett, Ph.D. Ecologist Southern California Coastal Water Resource Project 3535 Harbour Blvd, Suite 110 Costa Mesa, CA 92626 -----Original Message----- From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news [mailto:ecolo...@listserv.umd.edu] On Behalf Of David M. Lawrence Sent: Sunday, April 04, 2010 7:36 PM To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] M.S. -- is it useful? An M.S. is useful -- more useful than a Ph.D., in fact -- for many types of non-academic jobs, such as for consulting firms, government agencies, and many non-governmental organizations. If you want to stay in academia, though, you might have a problem. Dave On 4/4/2010 7:58 PM, Jason Hernandez wrote: > I am nearly finished with my Master's degree in biology (anticipated date May 2010). But, scanning the job postings from the several days I have been subscribed to this listserv, I see two main categories: jobs for applicants with Ph.D's, and jobs for current students. I am wondering, how often are there actually openings for applicants who already have Master's degrees and are not currently students? I am trying to figure out my strategy for life after grad school, and this kind of information will help me to find the best approach. > > Jason Hernandez > East Carolina University > > > > -- ------------------------------------------------------ David M. Lawrence | Home: (804) 559-9786 7471 Brook Way Court | Fax: (804) 559-9787 Mechanicsville, VA 23111 | Email: d...@fuzzo.com USA | http: http://fuzzo.com ------------------------------------------------------ "All drains lead to the ocean." -- Gill, Finding Nemo "We have met the enemy and he is us." -- Pogo "No trespassing 4/17 of a haiku" -- Richard Brautigan
