Should I go back to school? 5 Questions to consider
It’s not uncommon to reach a point in your career when you realize your current qualifications aren’t quite enough to help you accomplish your professional goals. Maybe you’re eyeing a promotion with your current organization, or you’ve set your sights on something completely new. Now you’re left wondering, “Should I go back to school?”
Enrolling in a degree program today takes a lot more consideration than it did back when you were 18. There are likely a handful of additional factors to keep in mind before you go all in and commit to heading back to college — if you have a family, if you have a looming mortgage payment or if you hope to continue working full time while you study.
You’re certainly not alone. Anyone who’s been in your position before will tell you how complicated this decision-making process can be. That’s why we’ve compiled five questions adult students should ask before deciding to continue their education. See whether your answers to them can help shed some light on whether to go back to school.
You Have Access to Flexible Options
In recent years, online education has emerged as a great way for busy adults to be able to pursue a degree on their own time, offering significantly more flexibility than on-campus classes without sacrificing quality, peer-to-peer interaction, and engagement with faculty. Attending classes on campus, which are often scheduled at inconvenient times and require travel time to get to and from, isn’t feasible for many working professionals. Online education allows you to attend class whenever it’s convenient for you.
If you’re in a rut at work and are looking to expand your skillset into a new area, deepen your knowledge of your current field, or simply broaden your educational horizons, going back to school is the best way to learn something new. Maybe you’ve never been someone who likes school, and have found the subjects covered to be boring or not applicable to real life. Once you get to college, your options are endless when it comes to learning about subjects that you really care about! Whether you’re interested in cybersecurity or business administration or even if you don’t know what you want to study, there’s a degree program out there just for you.
15 High-Demand Careers That Make Going Back to School Worth It
If you’re considering investing the time, money and energy into getting a degree, you want to make sure there will be a rewarding career after you graduate. Let’s look at 15 fast-growing, high-paying jobs that are the careers of the future.
Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists
Market research analysts and marketing specialists are responsible for the promotion of a company’s products and services. This may include customer research, advertising campaign development and campaign performance monitoring.
This career is rewarding for both data-driven and creative individuals who enjoy customer psychology and developing persuasive messaging that meets the needs of target audiences.
Nurse Practitioners
Nurse practitioners are responsible for basic and clinical care of individuals with acute and chronic medical conditions. They often work in primary care settings, hospitals or managed care facilities.
You will find it rewarding to become a nurse practitioner if you enjoy helping people, working with people of different ages and are comfortable with applying evidence-based practices to solve patient care problems.
Management Analysts
Management analysts are in charge of keeping the costs of a company low by analyzing data, creating reports and making recommendations for policy changes. They are often called upon to evaluate the performance of employees in an organization, and make changes that will improve the process.
Financial Managers
Financial managers are the backbone of an organization’s financial planning process. Financial managers assist executive management by leading the assessment of financial performance, strategies and tactics that maximize the efficient utilization of resources in support of approved business objectives.
Medical and Health Services Managers
Medical and health services managers are responsible for administration of a healthcare facility. They are usually responsible for hiring employees, increasing revenue, and developing strategic plans for the future that improve patient care outcomes.
You will find a career as a medical and health services manager rewarding if you enjoy working with people, helping people, and are comfortable with responsibility. It’s also important that you like working in a team because you will be working with other employees from different departments.
Computer and Information Systems Managers
Computer and information system managers focus on the planning, development, and maintenance of computer systems used by an organization. As new technologies and complex information continue to advance, this career will be vital to the success of organizations.
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Software Developers
The role of a software developer is to create computer applications and software systems that interact with end-user systems. Developers both create new applications for computer platforms, as well as maintain and enhance existing applications.
Information Security Analysts
Information security analysts are in charge of security when it comes to the business world. They focus on the protection of an organization’s computers, networks and data from internal and external attackers.
Training and Development Specialists
Training and development specialists are human resource professionals that specialize in the professional development and education of employees. These professionals will develop programs that help employees build a variety of job-specific skills, as well as mandate training in areas of safety and compliance.
Personal Financial Advisors
Personal financial advisors help individuals develop a plan to help them reach their financial goals. They work with clients through individual coaching, life insurance, retirement planning, development of investment strategies and planning for future education of children.
Data Scientists
Data scientists specialize in extracting meaning from large amounts of data. They write programs that organize and manage data to help identify patterns and relationships between different pieces of data.
Operations Research Analysts
Operations research analysts are responsible for applying mathematical models and procedures to problems that may involve resources, human performance, or the business environment. They also work with large database sets and ask specific questions to analyze the data.
Public Relations Specialists
The role of a public relations specialist is to deliver the message of a business to its target market. A public relations specialist is responsible for communicating results of research, developing a product or service, marketing the product or service, and handling consumer complaints.
Statisticians
Statisticians play a vital role in making sense of the ever-growing amounts of data collected by businesses. They gather, analyze, and interpret data to aid in many business decision-making processes.
Nurse Midwives
Nurse midwives are responsible for providing pregnant women with prenatal and postnatal care, as well as counseling. They ensure a woman’s physical, mental and emotional health throughout the different stages of pregnancy and childbirth.
Source:
https://www.umassglobal.edu/news-and-events/blog/5-easy-questions-should-i-go-back-to-school
https://online.champlain.edu/blog/top-reasons-to-go-back-to-school
https://www.franklin.edu/blog/what-should-i-go-back-school-for