Why do people go "back to school"?
Posted by Carlton Bale on August 8th, 2002
Why do people "go back to school"? I'm pondering this because of my own situation and because of the choices made by some co-workers. I'm trying to think beyond the typical answers such as "to get a better job" or "to make more money".
As opposed to "to get a better job", I believe the real response should be "because I'm tired of my current job but I really don't want to look for another job so I just start educating myself for something different and see what happens when I'm finished". Not nearly as impressive of an answer, but at some level it is probably true.
The people who want to make more money probably really mean that they want fame, fortune, and importance and that is probably the motivation for most of what they do. At least when the "going back to school" is reference to obtaining an MBA. Most people who go back to school for an MBA already had a decent paying job and won't increase their pay by much after completing the degree. There has to be additional motivation besides $.
Another possible reason is "because I've been out of school, I'm becoming a grown-up, I'm starting to feel old and boring, and school is more fun than working." That is a very realistic response, especially if the person is going back to school full-time. That's part of the reason I'd like to go back to school full-time. It takes a lot of courage to quit your job for a couple of years to chase your youth of the past and your dreams of the future. It also costs much more money, especially if your employer is paying for your part-time tuition.
Why am I going back? I think it's a combination of responses 1 and 3. And also the Everest theory: because it's there and it's something to achieve for person satisfaction, even if you don't have anything to show for it afterwards. Are there other reasons? Probably. I'm still thinking.
January 24th, 2006 at 5:49 pm
I have recently returned to school after being out of school for twenty some years. We are doing a project on the different reasons why people return to school. I came across your article when I was looking for reference material. I was wondering if it is OK to use some of you examples in our research?
January 24th, 2006 at 6:33 pm
Jessie,
Not a problem! Feel free to reference the post and use it for ideas/examples in your paper.
Going back to school is great. . . getting finished again is even better!
January 30th, 2007 at 11:39 am
I'm one of those (hordes?) that have "gone back to school" to get an (executive) MBA on top of my M.Sc.E degree and 13 years of industry experience in ASIC design.
So why did I do it? A) I was frustrated by the lack of success from the guys handing down the company strategy and marketing plans - and wanted to understand what the h*** was going on. Ie: I wanted something to talk back at them with, and B) to me it's FUN to learn and apply new knowledge.
Will I make more money after I've completed the MBA? - probably not. Will I "get a better job"? - depends on your definition of "better". But will I get a different job? - yes, quite probably, and probably also within the firm that I work for today.
I'm currently working on my MBA thesis … countdown for May 9th (when my thesis is due) has been initiated - woohoo!