In a job market where graduate-level education is becoming more and more common, some students are a few steps ahead of the game. The question for these intrepid few is not whether or not to pursue a graduate degree, but which graduate degree to pursue first.
This was the question for Tufts alum Bruce Wilder (LA '61), who applied and was accepted to both law and medical school. "I really wanted to do both. There was a joke in my college yearbook about that: 'Why do you have to decide? Do both,'" Wilder said. And eventually, he did: Wilder now holds a medical degree, a law degree, and a master's in public health.
Accepted to Tufts Medical School when he was 19, Wilder finished up his undergraduate degree in physics and worked with a professor there before enrolling. After an internship and a year serving in Korea, Wilder went on to get his law degree from the University of Pittsburgh - while at the same time continuing his full-time practice as a neurosurgeon.
Still active in his surgical practice, Wilder splits his time between his interests. "I have a law practice, and I'm moving towards consulting," Wilder said. His law practice is not totally divorced from his medical experience: he describes it as mostly "counseling physicians involved in disputes."
Attaining several graduate degrees can allow those like Wilder, who have multiple career interests, greater flexibility in pursuing those interests. "People today typically change careers an average of seven times over the course of their work life," said Jean Papalia, director of Career Services at Tufts. "An advanced degree might facilitate a shift from one environment to another."
A desire to improve their marketability drives some graduates back into the classroom, but money is only one of many factors in the choice to pursue multiple advanced degrees. "Research indicates that average earnings for individuals with advanced degrees are higher than those with bachelor's degrees; however, the decision to go to graduate school is more complex than compensation," Papalia said.
"Do what you love and the money will follow," said Tufts graduate John Panagopoulos (LA '85), who majored in English at Tufts, completed a master's in English at Northeastern and an MBA program at UMass, and recently graduated from Suffolk Law School.
"When you go for a graduate degree, you should put your interest before the dollar," he added. "You should not go into a program just because you think it's going to be lucrative."
Currently, Panagopoulos works at the Office of Civil Rights at the Mass. Turnpike Authority, and he said he would like to continue his work there in a legal capacity. "Once I pass the bar, what I would like to do is continue on in the legal department here or at another public organization," he said. "I don't see myself in a law firm; I plan to continue on in the public sector."
To spend so many hours in the classroom in pursuit of advanced degrees, a love of learning is a prerequisite. "I practically jumped from one [degree] to the other continuously," Panagopoulos said. "I did it not just to improve my marketability, but also because I enjoy studying and learning new things."
"I love going to school. I might as well go - I love learning something new every day," current Tufts graduate student Francois Garand agreed.
Garand, a psychology and music major who graduated from Holy Cross with minors in theater and French, plans to pursue an M.D. and Ph.D. after completing his master's in biology at Tufts. Garand also holds a bachelor's degree in computer science from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and completed the post-baccalaureate pre-medical program at Tufts.
Pursuing multiple degrees can be very costly, but for Garand, finding a way to pay for it was well worth the effort. "When I was working at Holy Cross, all my classes were free. When I did my degree at WPI, Holy Cross paid for it. For a lot of graduate degrees, the school pays in exchange for teaching." Garand said. "I had to sell my car to come to Tufts... I sold my guitar. But it's worth it to come to Tufts."
While all Jumbos may not have multiple master's degrees in their futures, a majority of them plan to pursue graduate education. "Institutional Research conducts a survey annually during commencement season to assess seniors' post-graduate plans," Papalia said. "For the past several years, this data has indicated that 18 to 23 percent of Tufts students plan to go directly to graduate school immediately after graduation. Another 75 to 80 percent plan to pursue advanced studies within five years of graduation."
While a graduate degree - or several - is not yet a de-facto requirement for resume-toters, it may become more necessary in the future. "Graduate education is clearly more prevalent today than it was a generation ago," Papalia said.
But that's not to say that graduate school is the right route for everyone. "Graduate school is intended to be a path for individuals who are highly focused and committed to a specific field of study," she added. "There should be strong, well-researched reasons to pursue more than one degree."
