Going to graduate school and earning your masters degree or PhD is a big decision to make after you graduate with your bachelors degree. US news and world report posted some information on having a graduate degree.

Those who finish their grad degrees also tend to earn bigger paychecks. The average worker with a college degree earns about $42,000 a year. Master’s degree recipients earn an average of $52,000. Ph.D.’s earn an average of about $71,000 a year. And those who’ve earned professional degrees such as law or medicine earn an average of about $82,000.

But since grad courses can be expensive, and most students have to borrow to pay at least some of their tuition, it would be foolish not to at least consider the financial costs against the financial benefits.

So before you commit to a program, or an education loan, check out:

* What salaries people in your intended field are earning.
* What your monthly payments will be on your student loans.
* How quickly graduates from your school got jobs.
* What salaries graduates from your program are earning.

The eventual payoff of your advanced degree can be worth it depending on where you live and what you plan to do. Earning a graduate degree online is also an option for students that need to work and go to school. This can allow you to finish your advanced degree while working, or taking care of your family.

Continuing your education and going to graduate school to earn your master’s degree or PhD sounds like a great idea, but how do you fund such extensive education? During tough economic times, many schools have less money to fund grad students which will lower your chances of affording school. But, if you really want to up your odds, there are some things you should know. US News offers some tips on how to get financial aid for your graduate school education.

Apply to wealthier schools. Public universities in states with stronger economies, and schools with endowments large enough or managed well enough to weather Wall Street’s collapse, have more money to hand out.
Apply early. To lock up the best Ph.D. students, … | Read the rest of this entry »

Choosing a grad school can be a long, tedious process. You have to sift through website after website and brochure after brochure looking for the schools that meet your needs. Then, you have to apply to a narrowed-down group of your preferred schools and hope that you’re accepted to one of the schools. However, Peterson’s has made this process much easier with their GradSchoolsWantYou program:
If grad school is in your future, take the first step in finding the perfect school or program with GradSchoolsWantYou! Choosing the right school no longer requires hours of research sifting through stacks of school and program descriptions. Register today, and let prospective grad schools across the country find you directly.
Unlike other college search and selection tools, CollegesWantYouSM doesnt expect you … | Read the rest of this entry »

There are three major sources of funding for a graduate school education: individual, federal, and school. When deciding how you’re going to fund your graduate school education, consider this advice on the forms of funding from GradSchoolTips:
If at all possible, it’s best to pay for as much of your graduate school as possible without resorting to borrowing. Many grad students find that, with their considerable knowledge of a subject matter, they’re able to make money tutoring school kids or even college undergraduates. In addition, many graduate schools or their associated universities will have work study programs, which are partially funded by the federal government.
The second main source of money for grad school is the federal government, through their student loan program. The main loan … | Read the rest of this entry »

There are several reasons why you might be considering enrolling in graduate school. Maybe you need a graduate degree to chase the career you want. Maybe you have been out of undergraduate school for a while and you’re discovering that it’s harder to get a job than you thought it would be. Or maybe you just aren’t ready to start paying off your student loans just yet. Whatever your situation, there are things you need to consider before jumping into graduate education. Consider this advice from Peterson’s:
First and foremost, grad school isn’t a cakewalk. Even if you were cream of the crop as an undergrad, this is a whole other ball game. Students entering grad school should be serious about their studies, so maturity and … | Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re considering going into law school, then you’ll need to be prepared to take the LSAT exam. The SAT is a standardized test that is required of students that are applying to law school. According to Peterson’s, the LSAT is broken down in this manner:
The two Logical Reasoning sections assess your ability to analyze and evaluate arguments. You will not only have to determine whether arguments are strong or weak, you’ll also have to understand precisely why they are so.
The Analytical Reasoning (Logic Games) section assesses your skills in basic logic, including deductive reasoning and finding structure within organized data. These games are of the type “Alan, Beatrice, Carmel, and David all buy flowers. There are five different types of flowers: germanium…”. Some games … | Read the rest of this entry »

If you’ve ever been in a situation where a teacher or student talked about an assistantship and you weren’t quite sure what that was, then you may need to brush up on your grad school terminology. The following definitions for grad school terms are provided by Peterson’s:
Assistantship
Assistantships are available at many schools with graduate programs, and can be teaching or research centered. In exchange for completing some work or research for the school, you‘re offered free or reduced tuition as well as other possible benefits, such as health insurance and a monthly stipend.
Fellowship
Fellowships are essentially scholarships or grants that are awarded to doctoral students. Awards vary but could include enough money to cover the cost of everything, including tuition, housing, and food. Sometimes, they have … | Read the rest of this entry »

Every year, U.S. News and World Report ranks the best grad schools in 10 different fields of study. Their 2008 report ranks the following ten graduate schools in business as the best in the country:

Harvard University (MA)
Stanford University (CA)
University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Sloan)
Northwestern University (Kellogg) (IL)
University of Chicago
Dartmouth College (Tuck) (NH)
University of California—Berkeley (Haas)
Columbia University (NY)
New York University (Stern)

Their ranking consider many factors, including peer assessment score, recruiter assessment score, average undergraduate GPA, average GMAT score, acceptance rate, cost of program, number graduates employer within a certain amount of time after graduation, and the number of students that are enrolled in their programs full-time.
————————————
About Online Degrees Today.com
Check out our … | Read the rest of this entry »

ETS, the administrator of the GRE Test, a test that is often required for students planning to attend grad school, recently announced that they will not revise the test later this year as they had originally planned. Instead, the test will retain its current format. According to Peterson’s:
This new exam, scheduled for release in September, would have featured the biggest changes to the GRE in over 50 years.
Gone would have been the computer-adaptive format, by which a section becomes easier or harder according to how a student performs on early questions. Instead, the new linear test – almost twice the length of the current exam – would have been the same for everyone taking it on a given day. It would also have introduced many … | Read the rest of this entry »

Every year, U.S. News and World Report ranks the best grad schools in 10 different fields of study. Their 2008 report ranks the following ten graduate schools in education as the best in the country:

Teachers College, Columbia University (NY)
Stanford University (CA)
Harvard University (MA)
Vanderbilt University (Peabody) (TN)
University of California—Los Angeles
University of Michigan—Ann Arbor
Northwestern University (IL)
University of California—Berkeley
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin—Madison

Their ranking consider many factors, including peer assessment score, assessment score by superintendents, average GRE score, acceptance rate, student-teacher ratio, number of Doctoral/Master’s Degrees awarded, and the amount of research funded to both students and members of the faculty in previous years.