Maybe. I would even grant you five person who rather be bus drivers than professors. But the FACT remains that for the other five, CHOICE is a dirty word.
Does a Masters degree help in today's career progression?
- Thread starter raincool2005
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Biang, somehow government come in again.
I thought only Silence Sky and a few more people got the mystical power of dragging garment into everything! :bsmilie: :bsmilie: You also!
But you get what I mean la. The bus captain point was an extreme example, I'm sure you know of people who don't want to get promoted but improve themselves academically and on paper anyways, just in case. I know of teachers who can be subject head or HOD but decline to take up position because don't want extra pressure/responsibilities. That sort of situation lor!
How so?
Are you telling me if a guy could only choose between being a prof and a bus driver, he will definitely want to be a prof? Given real life conditions, etc. Some people cannot handle the idea of dealing with students, facing a class, etc.. People are so diverse and different that you can never tell!
Anyways, as mentioned, it's an exaggerated example which serves to deliver a milder point, see previous post.
That sort of situation is a good situation lor.
But not everyone is in such a good situation lor.
Some got CHOICE to be Masters or PhD.
Some got to CHOOSE to be bus driver or refuse collector.
Bottomline: CHOOSING is not the important thing, certainly not something to die for; but access to CHOICES is, particularly choices that you want - if you know what you want.
If I have only ONE CHOICE - which techincally is not a choice - but it is the BEST CHOICE - from someone who knows - then I don't mind compelled, forced, dragged screaming and kicking to take that choice - and told its my choice.
I think when you were young this happened to you. But now you are big, you want to choose.
So choose lor.
PS: And thats what the garment is doing lor. You got one choice and its the best . If you want to choose, you can choose the clowns lor. Cos those not clowns are cowed or coopted and only clowns allowed to play play lor. So choose lor.
PPS: Actually I don't need any choices. I just need to know what is best and that it is, or something I can make, accessible for myself. If bus driver is best for me, so be it. No professorship for me, thanks but no thanks.
*declines bait to start on politics*
Perhaps.. Everyone wants more choices. But if you think about it, without choices, life would be A LOT SIMPLER! =D =D =D There is always a silver lining!
Perhaps.. Everyone wants more choices. But if you think about it, without choices, life would be A LOT SIMPLER! =D =D =D There is always a silver lining!
OK lor. Next time we got chance when we meet bus drivers we ask them what they want to be lor if they real really can choose. But ya we both don't know ....
my 2cents
only more reputed positions need an higher education (e.g. when ur job ppl 1 2 know ur background),
else experience is sufficient (& ur bozz must know ur willing 2 work hard) (e.g. doing back-end support/operations)
full stop.
only more reputed positions need an higher education (e.g. when ur job ppl 1 2 know ur background),
else experience is sufficient (& ur bozz must know ur willing 2 work hard) (e.g. doing back-end support/operations)
full stop.
Not really, I'm working as an Engineer for years now and I only have my Bachelor's.
Planning to go for my Msc later this year as I'm experiencing peer pressure from my SG counterparts.
There are 8 of us (all engineers) within my dept in the SG plant and here are the figures:
4 PRC Nationals (2 converted to SG citizens, 2 remains as PR) - 2x Phds, 2x double masters
2 India Nationals (1 converted to SG citizen, 1 remain as PR) - 2x double masters
1 RPC (Taiwan) National (Singapore PR) - 1x Bachelor's
1 SG born NS serving guy (Singapore citizen: yes, it's me) - 1x Bachelor's
7/8 of us plans to go back to their native homeland when time comes for retirement. Even those who have taken up citizenship plan it that way as well since their spouses did not give up their passports. (So it's not a one way ticket for them). You should be able to guess who's the 1/8 left. (Unless I become the top 0.5% and "leak" my way out)
Going back to the topic of helping career progression. My take on this is "no", but it'll help you to stay relevant amidst our "rat race" economy.
? Peer pressure? But does your scope of work require the knowledge gained when you do your masters? =D
Nope. Doesn't even encompass a majority of the topics I did during my B.Eng.
Co. also highlighted that I'll not be getting a raise of whatsoever after my Msc completion.
Maybe it's the kiasu mentality I have. But I tend to think that employers will weigh between those who have it and those who not. And believe me, there are lots of postgraduates in our small little island.
Experience wise, it's difficult to quantify. Time spent in a co. doesn't necessary equate to what you have seen or learnt.
Even so, there can be a lot of post grads w/ lotsa job experiences.
Yeah, sometimes I wonder how pragmatic we actually are.. I mean.. Old cow argument about how uni degrees have no relation to job related issues.. I would tend to agree about how university might be a rough indicator (though I do not necessarily agree that for everyone it IS an indicator) of training for the mind, nothing more.
But how one more year would actually add cookie points to the score, I seriously have no idea. But I guess in this life, there are many things that can't be explained anyways.. Heh.
well i guess all of us would experience diff. things.
as for my fate ...
i studied IT ... but now in the finance industry
i got my job through previsous experiences.
i oni got diploma ... but now taking a PT diglee
but i guess sometimes there is a rat race with ur other colleagues when promotion time comes, but with a gd bozz i think performance & hardwork counts alot
If you know about the media industry a few years ago, it is almost the same. But I see it changing, at least I have not heard of brick layer (back home) who is a Creative Director here lately.
There is a silver lining... hold your ground ... learn ... there will be a chance to be in the winning team ...
In life science research in singapore, it's quite safe to say that no paper, no talk...
not like other countries (and not the backward kind, the kind who have nobel prize winners)
It's sad, they want this 'industry' to grow, but are limiting the very basics of ways that it can grow.
to TS, if you really want to pursue this line for long term, go do your post-grad (be it here if they actually let u, or overseas.) but be warned, even if you do it here, if you intend to be a PI, they'll still send you (if they're kind) or ask you to go overseas for a min of 3 years for fellowship 1st. so to me... just go away and do you post-grad, so much simpler, get to work with great & experienced pple and get to experience a different (and better) kind of research culture.
I did and no regrets... hope to go back again soon. hahahah
not like other countries (and not the backward kind, the kind who have nobel prize winners)
It's sad, they want this 'industry' to grow, but are limiting the very basics of ways that it can grow.
to TS, if you really want to pursue this line for long term, go do your post-grad (be it here if they actually let u, or overseas.) but be warned, even if you do it here, if you intend to be a PI, they'll still send you (if they're kind) or ask you to go overseas for a min of 3 years for fellowship 1st. so to me... just go away and do you post-grad, so much simpler, get to work with great & experienced pple and get to experience a different (and better) kind of research culture.
I did and no regrets... hope to go back again soon. hahahah
Ok the question should be rephrased in a different way to yield answers...
>>does a masters degree helps in today's career progression ?
You will have to look at the field of Masters that you're in....
i.e. Asian Studies vs History of Classical Arts, Engineering vs Acturial Science, Biology vs...etc
If you're in masters in some programs that is not in demand, you're pretty much with a problem
There is STATISTICALLY higher pay increment in US if you get into Masters. But the increment for pay with PhD is lower and it's harder to find jobs with PhD. You can view the following links:
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos027.htm#earnings
You can view the pay increments with bachelor vs masters vs PhD. PhD statistically get lower rate of increase of pay. You can also view pay for other fields...type in Search field.
http://money.cnn.com/2005/08/15/pf/training_pay/index.htm
In this CNN article you can see that PhDs usually get lower pay, especially those in academic research scientist.
Note that the current biotech situation in Singapore is currently mostly academic research (funded mostly by government grants)...NOT private industry (most based in singapore are manufacturing based for cost advantage...NOT Research>>Discovery>>Development>>Manufacturing). Hence you see a lot of policies that are introduced about Discovery drugs programme in Sg.
You can see why some people are complaining about how low the pay is in life science sector in Singapore, cuz it's still academic based.
>>does a masters degree helps in today's career progression ?
You will have to look at the field of Masters that you're in....
i.e. Asian Studies vs History of Classical Arts, Engineering vs Acturial Science, Biology vs...etc
If you're in masters in some programs that is not in demand, you're pretty much with a problem
There is STATISTICALLY higher pay increment in US if you get into Masters. But the increment for pay with PhD is lower and it's harder to find jobs with PhD. You can view the following links:
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos027.htm#earnings
You can view the pay increments with bachelor vs masters vs PhD. PhD statistically get lower rate of increase of pay. You can also view pay for other fields...type in Search field.
http://money.cnn.com/2005/08/15/pf/training_pay/index.htm
In this CNN article you can see that PhDs usually get lower pay, especially those in academic research scientist.
Note that the current biotech situation in Singapore is currently mostly academic research (funded mostly by government grants)...NOT private industry (most based in singapore are manufacturing based for cost advantage...NOT Research>>Discovery>>Development>>Manufacturing). Hence you see a lot of policies that are introduced about Discovery drugs programme in Sg.
You can see why some people are complaining about how low the pay is in life science sector in Singapore, cuz it's still academic based.
:bsmilie: :bsmilie: A lot compared to $ here is it. Currency makes the difference leh.
Are you telling me that their plumbers earn more than their engineers? I sincerely doubt so.
yah true lah..currency makes big difference..but considering that they dont have college diploma or degree...they are said to be paid pretty well.
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos211.htm#earnings
http://www.ehow.com/how_12541_research-salary-ranges.html
There is also the issue of supply and demand. If one day all the foreign construction workers somehow disparate, and Singapore cannot find any replacement source of supply from overseas.. Compound that with the fact that locals will not be likely to want to take up menial jobs.. You bet the pay might rise to attract them to do it!
Of course that's a very, very hypothetical situation with many ifs.
But I hope you understand that pay is already a very iffy issue, since there are many many factors that go into renumeration, and even then, sometimes companies use their own logic to pay people. Along with the industry. It actually depends on how much oppression workers can take sometimes.
I'd better get out of here before our self-proclaimed master expert of Economics who thinks that pay is based on a few factors comes in and posts stuff since we've clashed on such issues before. (I shall not name anyone! :bsmilie: )
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