Full-time job AND full-time masters - crazy?

pow wow

Does anyone know anyone who has successfully combined the two?

Ordinarily I wouldn't have thought of it but one of the MA courses I'm looking at has teaching in the evenings only (the course is geared to people already working) and has around 4-6 contact hours a week. In theory this would leave days free to hold down a full-time or near full-time job. The MA is 1 year and is classed as full-time with the 4 to 6 hours a week.

I had a relatively good job before I went to do my undergrad and would hope to slot back into that industry so financially it makes a whole lot of sense. I don't know if it's asking too much though to be able to do the two simultaneously?

Any advice?

The MA in question is in Politics btw.

christeb

Its tough call, I'm doing a Higher Diploma currently, and its tough with a f/t job. What you have to take into consideration are the extra hours required (study, assignments etc.). Also the Masters thesis would take up a huge amount of time towards the end of the course. Is it possible to do the course p/t, or something similar, might be a better option to space it out over 1.5/2 years, you'd be giving yourself the best chance to complete it successfully

pow wow

Thanks for that. Overall I'd prefer to get the Masters outta the way quick smart rather than work and do it p/t over a couple of years, just the thought of being an 'adult' with a salary again as opposed to a student made my eyes light up

I'm keeping an eye on recruitment in my industry to see if they have openings at 2/3 or 3/4 time as opposed to full-time. I'm sick of being broke!

I think it might depend on the type of masters you're doing too. I was told recently that (for the area I was looking into) it would be incredibly difficult to do a research masters part-time. In fact, I was told it would be impossible unless I was to work in the public sector!

It's definitely worth contacting students from the course you want to do (via the department I'd say) in order to assess the workload, as well as asking your potential supervisor.

AARRRGH

My MSc is a full-time MSc with part-time hours. It takes 12 months whether you do the part-time version or the full-time version.

I gotta say: it's no problem. I'm fairly lazy when it comes to studying (if I sit down with a book for 12 hours, I'll prob do about 2 hours study) yet I've managed to get A's in all my subjects so far.

I agree that it's better to get the masters done with quickly rather than over two years. Even simply for the smaller chance you'll drop out.

OP: Are you intelligent? Do you normally do well in exams?

Esmereldina

When I did my Masters, I remember that most of the work I had to do was really at the end. The hours of classes and the course work you'll be doing for them are only a very small part of the work you'll be doing. you're expected to do most of the work on your own, and the thesis will be the biggest part of this. I'm not saying it can't be done, because I don't know anything about your particular Masters' course, but just keep in mind that the contact hours are only a tiny part of the work you'll have to do!
What's the word count for the thesis you'll have to write and how many months will you have to do it in? Also, how are the marks weighted for coursework/exams/thesis... this will give you an idea of the amount of work they expect you to put into each.
It is a good idea to talk to other people who have done the course, as each Masters is different. Also the amount of work you put into the thesis will depend on what kind of grade you need to get... I put a lot of work into mine because I needed a really good grade for the course I wanted to do next. If you just want to get the Masters, rather than get a really good grade in it, then you might get away with not putting quite as much work into it.

pow wow

dublindude wrote: »

My MSc is a full-time MSc with part-time hours. It takes 12 months whether you do the part-time version or the full-time version.

I gotta say: it's no problem. I'm fairly lazy when it comes to studying (if I sit down with a book for 12 hours, I'll prob do about 2 hours study) yet I've managed to get A's in all my subjects so far.

I agree that it's better to get the masters done with quickly rather than over two years. Even simply for the smaller chance you'll drop out.

OP: Are you intelligent? Do you normally do well in exams?

I usually do pretty well with not that much effort but I would expect a Masters to require more commitment than my undergrad has so far!

Re the workload it's difficult to gauge from the uni website. It's 2 modules first semester, two the second, and the 15,000 word thesis by September. It says the modules are a mixture of exams and continuous assessment. The content of the modules indicates some overlap with modules I've taken at undergrad so I won't be going into it completely blind.

The ability to hold down an office job and do the Masters in the evenings would really sway my decision toward this course over another, but if it's not doable then there's no point. Do you think the department would be helpful if I asked could you realistically work full time and do it, or would they question my commitment and thus blow my application outta the water?

AARRRGH

Ask the department. They'd want to be serious dicks to hold that against you.

I reckon you'll be able to manage a full-time job and the masters with a bit of time management and hard work.

rain on

My MA had similar contact hours and there was one woman on it who kept up a fulltime job while she was studying. She did take about 14 weeks leave to do the thesis though, and she found it very hard to keep up with the reading for the rest of the year. In the end she got a 2.2, which was the lowest mark in the class if I'm remembering right. So it is do-able, but whether it's possible to do it well is another question.

zenith

Masters over two years, full-time job.

Couple of hours in the evenings, half day on Saturdays. Keep up with the reading, hit the deadlines, clock up the scores, try not to get too stressed.

It's really do-able if you're willing to put the head down and really want it.

Now that I have it, I'm actually doing another course on top of it.

Fremen

I'm doing a Master's in a mathematical course, with eight contact hours a week. There's no freaking way I could keep up if I worked a full-time job as well. The part-timers in my course doing half as much struggle a bit.
I'm sure it changes from course to course. Just be sure to read up on your course and don't bite off more than you can chew!