History MA - Opinions

Mr.Nice Guy

I appear to have been offered a place for a one year MA course in History starting in September and I'm really pulling my hair out trying to figure out whether or not I should accept it. I need to make up my mind soon as well.

I'm kind of leaning towards a career in teaching and while I am aware a postgrad course can help in that area, I don't suppose it would do me a lot of good in the area of primary school teaching which I'd probably prefer over secondary teaching.

So then, are there benefits to be had in doing the programme? I'd love to hear from anyone who has done an MA in History to hear what they think or maybe someone who's in a similar dilemma to myself. :pac:

Pride Fighter

I think you should do it. If you have a masters approximately 5k is added to your starting salary if you are a teacher. I am not sure if this applies to primary level though. Maybe ask on the lecturing and teaching forum.

Mr.Nice Guy

Pride Fighter wrote: »

I think you should do it. If you have a masters approximately 5k is added to your starting salary if you are a teacher. I am not sure if this applies to primary level though. Maybe ask on the lecturing and teaching forum.

Wow never heard about that. I'll have to check that out.

conchubhar1

so you get 5000 extra if you have an honours degree and an extra 5000 a year if you have a masters?

noice!

spurious

No, you get one academic qualifications allowance.
You can't get a Primary degree allowance and a Master's allowance.

That's presuming you get a job, along with all the other unemployed 'it's a job for life' teachers.

You're much more likely to start off subbing for years at the part-time rate.

conchubhar1

thanks - you have instilled me with so much confidence


so with a masters degree - you get less than 600 euro more a year? thats measley

convert

I'd recommend you do the MA - you'll get a lot out of it and it will look good on the CV etc. A friend of mine did an MA and then did the conversion course to do primary teaching and they have no regrets about doing the Masters. They believe it actually stood to them.

Do you have to pay a deposit when you accept your place? If not, maybe you could accept it and then 'change your mind' in a little while when you've had a bit more time to think and consider all your options. Asking on the teaching forum is probably not a bad idea.

Mr.Nice Guy

Still mulling over whether to do this or perhaps a TEFL course.

Can someone tell me how many hours a week a History MA involves as I don't want to just have to turn up for a few hours a week.

I've been reading a few postgrad posts on the forum via the search button and I can see a lot of people haven't been too impressed. Don't want to have to borrow money from the parents and go through the grant application process only to find out I'm miserable.

Brimmy

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

Still mulling over whether to do this or perhaps a TEFL course.

Come to China with me then

That is assuming the English department get back to me with an answer in regards to my application and say no...should ring them tomorrow.

noodler

Pride Fighter wrote: »

I think you should do it. If you have a masters approximately 5k is added to your starting salary if you are a teacher. I am not sure if this applies to primary level though. Maybe ask on the lecturing and teaching forum.

You'd have to get a job as a teacher first, my uncle got one during the week. 400 people went for it and it wasn't even a school in Dublin.

My primary reason for telling you to do it at the moment is to ride out this recession for another year.

EDIT: BTW, you can argue over the usefulness of the History MA etc but I REALLY enjoyed the course and made a bunch of friends I still see regularly two years later.

Honest to god, thats a pretty good reason for doing it.

Mr.Nice Guy

Brimmy wrote: »

Come to China with me then

That is assuming the English department get back to me with an answer in regards to my application and say no...should ring them tomorrow.

China is tempting me also so I might yeah. It's a bit head-wrecking trying to figure out which course to try though.

noodler wrote:

My primary reason for telling you to do it at the moment is to ride out this recession for another year.

EDIT: BTW, you can argue over the usefulness of the History MA etc but I REALLY enjoyed the course and made a bunch of friends I still see regularly two years later.

Honest to god, thats a pretty good reason for doing it.

Did you feel the year was challenging? If I had to turn up for a good few hours a week I'd be content with that but if it's just one or two hours a week I'm not sure I'd enjoy that.

The thing is I just turned 23 two months ago and since I took a few years off during my undergrad, technically speaking I've been on UCD's books since 2004. That means if I do the MA I'd be 24 by the time I'd finish. :eek:

I'd like to do a bit of travelling at some stage as well and I'm leaning towards possibly doing a HDip course for Primary (which is another 18 months out of my life) so I could be about 28 by the time I'd be ready to settle into a teaching job in 2014. Can I afford to leave things that late? Lots of people are married with kids at that age and I'd be a newbie to my career.

Decisions, decisions.

noodler

I wouldn't worry about age to much. You have a window to do these things in realistically, aot of people simply don't come back to it later in life.

The MA (I did the International Relations one) was less challenging than the other MA I did but it was very interesting. Reading up for your weekly seminars and then debating (rather than listening to a lecture) the material with your peers is good stuff. The papers are longer essays and then you have the thesis of course. There are no exams but thats a good thing, I mean how many times can they ask you to regurgitate learnt of essays?

Brimmy

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

China is tempting me also so I might yeah. It's a bit head-wrecking trying to figure out which course to try though.

I'm tempted for the China placement myself just because it means actual supervised experience..otherwise I'd go straight to Korea but I'd rather be good at it and have the opportunities to go back than do it once and be bad at it. The only downside is it's in China and I don't want to disappear for a few days only reappear with no memory of it..

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

I'm old :pac:

You only live once. Do what you want to do and so what if you think you'll be too old for it. Besides if you become a teacher by then students might think you've been doing it for longer and respect you rather than some young pup straight out of college :pac:

Pride Fighter

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

China is tempting me also so I might yeah. It's a bit head-wrecking trying to figure out which course to try though.



Did you feel the year was challenging? If I had to turn up for a good few hours a week I'd be content with that but if it's just one or two hours a week I'm not sure I'd enjoy that.

The thing is I just turned 23 two months ago and since I took a few years off during my undergrad, technically speaking I've been on UCD's books since 2004. That means if I do the MA I'd be 24 by the time I'd finish. :eek:

I'd like to do a bit of travelling at some stage as well and I'm leaning towards possibly doing a HDip course for Primary (which is another 18 months out of my life) so I could be about 28 by the time I'd be ready to settle into a teaching job in 2014. Can I afford to leave things that late? Lots of people are married with kids at that age and I'd be a newbie to my career.

Decisions, decisions.

I am older than you and I was in the same 3rd year class as you. You can always travel, summer holidays are long, and if you get a teaching job eventually you will have a good long holiday to travel each year.

Mr.Nice Guy

Thanks for the feedback, fellas. I'm going to head over to the Careers Office this week and try and come to a decision by the end of the week.

princess-sprkle

did you decide whether to go for it or not?
I sat in on a lot of the history MA classes this year, i absolutely hated them tbh!

rainbow kirby

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

The thing is I just turned 23 two months ago and since I took a few years off during my undergrad, technically speaking I've been on UCD's books since 2004. That means if I do the MA I'd be 24 by the time I'd finish. :eek:

+1 on the whole age thing - never too old! I'm 2 years older than you and I'm thinking of possibly going back for a masters in September too...

Mr.Nice Guy

princess-sprkle wrote: »

did you decide whether to go for it or not?
I sat in on a lot of the history MA classes this year, i absolutely hated them tbh!

Well I'm about 60% in favour of it at this moment but it's subject to change! I'm curious, why did you hate the history MA classes?

princess-sprkle

Mr.Nice Guy wrote: »

Well I'm about 60% in favour of it at this moment but it's subject to change! I'm curious, why did you hate the history MA classes?

it may have been the people in the class, everyone just sat staring at each other when the professor was starting a discussion, 2 excruciating hours every week. you'd think people would have gotten over it by that stage.

however, in general i found the stuff on the course really interesting, lecturers were super helpful and stuff. i'd say go for it, its no load to carry either way!