MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
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Been bored doing what I'm doing for ages. Would like to return to the Middle East (where i worked before), but not in the same industry which is a toughy. I'm looking at MA at Kings in Global Security (...i'm currently a journalist/cameraperson).
Been looking at distance learning masters. They are quite expensive - they are totally remote and often come in at between £10-20k which is quite a wedge of cash. Are these course just a load of power point slides, a reading list and a fat pay day for universities?
I've downloaded the reading lists of a couple of them, and have ordered some of the books to have a read through to check I am interested in the subject matter.
A masters will probably be what is necessary to convince potential employers that I'm serious about a new job. The problem is I don't have a particular job in mind, which makes making the decision a tough one.
I'm stuck in a professional rut though and am struggling to stop myself being pigeon holed. I think it might be a good way of networking and making a fresh start (...and stimulating my mind)
Does anyone have any experience of this kind of learning or has anyone made this kind of decision?
About 9k at Uni of York. You get access to tutors and material. Get student finance, go abroad, dont pay the loan back.
Yes, but it was quite a few years ago, and nothing like the price you're quoting, in fact I think it was the same price as Mackem's.
It was done in fixed time scales and so there was a cohort of students all doing it at the same time with a couple of days in-uni twice per year which was all good for motivation. I also enjoyed the subject and content. By contrast I'm doing a specific training course for work at the moment that is entirely self directed and, TBH I'm really struggling to get that one over the line so I reckon you're doing the right thing by properly researching the subject. Good luck!
I did it and found it really hard - mostly as my first stint at uni was before computers and the internet took over, so essays were written by hand and books taken out of an actual library. I also suspected a lot of the content and lectures were generally worthless in a professional capacity as they bore very little relationship to the work I was doing on the ground. It's fair to say I really didn't enjoy it, but I did discover you could put the lectures on 2X speed (so everyone sounded like a chipmunk) and with bluetooth headphones I could carry on with stuff around the house whilst listening. I never got the hang of reading papers online though, utterly hated that. Fair to say I became that mature student who mumps about the whole time whining about what a load of bollocks it all is, though in my defence work were paying for it (so I wasn't feeling that pressure) and I was studying for a qualification in an industry I have worked in on and off for most of my life so it was a box ticking exercise more than anything else.
I did a masters in project management full time away - which meant 6 weeks of classes and tutorials across a 15 month period with a requirement to hold down a full time job at the same time.
Assessment by one 10k word submission, one 30k word one and a presentation / interview.
Perfectly doable, £10k-ish, and probably worthwhile. I certainly learned to think differently.
Do not underestimate the workload though.
Don’t do project management now really though. Moved on. Learning still relevant though.
I did an MBA through Open University many years ago, mostly for the challenge to be honest!
I really enjoyed it, and would be tempted to do it again- if fact I've toyed with doing a first degree in something totally unrelated but never had the time.
The MBA did have a reasonable amount of face to face tutorials, online chat/collaboration and residential weekends and the diversity of the other students made all of those really interesting.
Global Security does sound very specialist though, might limit where you can go from there?
Not done an MA but did a BSc and MSc with the Open University (this was when courses cost about £200, so you could do a full degree for maybe £1-2k). Was a lot of work, but I was single so had nothing else to do, so just worked every evening (Mon - Fri) and had the WE off. You had tutors who you corresponded with (by mail rather than email IIRC). Learned loads, really enjoyed it - but a lot of work to schedule every week.
Are these course just a load of power point slides, a reading list and a fat pay day for universities?
Just like an on-site Masters then.
Joking aside, it is going to vary hugely between providers. I did an OU degree and the materials were excellent. Followed it up with a Masters on-site at a red brick uni - some of their materials/teaching approaches were appalling.
Big outlay for a course that's probably bad - think you need a lot of clarity on what sort of paths this qualification opens up before committing. Doesn't sound like you have that picture yet so more research needed (which you're obv doing).
Back in the OU glory days you could prob afford to be more speculative with these courses, but it's a different proposition at 20K.
i started a GIS one (UNIGIS) but after 18 months bailed out with a pgCert or pgDip, can't remember which now.
it was too close to the day job that my motivation for picking it up at the end of the day was slim to none.
Are these course just a load of power point slides, a reading list and a fat pay day for universities?
My subject was Maths, each MSc course was either a text book or a set of course notes and then you had shed loads of exercises to do each week working through various bits in the course. The MSc was no where near as well structured / spoon fed as the undergraduate stuff (which was superb), so it was harder - plus the actual Maths was getting really hard (certainly found my limit).
Like @mtnboarder I did my MBA with the OU. I got it done in 3 years, but working full time and with 2 young kids it wasn't easy. No regrets though.
I did a remote MSc as part of a career change and it helped me get taken seriously. 1 week on site lectures per module then remote self study and coursework but it was attached to a full time MSc that was done in a year, it would have taken me 3 but I bailed on the final project due to already having made the career change and then changing jobs and ended up with a PgDip.
I did it and found it really hard – mostly as my first stint at uni was before computers and the internet took over, so essays were written by hand and books taken out of an actual library. I also suspected a lot of the content and lectures were generally worthless in a professional capacity as they bore very little relationship to the work I was doing on the ground. It’s fair to say I really didn’t enjoy it, but I did discover you could put the lectures on 2X speed (so everyone sounded like a chipmunk) and with bluetooth headphones I could carry on with stuff around the house whilst listening. I never got the hang of reading papers online though, utterly hated that. Fair to say I became that mature student who mumps about the whole time whining about what a load of bollocks it all is, though in my defence work were paying for it (so I wasn’t feeling that pressure) and I was studying for a qualification in an industry I have worked in on and off for most of my life so it was a box ticking
Blimey, that sounds like my experience of my part time degree in the early noughties.