Is there any advantage to doing a masters in my subject?

TypicalDub

I am a post primary teacher who has only been teaching a few years. I actually really enjoy study and I have a desire to do a masters in a topic related to one of my subjects but am finding it hard to justify spending the money on this to myself. I know the old pay scale used to reward having a masters but can anyone tell me if it is in anyway an advanatage to have a masters these days? I did the PDE so do not have a teaching masters.

evolving_doors

If youre in the job the Only masters interviewers look at now is for the Leadership and Management ... for AP posts/Deputy Principal etc. SEN Masters might be useful too if you're on that route.

But if you're not hungry for management then do it at your own time and leisure... it's harder to do it with kids in tow so maybe better get it done whilst no commitments etc.

I think UL do an online diploma which leads to the Leadership and Management masters. I vaguely recall hearing it was subsidised!

TypicalDub

Yeah that was the answer I was afraid of getting to be honest ! it's hard to get motivated to do a degree in either of those two subjects because I find them so uninteresting but I could easily desire AP/DP roles in the future when I have more money pressures.

Thank you for the reply.

TheDriver

TypicalDub wrote: »

Yeah that was the answer I was afraid of getting to be honest ! it's hard to get motivated to do a degree in either of those two subjects because I find them so uninteresting but I could easily desire AP/DP roles in the future when I have more money pressures.

Thank you for the reply.

You should never go for AP or DP due to money pressures, far easier routes to get money if that's the issue. Developing your leadership capacity and empowering change etc is reason you'd go for AP/DP

TypicalDub

yeah....that's nice corporate speak and all there but I think we have different views of the world.

People, for the most part, go for promotion for money. And status and ego and stuff like that obviously.

mtoutlemonde

Career Guidance??? I would love to do something in counselling specifically related to teenagers.

rainbowtrout

TypicalDub wrote: »

yeah....that's nice corporate speak and all there but I think we have different views of the world.

People, for the most part, go for promotion for money. And status and ego and stuff like that obviously.

I disagree. Sure there's extra money with AP/DP positions but there's a whole heap of extra work and hassle too. If people want extra money, it's easy to make extra doing grinds, marking exams in the summer etc.

2xj3hplqgsbkym

I’m doing a masters at the moment in an area related to my subject and I absolutely love it.i can honestly say it has indirectly improved my teaching and most certainly my knowledge of my subject.

I had considered doing an education/ leadership management masters and I started TL21 with the view of pursuing the masters in Maynooth but I found it painfully boring. I had a look at the thesis titles and they also were mind numbingly boring. I would have hated it!

If you want to do a masters in something you are interested in, just do it. You can get some of the money back in tax credits, and you may be able to apply to your BOM for part funding of your fees when you finish.
If you want to do a course to improve your job prospects in a free years there are free ones you can do through your school, my school is part of le cheile trust and 3 people do that free management course every year.

derb12

If you ever wanted to get into training of new teachers (tutoring on the PME for example) you can’t tutor someone to achieve a qualification that is higher than yours, so you’d now need to have a masters even though plenty of teachers with just a BA and a HDip used to do this in the past. A colleague of mine undertook a subject masters for this reason just after the PME started.
Also, if you don’t have a full time job or would consider moving schools, you can point to your masters to impress upon an interview panel that you have a genuine passion for your subject.
Also if you wanted to work in a grind school, the more extra letters after your name the better!
Finally, there’s no downside to furthering your education as long as it’s a reputable and well run course. I heartily recommend the open university.

gaiscioch

I finished a masters a couple of years ago in one of my subjects. It had no financial benefit for me at all, and academically I've a level 10 qualification so it was no addition to the cv (I haven't even bothered updating my TC registration with it). I did it out of simple, old-fashioned interest in my subject.

In hindsight, if you have young kids don't go near anything like this. Not only does it put added pressure on your partner and yourself while you're working fulltime, but you're simply not getting the full value out of your time or money. It's a totally different ball game with young children. Time is much more precious, and it's accordingly much harder to actually enjoy the course. I did learn loads, which was great, but without those pressures I would have learnt more/enjoyed it more.

If you're single, do a higher qualification but choose it wisely. For instance, while the masters I did was directly connected with one of my subjects it also opens up a career or two outside teaching. Could you do a similar multi-purpose course to cover your career a bit better? In terms of money, the Teachers' Refund Scheme and Revenue will give you some money back. I also got a bursary from the people running the course. Some schools have the ability to fund postgraduate qualifications so it could be worthwhile saying something to your principal to get the lay of the land in this regard.

gaiscioch

TypicalDub wrote: »

yeah....that's nice corporate speak and all there but I think we have different views of the world.

People, for the most part, go for promotion for money. And status and ego and stuff like that obviously.

I agree with you about the corporate speak but to my surprise the principal in our school was telling me that there are not enough people going for DP jobs and the like because after all the deductions - c. 60% - they don't have much for the massively increased workload. That workload meant in most (all?) cases a decline in quality of life. Yes, the extra money is very helpful if you're near retirement and retiring under the old 2.5 times or whatever your final salary terms. But I'd really be checking out the extent of the extra work before taking that net income of 40%. In some (many?) schools, the DP does more work at the interface than the principal so be wise to what sort of school management culture you'd be going into.

As with other areas of teacher welfare/mental health, we have no records regarding the percentage of DPs who last in the job for 2/3/5 etc years but from listening to fellow staff members you'd also want to factor in a rise in resentment and bullying as one of the costs of taking on such a position. While no one thing might throw you over the edge, the whole lot might after you've seen your depressing net salary increase for taking it all on.