What time do you finish your master's degree? What is the difference between a bachelor's degree and a master's degree - how many years to study, how to get a diploma

Today we will talk about why a master's degree is needed. Surely, if you have not thought about enrolling in a master’s program, you have always had an ambivalent attitude towards those students who nevertheless decided to do so. Some people treat them like smart people. Someone is trying to understand their motivation for such long studies. In any case, there are many reasons why students go to master's programs. There are also a lot of privileges that accompany students studying for a master's degree. Today we will focus on this difficult topic.

Nowadays, after graduating from university, many students are faced with the question of continuing their studies. With the transition of Russian education to the Bologna system, the terms of study at the university have changed. If previously specialists were trained for 5 years, today future bachelors study for 4 years. So it turns out that current graduates are unofficially considered “undereducated.” And many people think that in order to be considered as a specialist, you need to complete a master’s degree, and this is another plus two years. How is it really?

Why does a student need a master's degree?

In general, a master's degree is considered a level of higher professional education, following a bachelor's degree, which allows one to deepen specialization in a certain professional area. We conclude that bachelors are simply strengthening their knowledge regarding their future professional direction, and masters, in turn, are becoming professional scientists who understand their specialty like no one else. In fact, many people see specific reasons for enrolling in a master's program:

follow the example of parents, friends, relatives and acquaintances.
act at the categorical insistence of their parents.
enroll in order to continue their education longer and not have to go to work.
male students enroll to avoid joining the army.
enroll to gain additional knowledge (for rationally thinking people who gravitate toward science and understand that studying at a master's program will deepen their scientific knowledge and improve their skills in conducting scientific research).

It is the last reason that is very rare for modern students.

How to combine a master's degree and work?

Many graduates of even prestigious universities have difficulty finding work. however, neither a master's degree nor any other degree helps them. For an employer, the best diploma is the result. You can be an academician several times, but if you don’t bring positive dynamics to the company, then it’s difficult to call you a good specialist. However, many stubbornly believe that a master’s degree will give them some advantages. This may be true, but in fact it turns out not to be so. It is also worth considering the question of how to combine a master’s degree and work, because during your studies you basically cannot work. The scholarship that is paid to you is mere pennies. But everything is possible if you agree with your employer so that he occasionally lets his employee go to study. This way you can get a decent education and not be distracted from work.

As for the army, it pushes many young men to study for a master's degree. At the same time, you must understand that studying for a master’s degree does not exempt you from military duty, but only gives a deferment for 2 years. Therefore, if you want to avoid the army, then you should enroll in graduate school (in this case, you first need to complete a master’s degree if you are a bachelor; specialist graduates (5 years) can directly enter graduate school).

In our country, it is generally accepted that if you complete a bachelor’s degree, then you have not completed your studies, that is, you cannot be called a full-fledged specialist. This is a controversial stereotype. Guided by this stereotype, some bachelor graduates try to increase the “prestige” of their diploma by studying in a master’s program. This is their right. However, the truth of life suggests that in most cases such “prestige” is of little use to anyone, and can only amuse the ego of the person who completes the master’s degree.

But we still haven’t answered the question of whether it’s worth enrolling in a master’s program or not. Of course, this is prestigious and to some extent “cool”, since everything rare and in little demand inherently carries such definitions. But each person must answer the question whether it is worth it or not, for himself. A master's degree is not a pointless waste of time, as many believe, but at the same time it is not such a great opportunity that opens up incredibly promising paths and roads. if you are a bad specialist, then neither master's nor graduate school will help you. This means that you simply chose your future profession incorrectly. But if you have potential, which is supported by many positive characteristics and reviews, then why not continue your education?

After all, anything can happen in life. Maybe you are not the most gifted person, and at the same time you don’t need a highly paid job, because... your living conditions allow this.

So why don't you continue your Master's studies?

Or, on the contrary, you are a talented student, you have hundreds of scientific papers, but at the same time, life circumstances force you to work, because there is no other way. What kind of master's degree is this?

There are too many situations to take into account all the variables. Only your common sense and life experience can correctly tell you what to do.

Hello, dear readers of the blog site. After a short break, when there was only news on the site, it was finally time to write an article. The article will be about master's programs for bachelors who are finishing or have long since completed their studies. Although the article may also be useful for specialists. And in order to understand, it is necessary to consider several questions, including why a master’s degree is needed, whether a master’s degree is needed after a bachelor’s degree, and whether a master’s degree is needed after a specialist’s degree.

After such a rather long introduction, let's get down to business.

Is a master's degree necessary after a bachelor's degree?

In the issue under consideration, it would be nice to talk a little about what a master’s and bachelor’s degree is, and then draw a conclusion about whether a master’s degree is needed after a bachelor’s degree.

So, a bachelor's degree is the first stage of higher education, that is, during your bachelor's degree you should be given such an amount of knowledge and skills that will help you find a job and work there without any problems. As you understand, this is something incredible and you will still have to learn at work, if not from scratch, then you will still have to learn and learn a lot.

What can a master's degree program offer? A master's degree will give you some more knowledge in your profession, but it is far from a fact that this knowledge will help you at work. But after a master's degree, you can enroll in graduate school and continue to engage in scientific activities, if this is interesting to you. Perhaps a master's degree will help you build a career, but this is far from a fact; it all depends on the organization in which you will work.

Thus, if you answer the question from the subtitle, that is, is a master’s degree needed after a bachelor’s degree, then we can only say one thing - God knows how life will turn out. But in any case, the reserve doesn’t stretch your pocket, so if you have the opportunity to study for a master’s degree, then you can do it, it won’t hurt in life.

Is a master's degree necessary after a specialty?

Here everything is not so clear. The specialty, as well as the master's degree, are higher education of the second level. And this means that a master’s degree will not be able to provide any special advantages.

But there is an opportunity to get a second higher education in a completely different specialty in 2–2.5 years. But after receiving a technical education, you shouldn’t go into the humanities. This will be very difficult for you and you will spend a lot of nerves.

Free digression from the topic. They say that nerve cells do not regenerate. This is not entirely true, they are recovering, just very slowly.

So, to summarize the point, we can say that the need to obtain a master's degree after a specialty is very, very small. After a bachelor's degree, it makes sense to get a master's degree, but after a specialty, if only for the sake of obtaining another specialty.

Why do you need a master's degree?

Now this is a much more interesting point, for everyone, both bachelors and specialists. I’ll answer right away why a master’s degree is needed, it is needed in order to hold various government positions.

For example, only a master of law or a specialist can be a judge. But with judges in general, everything is complicated; if you are not a specialist in jurisprudence and really want to become a judge, then a master’s degree alone will not help you. A judge must have both a bachelor's and a master's degree in jurisprudence.

But what am I all about? For the civil service, a document entitled “Methodological tools for establishing qualification requirements for applicants for positions in the state civil service and state civil servants” (Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Russian Federation, 2015) establishes the following hiring rules:

There seems to be nothing to comment on here, and it’s clear why a master’s degree is needed. Therefore, let’s move on to the final paragraph of the article.

Is a master's degree necessary?

If you have read all the points of the article, then you should have formed an opinion whether a master’s degree is needed for you personally or not. And I no longer know what to write in this paragraph, since everything has already been written.

If you found the article useful, please share it with your friends using the buttons located just below.

If you have any questions, write in the comments, I will try to answer as detailed and clear as possible, or just let’s chat.

A master's degree is considered the top level of higher professional education. Thanks to a meaningful choice of specialization, a person’s motivation to study, and therefore his academic performance, increases. What competitive advantages does a master's degree holder receive?

Initial education

According to the established procedure, to enroll in a master's program, you must have a higher education, that is, have a specialist, bachelor's, or master's degree in another specialty. Given the relative youth of bachelor's programs, specialist graduates still predominate among master's degree applicants.

For example, at MESI they make up almost 95% of the total number of applicants. At the Faculty of Sociology of Moscow State University. Over the past three years, at M.V. Lomonosov, the ratio of specialists and bachelors has changed in favor of the latter. The situation is different at the Institute of Business and Business Administration of the Academy of National Economy (IBDA), where there is simply no specialty. The master's program has another important function - to teach adults seeking to obtain a second education. This approach is practiced at the Moscow International Higher School of Business MIRBIS.

Specifics of preparation

As noted Nikolai Pavlyuk, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Sociology, Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov for master's degree and additional education, Master's programs are able to develop a graduate's universal approach to specific professional activities. Compared to other forms of higher education, more hours and effort are devoted to specialization disciplines, research projects, and work placements. Thanks to this, master's programs are largely tailored to the needs of employing companies. “Masters receive a set of competencies that allow them to immediately competently perform certain functions: expert, analyst, developer, manager-coordinator,” says Nikolai Pavlyuk. – Compare: graduate specialists have subject training as a sociologist or political scientist. And in the master’s program, students are oriented towards a functional position: regional development specialist, project manager.” For a serious Russian university, a master's degree is an opportunity to transfer to a student knowledge that does not fit into the rather rigid framework of standards for complete higher education.

It is not surprising that the demand for such education is growing, primarily in the social and humanitarian sphere (sociology, economics, management, psychology). A master's degree allows you to make a conscious, smooth transition from one specialty to another or supplement your basic education. “For example, graduates of industry universities have the opportunity to receive management education,” emphasizes Irina Kolesnikova, Dean of the Faculty of International Business and Business Administration, IBDA.

Study at MESI in the direction of "Management" come specialists with basic education in economics, management, finance, and marketing. Eleonora Virgiles, Director of the Institute for Master's Training, MESI, notes: “Master’s programs are structured in such a way as to provide in-depth knowledge in a whole range of disciplines. Students gain skills in research and teaching, and are able to systematize and summarize information.”

Special competencies

Vasily Zhelnov, head of the department for the implementation of educational programs of an innovative type in the direction of "Philosophy" of the Faculty of Philosophy of Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov, gives as an example the master's program “History and Philosophy of Science”: “General theoretical courses here are complemented by courses focused on specific specifics and applied research. As a result, students develop an adequate understanding of modern science. Another program, “Applied Ethics,” is focused on developing skills in ethical analysis of problems that arise in all sorts of practical situations.”

A master's degree graduate is a professional in the chosen specialization (finance, marketing, law, etc.), more prepared for professional activities than a bachelor or specialist. At the same time, Ilya Demidov, Dean of the Faculty of Master's Training, MIRBIS Institute, notes that the master's program, in addition to in-depth specialization, is aimed at developing systemic, analytical competencies.

Irina Kolesnikova believes that the specificity of master’s training lies in the development integrated competencies, that is, the ability to make decisions, take responsibility, conduct analysis, and perform communicative functions. Graduates not only know how to use ready-made knowledge, but also develop new ones and transmit them to others. “I would also mention such an important point as the ability of our students to act in an unforeseen situation,” she notes.

It should be noted that there is a difference between management education obtained in master's programs and in MBA programs. “MBA students come with a wealth of experience,” says Irina Kolesnikova. – However, it is known that experience can constrain a manager’s freedom of action. In the master's program, many students start with a “clean slate,” which allows them to avoid many standard management mistakes in the future.”

Individual trajectory

One of the well-known advantages of a master's degree is taking into account the individual needs of students. According to Evgenia Ivakhnenko, head of the department of master's programs at the Russian State University for the Humanities, students can not only choose individual courses, but, more importantly, determine their individual learning path. It is “drawn out” by the master’s student himself together with his supervisor. “When drawing up an individual plan, all disciplines are divided into three blocks: A, B and C,” comments Evgeniy Ivakhnenko. Block A consists of those disciplines that are studied compulsorily and in strict sequence at a given university; block B – mandatory, but not time-bound; to block C – optional.”

At the Faculty of Sociology of Moscow State University, undergraduates choose disciplines from a very wide list. According to Nikolai Pavlyuk, they take part of the courses as part of their native educational program, and some receive them in classes at other departments, including those that train specialists and provide a second higher education. Students studying in the MESI master's program are also offered a wide range of elective disciplines. In this case, classes are organized if there are at least four to five students interested in a particular special course.

Often, in addition to the disciplines of the curriculum, students are offered additional individual consultations. Thus, for some, subjects that require knowledge of quantitative methods of analysis are of interest, for others, a humanitarian approach to management is important, and still others are interested in developing creative abilities. In IBDA, an individual approach is implemented thanks to the project-based teaching method. At MIRBIS, specially formed project groups of undergraduates conduct research commissioned by companies and consulting. On the one hand, each student has the opportunity to choose a dissertation topic that will be most useful for his professional activity. On the other hand, in group projects there is a natural division of labor, taking into account personal preferences.

The fruits of mobility

An applicant with a Western master's degree gains additional points in the eyes of the employer. A graduate who has studied the required module abroad also has certain advantages. It is no coincidence that at IBDA, students who speak foreign languages ​​study for one semester at universities in France, Germany, Great Britain, and Spain. At MIRBIS, master's students are offered several types of international components of study. As Ilya Demidov clarifies, firstly, these are internships - short-term trips abroad, including visits to companies and training. Secondly, exchange programs lasting up to six months, and studying several modules abroad gives the right to receive an additional certificate or certificate. Thirdly, the opportunity to study abroad for at least a year and receive a master's degree from a foreign university. Finally, thanks to connections with their alma mater, students can gain work experience or internships in international and foreign companies, which is very useful for career development.

An international master's program is currently open at the Russian State University for the Humanities, together with the University of Konstanz (Germany). According to Evgeny Ivakhnenko, master's students at the Russian State University for the Humanities have the opportunity to study in Germany for a semester, and master's students from a partner university - in Russia. The level of cooperation allows for the issuance of a diploma with a Diploma Supplement upon completion of the master's program, and the agreement provides for the issuance of two diplomas to successful master's students. In the next academic year, it is planned to open a number of international master's programs, where universities in the USA, Great Britain, Japan, Germany and France are considered as partners. “From my point of view, the most significant acquisition obtained in a master’s program is mobility, which is very, very significant in the humanitarian field,” says Evgenia Ivakhnenko.

Student mobility involves studying and practicing not only abroad, but also in the homeland. According to Nikolai Pavlyuk, at the sociological faculty of Moscow State University. Lomonosov, as part of the Public Relations program, students undergo internships in marketing agencies and fashion houses. It is planned to open a program “Regional and Municipal Development” with a “double diploma”, which will include not only internships at French universities, but also practice in Russian regions.

Alternative to second higher education

“A master’s degree can be considered as a real alternative to a second higher education,” sums up Vasily Zhelnov. Master's programs are focused on the labor market and close cooperation with employers. In addition, they take into account the conditions for the entry of domestic higher education into the pan-European system of higher education. In this regard, Ilya Demidov notes that in Russia the recognized master's degrees Master of Arts, Master of Science and Master of Law are currently becoming widespread - this is how masters are “classified” abroad. For example, accredited Master of Arts programs go to MIRBIS.

“In Russia, a master’s degree is considered as a higher level of education in relation to a specialist,” concludes Evgeniy Ivakhnenko. “In the countries of the European Union, this is the most understandable and acceptable document for employers.” It is also worth noting that while studying for a master's degree, a student writes and defends a dissertation, which, according to the requirements, is close to a candidate's dissertation. With proper hard work, a year and a half after graduation, a graduate may well defend his Ph.D. dissertation.

How can a student make an appointment with a doctor?

Students also get sick, so they periodically need medical help. You should not take various pills without permission; you need to individually consult with your doctor, determine the diagnosis and proceed to effective treatment, and not superficial self-medication.

How can a student earn 100 thousand rubles?

Every student strives for financial independence, and I was in the same line. I wanted to live for my own pleasure, go to cafes, go to the gym and beauty salon, but you can’t get around much on a scholarship, especially not an increased one.

What happens if a student loses his grade book?

A record book for a student is like an internal passport for a citizen of the Russian Federation. Therefore, it is better not to lose such an important document. However, no person is immune from theft and loss of this kind of documentation, and life circumstances can be the most unpredictable.