Should you Pursue your Master’s Degree inside the Military?

OPINION: I’m sure after reading the title many people that have not served will assume it’s a no-brainer. I mean the military is paying for your education. Organizations like Air Force Sergeants Association (AFSA) have thousands and thousands of lobbyers advocating for service males and females. Kind one decide not to earn their Master’s degree? Well…I will explain now, neither I nor other people can answer that after you are looking for speaking for the mass.


The Soldiers allow us the opportunity to meet individuals from all of avenues of life. Finding yourself in air Force (that i am sure it’s precisely the same for all those branches), everyone’s story is unique. You could possibly enlisted together with your associates or bachelor’s degree already and after this you’re seeking to strengthen your knowledge. Or maybe you honestly simply need to check a box for professional development. In line with the Air Force Demographics, Air Force enlisted members only be the cause of 1.8% of master’s degree when compared to the 46.3% of the officers. This statistic emphasizes the varying education levels between those who are enlisted vs officers.

So why NOT

Now, why would any serviceman or woman elect not to pursue traditional learning? Again these circumstances cannot speak for all, but merely a mere snapshot of what We’ve experienced both personally via your eye area of my peers. Usually, one of the most challenging obstacle turns out to be time, specifically duty schedule for shift workers. Many active duty members taking benefit of educational benefits will more than likely attend classes online as a result of an unpredictable schedule. Depending on your learning style this might become another barrier in comparison with traditional learning environments. With time being unpredictable obstacles inevitably arise, like having a family, households where single parents serve, single parents, etc. All circumstances vary, but there are always challenges along this rocky road.

Twelve years into my service and I had (Permanent Change of Station) PCS into my eighth assignment, not including deployments. Each assignment provided its own struggles; including occasions when I had been scheduled for duty sunrise to sunset – or even the opposite. Another hurdle for Navy members could be the uncertainty of continuous inside their current vocation post service. There are a few career paths that reap the benefits of a license or certification rather than graduate degree. Or maybe one joined the intend to avoid a proper educational setting, but find themselves necessary to engage in traditional learning environments a lot more than expected.

Why you need to

Equally as I gave you reasons why service members elect not to continue their education (or at best set up a battle), there are equally as a number of, or maybe more, why they should. Personal growth can be purchased through countless platforms but let’s tell the truth if it’s not documented with the right institute the validity of your degree or certification declines. There’s more than just adding your name with a certificate; it’s gaining the technical understanding your respective field. It’s and a few proving your dedication by taking the extra step, letting others know you take yourself seriously and they are on the way to the manager level.

Why wouldn’t anyone need to expand her or his knowledge inside their dedicated field of? There is a type of assumption that you’re “in the field” experience allows you to really view the how to go about the role. The expectation is the fact that you’ve a fantastic grasp about how things work in their current field, degree affords the possiblity to view a different side of the industry. It doesn’t matter what field you’re in, people who get yourself a degree in degree commence to stand out and they are considered the expert. Let’s face it, post-service effort is not the things they had been. Filter systems make use of your education as a roi – of yourself.

WHY DID I?

Like the most of service members We’ve faced precisely the same obstacles discussed. I have been through eight assignments and numerous deployments including Pakistan and Iraq. Community . was difficult, it turned out both a private choice and accomplishment I thought I could not achieve. My ambition originated looking to set the bar in my family, and convince myself I could complete my Master’s degree from Liberty University while serving. Lastly, I wanted to grow professionally, expanding my knowledge and reaching an executive level within my potential industry.

Ultimately, while serving within the military the ability to juggle both roles of student and Airman is important. While serving being familiar with your job will almost always be the main focus. Depending around the push from all the branches leadership will drive how rapid members move towards pursuing education while serving. When the world is at conflict school usually takes a backseat. As a consequence of high operation tempos in select job areas, scheduling is one thing you must consider when determining to pursue a continued education. Like anything, the commitment to a graduate degree is ultimately the choice of the individual who aspires to produce their very own educational path.
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