Opinions on this situation?
 

Some background. I currently work in the public school with children with autism. I love the job, and if I got paid just a little bit more I'd do it for the rest of my career, but alas, it's not enough.

I've been in grad school to become a school psychologist. I begin my internship in September, and I'll graduate May 09. I still have 5 classes to take over the next year along with the 1200 clock hour internship. I will be making triple to quadruple my current salary once I graduate.

Because the internship is unpaid, I've been looking for jobs I can do on the side to supplement my income for the year. I came across a wonderful job. I meet all the requirements. It ties into my graduate program as well as my current position. It pays EXTREMELY well (about what I'll make when I graduate next year). The problem? It requires 2 weeks of travel every month.

My question is, would you put on hold a degree program with 1 year left to get this experience as well as a significant increase in pay? I have no problem with the travel, except that I need to complete the internship clock hours as well as the 5 classes, and can't miss 2 classes every month, or 2 weeks of internship every month. If I put my degree on hold, I feel like I might not return soon enough to finish without having to retake courses. I want to finish, and I'm happy with my career choice. But I feel this might be more rewarding.

What would you do? I know everyone is different, but what is your thinking if you were in my shoes?

I'd put the degree first, the pay will follow

Honestly, finish what you start in my book. I myself cannot imagine going back to school for my PHD or Masters in engineering unless my work would pay for me to do it.

My last job required a lot of travel and my schedule was very irratic. I would be in Virginia one week and maybe Maryland the next. It caused a lot of home issues and just made things difficult in general. The job ran my life and that's not what I wanted.

Again, I would stick it out and finish school and move on and get paid the bucks you deserve. It may be financially difficult now but you will find it rewarding in the end.

Good luck.

-Brian

exactly. its very tough to go back once you leave. if you feel you have the level of commitment to go back, go for it! otherwise, i'd finish up school. you don't know what the future holds so do what you feel will be best for you.

I don't know what this possible job is but a degree is something you will always have and can always gurantee to get you a job, being that you're so close to finishing I would continue that path.

Me personally, Id take the job. School will always be there, but an opportunity like this wont. It may take you a little longer to get your degree but financially IMO it will be worth the wait. Just make sure you arent lying to yourself and see that you finish getting your degree.

dont let a back-up plan distract from ur original/main plan

So if I read that right, your decision is between going to school, doing your 1200hr internship, and still looking for a job to bring in a little cash on the side, or taking this other high-paying job that ties in with everything you are doing, but would force you to put off finishing your degree for 1+ years?

If so, I think I would take the job. Knowing you, I don't think you not going back to finish your degree is an issue, so I don't see much downside besides not actually having the paper in your hand.

If you found a job that pays the bills and is something that you like - I say go for it.

- Justin

i know a few people who have turned down jobs while pursuing their education further and found out that while they have the education the people that took the job early got the experience and now theres no jobs left in that field...weigh your decisions carefully...life experience is a better teacher than school sometimes

stay in school, and get into stripping. *shrug*

This is a tough situation. It would be nice to finish up the school but a really good job that falls into your profession and pays well can be difficult to find. I would probably take the job and see how it plays out. The travel would be the one thing that would make me ask more questions before taking the job.

Get the piece of paper. If you take the job and then you are let go you are still where you were education wise. Even though you will have experience you won't be considered for jobs that require a Master's.

I know a lot of teachers (wife is a first grade teacher and a ton of my relatives are) and they all say the same thing- their raises aren't merit based, they are based on years of experience and education level. When my wife got her Masters+30 she got an immediate 20% pay raise. She's a great teacher, but she would have gotten it even if she wasn't that good.

If this were the private sector/business world, I'd say take the job. Experience is more important than anything past a bachelor's degree in a lot of situations.

While education is always stressed as the most important thing, employers look for experience. Whether its job experience, internships or special projects that you've worked on in school, having the experience in a real world situation (in this case, a job) will help you stand apart from everyone else. School -will- always be there, whether you have to retake courses or not. Special opportunities will pass you by making you wish you had jumped on them when they came along.

If this job opportunity was just a fun thing that you'd enjoy, I would say pass it up. But if it has implications of exceptional experience plus good pay, and will potentially give you the chance to finish school in another year, I would go for the job.

The people, throughout history, who have stood out are the ones who took the risk.

Take the risk. School will always be there (and easier to complete once you have the experience).

Good luck!

Be cool, stay in school.

Thanks for the responses guys. All very valid points.

The job I'm in now and the job I am asking for opinions on here would both help equally toward experience for my future career, just in different ways. Being in the public schools and in the classroom will help when I make recommendations to teachers as a school psychologist, as well as when I test students in both general education and special education. The job opportunity would be assessing students with autism all around the country (2 weeks every month I would be traveling around the country to do clinical assessments for those with autism). They prefer a 3 year committment...it's not a contract, but they prefer you offer 3 years...so school would be put on hold for 3 years.

I haven't gotten an interview yet...I sent in the resume last night, and we shall see. If I get an interview and can negotiate staying local and finishing school and then spending 3 years traveling, that would be the best of both worlds...except that I do want to start a family...so that puts a kink into things...

I go back and forth with this...I think it'll be a great opportunity for my career and financially...but it could hurt the home life/family life...I dunno...

Yea, a three year commitment would be rough (although that should give James plenty of time to warm up to the idea of having a little one around the house!)

While it would be kind of a dirtbag move, you could always take the job (if it's offered) and then leave after a year or so, go back to school, and work on adding to the family in your free time :)

- Justin

don't worry about the family thing I know a good babysitter. LOL

Take the job and see if you can do online classes.. Problem solved. :D

NO, can't do online classes, at least not through my current program, and online classes for this degree is not looked upon too well. It's a professional degree where class time and field experience are important. But the main issue is the internship...which can't be done online.

Lol...I"m more worried about not seeing my child(ren) 2 weeks a month...not who's gonna watch 'em, lol.

Yeah, I thought about taking it and then leaving. Things change, so it's not far fetched that I may not like the job or be cut out for it, and it's not like it's contractual, so it wouldn't look bad to future employers.

:shrug: we shall see what happens.

Like Justin said, I don't think its an issue of whether you'll go back to school. From what I've seen, you're very dedicated and won't let a 3 year hiatus get in your way. Travel is a lot of fun, I did it with my last job and had a blast. Once you start a family, you're not going to want to travel at all, so what better time than now to get that experience? If you take the job, you can always start a family afterwards, probably while going to school to finish the degree.

Once you start a family, whats to say your view of going back to work won't change? I say take the job, get together a nice little nest egg that will provide for your child(ren) to go to college, and then decide if a masters and a job that requires it is right for you afterwards.

Thanks. My desire to finish schooling wouldn't be an issue, I don't think...I'd want to go back and finish what I started, unlike my husband...but that's a different story for a different day :)

The thing is...I want kids NOW. I don't think I can wait 3 more years. Ask James, it's all I talk about lately. So that makes the decision a little tougher.

And while I would love to stay at home with my kids at least until they are in school, I wouldn't be able to, even if I did do something like this job for a few years and put a lot away...James makes a great salary for not finishing college, but it won't be enough to provide for 5 or more years, even with a decent savings. :shrug:

I haven't received a response, so all of this pondering could be in vain. But thanks a lot for all of the input, I appreciate it.

SOB! Thought that would be a easy out.. What I'd do.. I'd punt and call it a day. :)

haha.. can you even wait 9 months?

Don't let the baby bug bite you and make you think irrationally. Planning is really important. Especially since you guys are on track to have a great future and provide well for each other as well as your kids. A year or even 3 may seem like a long time now, but in the long run, it might be worth the wait if it means you will be financially stable and in a place where you can easily afford kids instead of just getting by. Too many of my friends are popping out kids and just scraping by because of it.