Considering postgraduate studies? To invest time, energy, finances, perhaps putting
a promising career on hold, and asking for sacrifices from your close relations -
all this must surely add up to considerable reward, or why bother? Small wonder
we involve our full circle, our family, friends, lecturers, industry professionals and
mentors. These conversations can be invaluable – apart from the support you may
get, the questions about your reasons for wanting to further yourself will challenge
you. But the clarity and insights that you gain can be of great help to distinguish
between productive and potentially counterproductive reasons for pursuing a specific
programme. Consider two of the most compelling reasons to pursue post-graduate
studies, as well as red-flagging the merits or demerits of their counter-arguments:
Reason #1: passion and engagement
Post-graduate studies allow you to delve deeper and gather more in-depth knowledge
within the field. Advanced study develops the required mental agility to synthesise
information, to produce compelling arguments, and to analyse and conceive
meaningful solutions to challenges. Deep engagement is both fruitful and rewarding,
but only if your interest, and perhaps even passion, is genuine. Without this approach
to the field, the work is inevitably laborious, tedious and demotivating.
Enrol for the post-graduate programme of your choice when you have no doubts that
you are genuinely compelled by the complexities and challenges of the field and its
relation to the world around you. You may find you naturally incline to the themes
and issues of relevance to your field whenever and wherever they appear. It may be
current affairs, news about industry projects or even the plot of a TV series. The ideal
post-graduate programme should then enable you to involve yourself in your field
of choice to the fullest extent while honing your abilities and skills. It should also
expose you to unique opportunities to apply advanced thinking to practice, to work on
real-life briefs and projects, and ideally participate in trans-disciplinary teams.
Reason #2: the network
Do not disregard the value of connections. Lifelong networks comprising of your peers,
expert lecturers and industry thought leaders are a major feature of post-graduate
programmes. This benefit is particularly true for programmes where the faculty or
academic staff are active in, and highly regarded for their involvement in industry.
Even more so when they navigate outside academia on behalf of their students.
Programmes that provide direct contact and open conversations help students to
build meaningful relationships with industry practitioners, thought leaders and of
course the alumni. A post-graduate programme designed with the future in mind will
undoubtedly build a network of collaborators who will continue to soundboard and
work together on projects, even and especially as personal goals and careers evolve.
These two motivations are interdependent in many ways. Posited as a counter-
argument, why would anyone pursue postgraduate studies in a field you may be
lukewarm about, or engage with individuals with little or no common interests?
Embarking on this venture would then be a waste of intellect, energy and resources
– not only of yourself, but also those of peers, specialist tutors and just about anyone
else involved. Here we have the crux of the matter: what sets further education apart?
It involves so much more than merely a perceived advance to a job or promotion.
Rather, it is a lifelong pursuit of personal growth, developing and strengthening
collaborative relationships - and achieving collective changemaking. You should
invest yourself in post-graduate studies because the field is of significance to you,
and if your contribution matters to you.
Dr Carla Enslin
Head of Strategy & New Business Development,
The IIE’s Vega School