Winton Au Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Part-time or full-time?

Some post-graduate programs offer separate full-time and part-time courses. They have independent admission quota and different teaching schedules. During a gloomy economic environment when everyone is hard-pressed to hold onto a job, the part-time program is undoubtedly a safer bet. However, the "burden" of holding onto a full-time job yet pursuing a full-scale degree program not only puts strains onto one's work and family life, it also undermines the quality and enjoyment of the educational experience and prevents students from fully enjoying learning through intellectual discussions with other classmates and professors, sitting in different courses, browsing through books in the library, etc.

Most of us can only excel in one thing at a time. Half-hearted attention to studies is likely to result in mediocre grades on an academic transcript that becomes a permanent record for future employers and program directors to scrutinize. Spend all the time you can to do well in your post-graduate studies. Getting a post-graduate degree is a full-time job in itself and perhaps only full-time devotion can extract the most benefit out of it.

Career-development or self-development?

Post-graduate degree program quotas are precious. While some programs are self-financed and the student pays for the majority of expenses incurred, most programs are funded heavily by the Government. If the interviewer asks you why you want to join the program, "self-development" is usually not the best answer. The reason is that post-graduate programs are always heavily over-subscribed and it is in society's best interest to allocate the quotas to people who will use the acquired knowledge in their career development and will, consequently, contribute with what they learn to society.

You should also seriously think about how the course can contribute to your career development. If you fail to answer this question, you should doubt whether your time taken for the program will be well spent.

Is this a reputable program?

The program structure, course content, professors, and auxiliary support like library are all important elements that should be factored in when deciding which post-graduate program to choose. Magazines and newspapers rank the different post-graduate programs but this should not be the only reference.

Local practitioners have first-hand experience and intimate knowledge of the institutions and the offered programs. Be sure to consult people in the field locally.

Which program should I enroll in?

Popular post-graduate programs in accounting and finance, human resources, information technology, etc. are offered by a multitude of institutions. Some of them are local; some are overseas and distance-learning programs. They can be full-time or part-time, one or two-year courses. Some have a thesis-component whereas others are mainly taught-courses.

Whether to enroll in a local or overseas course is often dictated by time and financial concerns that leave little room for discussion. Decisions on whether to join in a one-year or two-year program may also have to take account of time and financial constraints.

However, while a one-year program appears more cost-effective than a two-year program earning the same Master degree title, keep in mind that the degree is more than an entry on your resume and the process is more important than the product.

Taken from Career Times 2002/04/26