December 20, 2008

Dear Piper,

I am in mid 30s, never married, work full-time in computer field, have a very steady boyfriend, live on my own, am half way through my masters in computer science. I should be done with my degree end of summer (finishing in 1.5 years)...which means I have had no life for this time, but hopefully it pays off in the future of my career. Is it worth going for a doctorate in computer science once I'm done with masters?

--myvida

Dear myvida,

No life? Let’s look at this from another perspective. Your life includes a full-time job, a roof over your head, a steady boo and soon, a masters degree. Sounds like you have one helluva life to me. Now, do you have a lot of free time? Probably not. But something tells me that’s not high on your list of priorities. Something tells me you’re the type of person who thrives on being a busy little bee. So keep making that honey. It’s hard for me to ever tell anyone not to get another degree. Education is kind of like single-malt scotch…should you have more? Why not? You never really know where your career is going to take you so bolster yourself with some more degrees. But here’s an idea. Why not take a break for a year or so before getting that doctorate? It’ll give you a chance to see how the lazy-half lives. You might find you love it or hate it. And then your future decisions might come a bit more easily.

--Piper