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Grad school and the recession

Current and former LSU students talk about their post-grad choices

By Kayla Falgoust, Emley Kerry, and Rachael Lundy

Whether a result of an interest in higher education or an ever-slowing economy, more and more college students are considering bunkering down in the university scene beyond the traditional four-year degree, as graduate school applications are on the rise.

“There is an inverse equation between the economy and the number of students applying to graduate school,” said Harriet Brand, director of public relations for the Princeton Review. “Whenever the economy suffers a decline, we see a rise in the number of people going to graduate school, and conversely taking our courses to prepare for their entrance exams.”

Statistics from several LSU administrative offices seem to agree with Brand, as the graduate school and MBA program have seen an increase of applicants.

In fact, there has been an 18.87 percent increase in graduate applicants for the fall semester and, as of last week, a 4.79 percent increase in graduate applicants for the spring semester, explained Dr. Renée Renegar, director of graduate admissions at LSU, who notes that this last number is still being updated.

“The spring graduate enrollment has increased 7 percent for the 2009 spring semester,” said Renegar.

Moreover, LSU’s Flores MBA program has also seen an increase in applications, said Dana Hart, the program’s assistant director of enrollment and student services.

“Our numbers are up this year,” said Hart. “We’ve seen a 44 percent increase in applications from this point last year.”

Not only are more people going to graduate school in general, but many are going straight into graduate programs after finishing four-year undergraduate degrees.

“Students in the past couple of years have had an increased interest in grad school,” said Sara Crow, assistant director of communications for LSU Career Services. “Roughly 20 percent of new graduates report going to grad school immediately after graduation.”

That being said, every LSU student has a unique reason for choosing to expand his or her mind beyond the traditional four-year requirement. However, with the economy in such a sad state, the decision seems to be on the minds of more and more students.

“Quality of jobs”

LSU finance major Willie Velarde will graduate in the spring but is unsure of what awaits him after graduation.

“I’m still looking for jobs right now, and I’m also highly considering going to grad school here at LSU,” he said.

Velarde, like many upcoming grads, is not sure if the current job market will have much to offer someone with only an undergraduate degree. He is considering going to graduate school to secure a job upon graduation. For Velarde, his decision depends on “the quality of jobs” available in the current economic downturn.

Velarde would like to work full-time after he graduates but said he is unsure if his current job in the accounting department at the corporate office of Amedysis, a major health care provider, will be available for him.

“I mean I have a job right now and it’s great, but I don’t know necessarily what the guarantee is,” he explained. “It’s just like any other college job you have, but before I graduate are they going to turn it into a full-time offer or just a job to have, you know?”

“I know working there [at Amedysis] that I have a future there, if I were to get a master’s,” he added. “That will improve my chances of staying with the job I have as opposed to just kind of being out there.”

Deciding his field of study for graduate school is another tricky obstacle. With the economy in recession, many students have stopped asking themselves what they’d like to major in and started considering what will give them the best job opportunities upon graduation.

“Right now, I’m leaning toward accounting or finance,” said Velarde. “It seems like a scary situation right now, but I mean accounting is a lot safer.”

As a gradating senior this May, accounting major Sam Guidry has recently found himself in a similar situation and has decided to pursue his Masters of Accountancy at LSU. Initially, the recession did not seem like a major issue to him, but now with the current state of things, Guidry is more confident in his decision.

“I decided to go to grad school before the recession was ever an issue, but looking back, I am definitely glad that I am doing it because it will give the economy an extra year to settle down and hopefully climb back up,” said Guidry.

Like many college graduates, Guidry feels that a master’s degree will give him more confidence when entering the workforce.

“It is always good to have extra letters after your name, such as MA, CPA, etc,” Guidry said.

Guidry is undecided on whether or not to pursue further education beyond his master’s degree but plans to join the workforce prior to making that decision.

A step ahead of the competition

Although some students are focusing their attention on the economy when making a decision about life after graduation, many are choosing to attend graduate schools for other reasons.

LSU senior Danielle Boudreaux has decided to further her education by obtaining a master’s degree in speech pathology. Boudreaux, however, is less worried about the recession and more worried about fulfilling the requirements of her selected field of work. Additionally, the graduating senior is also relieved that graduate school will allow her more time before entering the workforce.

“I have to attend graduate school for the job field I plan to enter,” Boudreaux said. “The recession didn’t have an impact on my decision, but I am definitely glad that I decided to go to graduate school, because I don’t really feel like I am ready to be out in the ‘real world.’”

Like Guidry, Boudreaux admits that earning a graduate degree in education will give her more confidence in choosing a future career.

When preparing for her future, LSU student Jennifer Thomas was also not as influenced by the state of the economy since she already had plans to enter into the Holmes Program, a graduate program with the LSU College of Education, upon earning her undergraduate degree.

“The Holmes Program was presented to me my sophomore year, and it seemed like too good of an opportunity to pass up,” Thomas said. “I wasn’t too anxious to finish school in four years, and I thought that getting my master’s degree would put me a step above other teachers that are applying for jobs. The recession didn’t have anything to do with my decision, but I am glad I made the decision I did.”

Although the recession did not threaten Thomas, in hindsight, she is certain that she made a sound decision when choosing to further her education.

“I will be more confident in finding a job,” Thomas said. “With a master’s degree in elementary education, I will hopefully get more desirable teaching positions and get paid slightly more than teachers with a Bachelor’s degree.”

Other university graduates are looking to attend graduate school but opt to gain more work experience first.

Nick Botts, an LSU psychology graduate, decided to take some time off after completing his undergraduate studies in order to get some necessary work experience in his field.

“I graduated last fall,” said Botts. “I just got a job in my field, and I’m looking to apply to grad school in the following fall.”

“The job that I’m doing right now is preparing me for grad school,” added Botts. “I think I needed the preparation for grad school.”

Back to school

While many current students are less focused on the economy, some former graduates are going back to school for a higher degree after having difficulty finding a suitable, fulfilling job with only an undergraduate degree.

Erryca Robicheaux graduated from LSU in 2006 with degrees in English, psychology, and sociology. She worked for two years after graduating but has decided to return to LSU to get an MBA in marketing.

After graduating, Robicheaux worked in the corporate office of Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers, first as the executive coordinator and then as the coordinator of franchise operations. She then worked as a trainer for an IT company based out of Austin.

However, Robicheaux did not feel like her education was being utilized in these positions and discerned that the positions would not help her get better jobs in the future.

“It taught me to know people, to be able to read people, to be able to work together well with people … but as far as how it’s helped my resume, I’m not sure it really did – other than the fact that I have a degree” says Robicheaux.

Robicheaux realized that there were no opportunities for advancement at her job, and that in order to secure a more fulfilling position, she was going to have to go back to school.

“I was looking for something that would be a career,” said Robicheaux. “For instance, there’s certainly no way I can turn what I’m doing right now into any sort of a career, and at some point I’m going to have to move on. I actually have been looking for a job for probably eight months, and really there’s nothing available unless you have a lot of experience or a higher degree.”

Robicheaux indirectly cites the economy for the lack of jobs relevant to her education.

“I think the thing right now is that there are so many people looking for jobs that in the past an employer might have been willing to hire someone without as much experience or without a degree and even maybe pay for them to get the degree or whatever,” she explained. “

“Now there are so many people looking for jobs that they don’t have to do that anymore because there’s someone who already has a degree or experience or whatever,” she added. “So if you are not one of those people, you aren’t going to get the job.”

Although more students are considering graduate school as the recession looms overhead, many graduating senior are citing reasons other than a down economy and depressed job market. Nevertheless, graduate school seems to be more appealing to an increasing number of college students and college graduates, as expectations continue to rise in an ever-changing job market and the effects of the current economic situation become concrete.

Originally Published: February 4, 2009

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