Hi guys~ Yes I am aware, it's been so long since I last posted. It's June and I only wrote one post this year? God I couldn't believe it. The reasons why (I know it sounded like more of an excuse) is ... master degree is hard and I am here to share about some of my thoughts.
Recently, my study has got to a time I think I would share a little bit of my thouhgts on pursuing further education and if this is the right choice for you.
Before we start, I am going to give you some background for you so it's easier to refer back later on. I am currently studying MA fashion design management in ual in London. I have a bachelors degree
in fashion marketing. Here we go, started with some common questions:
Is studying a master degree worth it?
There is no one cookie cutter for everyone. It totally depends on your career planning. First of all, it's a master degree, so chances are, it's a research degree. A research degree is a self-learning and self-motivating journey. You will need you plan your time far ahead and it's to research about something which attempt to contribute to the knowledge. If you want to learn something 'new', then I think you should check if the course is right for you.
Sometimes, people would think studying a master degree will help you get a better job. In this case, you need to think about what kind of job you want. There are jobs where degrees are irrelevant, more experience oriented, you just need to get in and work. Some jobs requires more education, for example: medicine or law. Knowing what kind of talent your job requires can send you off a good start. I will go a little bit more details in the later questions.
How long does it take to study a master degree?
A: Depending on the country and your major, but generally, master degree in the UK takes one year, and it takes 2 years in the US. I don't know much about other countries but in the UK, some courses takes longer (Such as RCA) and some takes one year. So you need to think about how long do you want to spend on education, and of course your budget.
How to choose a school?
If possible, visit the school in advance during the opening tour time, you would be able to see the school and feel the environment. If you aren't able to visit the school in advance, you can research for some reviews of the school or the ranking of the school. How satisfied are the students and how's the facility. You can also join some online forum to discuss your concerns with other people.
How much does it cost to study a master degree?
If you are studying in a foreign country, it is very expensive. As an international student, the tuition fees I paid for my MA in 2016 was £17, 560. And for sure I know it raises every year. So keep an eye on the fees. Besides the tuition, you also need to consider the maintenance fees such as living, rent, commuting. For example, a monthly travel card for the tube is around £125. The rent varies from place to place, but when you are a student, renting can be challenging. So make sure you do your research.
Other general advice:
1. Considering a part time job if budget is an issue. Make sure how many hours per week you can work. And apply your NI number asap.
2. Utilise the student discount with an NUS card or unidays account to cut some spending. If you are under 25, you can also get some rail card discount, trains in the UK is very expensive.
3. Make the best of your time any way you want- everyone will tell you to go out, mingle and network. That would be great if you like it. But really, just be yourself and enjoy your time.
Studying a master degree isn't going to be easy, and probably in some most unexpected ways. As I am doing my dissertation now, I will share some more of my thoughts after I finish my course, hopefully this will give you a little help.
I will talk to you guys soon. x
G
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嗨呀，距離上次寫文已經是半年前嗎！真的很久，忙是很忙，但是更花時間的是思考未來，年紀大了好像做什麼事情都會特別謹慎，三兩天就憂鬱，哎。Anyway, 最近因為開始寫論文了，我想說來簡單分享一些我的經驗給想念研究所的人當作參考。我的學士文憑是輔大的織品服飾行銷然後研究所念的是倫敦藝術大學的時尚設計管理。在這裡我整理一些比較常見的疑問然後不專業的來回答一下，哈哈。
首先，唸研究所值得嗎？
其實呢，我覺得問得人心中其實比誰都清楚。為什麼想念研究所，每個人都有不同的原因，有些人的產業跟學歷可能有很大的關係，有些人只是想要逃避現實。對自己的未來規劃要有一個底，才去考慮要不要念研究所，如果你連自己以後要做什麼都不知道，那麼念研究所只是浪費時間浪費錢，我相信大部分的人都不是用自己的錢去留學的，父母賺錢很辛苦，一定要三思，這筆投資你有辦法在未來賺回來嗎？這個答案只有你自己知道。 我建議拿一張紙分成兩邊，把去或不去的優缺點分開寫出來，然後仔細的評估一下再下決定吧。
另一方面，如果你是想在研究所學東西的話，那可能這不適合你，因為研究所大部分不是教你新的東西，而是引導你去研究出你想知道的主題，並且可以對這個學術領域有貢獻，所以這個對研究所的期待可能需要清楚一些，才不會發現自己做了不適合自己的決定。
最後，不論一個人在人生中做了什麼決定，這個決定所帶來的後果，不論事後想起喜歡與否，都得概括承受。這個決定可能很沈重，可能很掙扎，但是世上沒有最好的決定，只有當時最適合你的。唸研究所這件事，說大很大，說小也小，理性審慎的評估後再做出決定吧！
研究所要唸多久？
大部分英國的學校是一年，美國的學校是兩年，歐洲大陸的其他國家要依科系而定，不同的學校對語言程度的要求也不同，最簡單的是找代辦諮詢，一般來說大部分的學校的資料都很公開，上網找一下就有了。以我的科系來說，申請的時候除了研究計畫，自傳以外還要交 2000字的小論文，雅思要7分（各科不低於6）。大部分的學校應該不需要寫小論文，雅思也都落在 6 到6.5左右。如果找留學代辦，他們都很樂意幫你，如果你只是想要多接受資訊的話，可以去留學展看一下有沒有適合的。
怎麼選擇學校？
每間學校有不同的優勢，你可以上網查排名，學生滿意度或是就業的比例高不高。這些簡單的評分可能可以給你一些參考。你也可以加入一些學生論壇，然後在裡面爬個文發問一下。雖然排名可以給你一個參考，但是我認為沒有最好的學校，只有最適合你的學校。
研究所要花多少錢？
國際學生的學費是眾所皆知的高到天花板，大概一年都會落在80萬台幣左右，有些更貴，有些比較便宜。一方面要看你是唸多久，一方面也要看學校在哪裡。有些學校會有獎學金制度，舉例來說當年我申請了其他學校，就有獎學金可以減免學費。如果你想來倫敦的話，那麼生活費跟交通費也會比很多城市來得高，在申請之前先把自己的預算評估好。學費建議是經常去學校網站查，因為每年都會調漲，所以要留意一下。一個小提醒，就是大部分的人會申請超過一間學校，如果申請的時間分隔太開的話，可能要考慮先繳訂金來保留入學許可，但是最後決定不去某間學校的話，這筆錢會浪費掉。所以建議多所學校申請時間不要隔太長，以免繳了訂金後來發現想去別間，稍微集中申請的話，可以某種程度上的避免這個情形。
其他建議：
1. 如果想要增加收入的話記得確認自己簽證允許的工作時數，然後一入境就趕快申請NI number，這是報稅用的，如果打算freelance的話，也需要申請，這樣才能開商業發票喔。
2. 善用學生折扣，英國有很多學生可以折扣的優惠，像是加入uni days或是申請NUS卡都可以幫你省。地鐵跟火車也有學生的折扣方案，請上網查。
3. 善用時間，做你想做的事。一定會有很多人跟你說可以出去玩，去社交，去拓展人脈。如果那是你喜歡的事情，就去吧！但是我一般來說還是會建議，跟著你的心，想做什麼就做什麼（別犯法哈）如果你已經決定要來了，那就好好享受。
研究所並不簡單，而且困難的往往來自無法預料的事情。因為我論文還沒寫完，所以不能廢話太多，等我念完再來分享我的經驗，掰～～～最後送上一張冬天的Green park.
下次見
G
