Post-Bach vs. Masters

I currently go to Western Washington University, where I am working on a post-bach BSID. WWU only produces 12 alum a year whom are usually very strong designers and place in the field well. I sometimes wonder if I am doing the best thing. I looked at ASU recently which offers a masters to non-ID bachelors (I have a BS in Forestry). I probably will come out of either program with a similar amount of projects in my portfolio as I would spend 3 years at either place. My thought is that staying at WWU, I’ll receive a lot of individual attention as 1 of 12 versus a program like ASU where there are 80 undergraduates a year and 30 masters.

My question is, when you are looking to hire a new grad, does it matter if they have a masters vs bach? I have a sense that it all comes down to what I did with my time and the quality of work I produce.

What are your thoughts?
Thanks!

Welcome to the boards Loftiness! This is a good question. The answer can be difficult to fully absorb as it runs counter to everything we are taught before university.

I’ll prioritize what I’m looking for:

  1. Portfolio
  2. Personality
  3. Portfolio
  4. Experience
  5. Portfolio
  6. What kind of degree you have
    1,000,653) grades

:slight_smile:

In my experience it all comes down to if you are a match to the company and fit in with the people there in terms of personality, motivation and attitude. You have to sell yourself with your portfolio as your main companion. Hiring managers in my experience primarily focus on the conversation with you. Besides that, the person hiring you will most likely rather look at how you perform under pressure and how fast you can deliver a job. For some jobs a Master’s degree can be more beneficial for example those requiring research skills but for others it may be an impediment because 1. you are less formable and 2. you may approach tasks too intellectually for the entry-level position.