Graduate school is a significant undertaking both in terms of time and money. During the last few months, I’ve felt some pressure from concerned family members about going to graduate school. I know they only want the best for me, but I’m glad I followed my gut instinct and pursued more work experience instead. A business school education has been a professional and personal goal of mine since graduating college, but right now is not the time for me to go. Bottom-line: I only get one chance at an MBA, so I wanted to do this right.

The answers to “Should I go to graduate school?” and “When should I go to graduate school?” depend on the individual. I know very successful people with no graduate (or even college) degrees. I know very successful MBAs who had only two years or three years of experience before they headed to business school (if you are a college student looking to get an MBA a few years after graduation, check out Harvard’s 2+2 program). But I knew going right now wasn’t the right decision for me. I wanted more experience before I go because I’d have more to contribute to and more I can gain from an MBA experience if I have a few more years of seasoning. From a financial standpoint, I’d like a few more years to bolster my savings so that I can minimize the loans I’d have to take out.

Graduate education, be it medical school, law school, business school, or other masters programs or Ph.D. programs, exacts a hefty price. Medical school takes four years and often costs $200,000+ in tuition and living costs. Law school is 3 years (full-time) and 4-5 years (part-time), and the costs cross into the multiple six-figure territory as well. Business school is shorter at 2 years, but the average total cost for full-time students range from $100,000 to $140,000 for the two year program.

Given the costs, it’s very important that before making such a big commitment, people understand what they are getting into, and what the purpose for such a commitment would be. Here are three helpful questions I’ve asked myself to determine if graduate school is right for me, right now:

What will you do with a graduate school degree?

• You don’t need to map out your career from graduation to retirement, or list out every possible contingency, but it’s a very good idea to carefully consider what you can do with your graduate degree once you get it. The point of graduate school can be for personal enrichment or career advancement, although for most people it’s a combination of the two. But unless you have a substantial trust fund, you can’t make a career out of being a “professional student.”
• Do you need a graduate degree? How will it help you achieve your goals? Some fields require a degree to enter – i.e. if you want to practice law, you need a J.D. If you want to become a pharmacist, you need a Doctor of Pharmacy degree. If you want to teach at the post-graduate level, you need a Ph.D. and published research. You do not need an MBA to do business, although an MBA can be particularly helpful for career changes.

When is the right time for you to go to graduate school?

• Some students decide to head to graduate school right after college. Some decide to wait a few years or decades between college graduation and a J.D., an MBA, or an MD. If you go to graduate school right after college, you will still be in the “student mindset” and will be able to start your post-graduate career sooner (i.e. if you are studying to become a lawyer, a professor, a doctor, a pharmacist, an accountant, etc.).
• If you go back to school after working, however, you have the chance to save for graduate school and gain valuable work experience. Business schools especially prefer work experience (average age of a business school student is 27 to 28 at entrance), although the quality of work experience and the candidate’s maturity matter more than the quantity of experience. Make your decision with all these factors in mind.

How will you pay for graduate school? Is the debt load sustainable?

• Don’t think about graduate school without also consider how you will pay for it. Many “professional” schools (medical school, law school, business school) in the U.S. may not offer much in terms of grants (i.e. money you don’t have to pay back). The expectation is that you will be able to make enough after graduation to service your loans. (From my limited understanding, many Ph.D. programs offer tuition grants and living stipends for their students, so the financial outlay is more reasonable at these programs.)
• You can get more money out of these places if you are a stellar candidate whom they want to attract (many schools have a full-tuition or half-tuition fellowships that are awarded to the top sliver of students), or if you seek out outside scholarships. You can also apply to be a teaching assistant. Many schools offer loan forgiveness programs for students who go into nonprofit or government work. If you are considering this line of work, be sure to ask about such programs.
• If you go to school part-time, you will have your income during school. But it will take you longer to finish your degree. If you go full time, you will lose X years of income. Some schools may also discourage full-time students from seeking work during the school year.
• Going to grad school will give you higher chances of getting the job of your dreams. For example, people in law enforcement will consider a masters in criminology to acquire administrative positions and get promoted quickly. You just have to find your passion.”

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This post was featured in Carnival of Personal Finance #252