Okay so I received a question from a reader on why I need another masters degree. Fair enough, I thought that I had explained it well enough but perhaps I was mistaken so I’ll try to be more specific.
An MBA is a multi-disciplinary degree, basically a management degree that is technically applicable to any business administrative or management function regardless of the type of industry you work in. As you may have guessed this “jack of all trades master of none” approach has its place and I do appreciate the value an MBA has added to my resume. In fact I believe my MBA played a large part in facilitating my career change. But now I’ve changed careers and I’m starting to learn how ultra-competitive the private sector really is. My MBA is just the beginning, certainly not the end. I have been told by my boss for example that she would like to see me get my PMP (Project Management Professional Certificate) as soon as possible. Additionally I will be required to certify in ITIL Foundations, in fact they’re paying a pretty penny in my training to see that I do.
Add to all of that I’m dealing with technical people all day every day and I have come to notice I have two gaps in my skill set. First I do not understand the language and concepts as thoroughly as I would like and second I do not understand the various applied technologies involved and how my project teams facilitate an overall business need as well as I could. This is a problem being that I am a project analyst and part of my responsibility is to work somewhat as a business analyst in helping my teams identify the business need they are filling. The good thing is my boss seems to have more confidence in me than I do; another good thing is I am keenly aware of my short comings.
I had lunch with a former developer on Friday and he told me something that was very applicable to how I feel now. He said “once you get comfortable in your job, you need to go ahead and start interviewing for your next job”. Meaning you learn A.) How valuable you really are (or are not) in the marketplace and B.) Just when you think you’ve got life by the tail, you don’t.
That brings me to my 2nd masters degree. I need more technical savvy than I have now. Secondly I need to prove that I have more technical savvy beyond simply a pile of certificates. I suppose you could say I am technically filling a gap that my BS has left being that I majored in Criminal Justice and not Management Information Systems. A plus is that this MS degree will capitalize on my management skills learned while earning my MBA. Also I do not regret getting a BSCJ because the amount of psychology training I have had has certainly come in useful when dealing with people who technically do not work for me but who I count on to get things done. Diplomacy and negotiation are a big part of law enforcement. Lastly when I worked this last job fair I saw more than a handful of MBAs applying for jobs, however it was rare that I saw an MBA with a 2nd, more specialized graduate degree in addition to it which would certainly have been a competitive edge. Add to that a PMP and you have yourself one useful technology oriented project manager.