There is one regularity - the more clear-cut the diploma acquires and the closer the day of its defense, the more often you are visited by the thought: "Why not go to graduate school?"

The first thing to say is that not all graduate students defend their dissertations, and not all candidates devote their lives to science. But then why do you need graduate school? The most common reasons are a deferment from the army, a place in a hostel, many are simply due to inertia, because of the habit of studying and living in a university environment, pride, or in general "just like that."
Others need these 3 years to determine their place in this life, to understand what they really need. One of my friends went to graduate school precisely for these reasons, as a result scientific life she was so fascinated that she could not imagine herself in another activity. She goes to conferences, teaches German and Russian, conducts a special course in her specialty ... And she is very pleased.
But there may be more practical considerations. If you have, say, a diploma in history, and you work as a manager, graduate school will be a real alternative to a second higher education and will give you the opportunity to reinforce your practical skills with theoretical knowledge and a degree. A friend of mine graduated from the physics department, worked during his studies and after as an analyst, and a couple of years later he entered the correspondence graduate school in economics. To my question "why?" I received a logical and expected answer: "To improve qualifications." One could once again ask "why?", but it's understandable - for the sake of career advancement. I think he can do it.
Many girls get a degree for the sake of a teaching career at a university, so that they don’t sit at home and don’t get exhausted at work “from bell to bell”. Interesting, not dusty and, it seems, still prestigious ... A very worthy and enjoyable activity, if you do not need to support yourself and someone else.

There is an opinion that any academic degree and even the very fact of studying in graduate school is your additional plus in the labor market. A rather controversial statement, there is no consensus on this matter. Much depends on the specialty and how the work is related to it. If it is connected directly, it may turn out to be an indispensable condition, if it is not connected in any way, it is logical that your degree is especially HR "a (short for "Human Resources" - a personnel manager, i.e. one who is engaged in the selection of new employees) will not impress and he will prefer a person, albeit less educated, but more experienced.And, for example, abroad (our "candidate of science" is equated to a Western PhD) it can even turn into a minus: you will be considered "overqualified", i.e. "too qualified" ... In any In this case, you should not flatter yourself that the degree will open all the doors for you, but if you apply it correctly, it can be useful.

Full-time or part-time?

The form of training depends on your goals. Do you want to have an additional "bow" in your resume, satisfy your own pride, prove to yourself and the whole world that you are capable of it? - Then, probably, it is better to choose correspondence. It is perceived by many as a “defective” version of full-time, but if you have everything in order with self-discipline and the problem of conscription into the army, as well as places in a hostel, is not relevant for you, the advantages of correspondence postgraduate studies are clearly more. Firstly, you are not obliged to attend classes and / or teach, which means that over time you will be much freer. Secondly, you are given not 3 years to write your dissertation, but 4. Remember how often you missed one night, one month ... and so, one year will be missed in the same way.
By law, part-time graduate students are entitled to additional paid holidays, and your employer is obliged to provide you with them. But in reality, if it is not the organization that guides you, but you went to study on your own initiative, you will seek legal leave for a long time and it is not a fact that you will achieve it. It's easier to quit. Employers can be understood - 30 calendar days for entrance exams, additional leave in 30 calendar days every year + one day a week with fifty percent payment and three paid months to complete the dissertation ... According to my calculations, it turns out about 11 months for all 4 years. Personally, I don’t know of a single example when a part-time graduate student took all his vacations (with the exception of my mother, but that was 20 years ago). Full-time full-time graduate school - the choice of those who are aimed at scientific or teaching career. A significant disadvantage - experience shows that the successful combination of full-time postgraduate studies with a full-fledged highly paid job is almost impossible (but this is not important for everyone, right?). It is understandable that doing science is pleasant and prestigious. Another question is what gives scientific career in material terms. It has long been common place that "in Russia they don't pay for science." But, firstly, there are science-intensive areas - and large companies working in them need their own developments, and therefore, good specialists. First of all, it is IT, some areas of physics, chemistry, geology. One of my geologist friends went to graduate school for this very purpose - higher professional education gives her the opportunity to practical work in a large company, and the degree will allow you to work there theoretical research. That is, to implement known formula: "to satisfy one's own curiosity at the expense of others." Secondly, specialist high level in ANY area, if desired, will provide for itself.
In addition to full-time and part-time postgraduate studies, there is also the possibility of a job seeker. You attach yourself to the pulpit (without entrance exams) and within 5 years you pass the candidate's minimum exams, write and defend your dissertation. We are not talking about any study, in fact it is something like an external student.

Will they take it?

As for the conditions of admission, the main requirement is that you must have a higher education diploma. vocational education(5 years). A bachelor's degree is usually not enough (bachelor's degree - 4 years, and its logical continuation is not postgraduate, but master's). Age restrictions - no older than 35 for full-time, and 45 for part-time. learn from budgetary basis you can only once and only if you have Russian citizenship.

What do we sell and how much do we pay?

Everything is standard here: specialty, foreign language, philosophy. Most likely, another essay of 30 pages in the specialty and an interview with the prospective supervisor. If you have a master's degree and as final exams you passed philosophy or a foreign one, they can be counted. A definite plus is the presence of publications, but their absence is not critical either. If you apply for budget financing- will have to pass the competition. What it is depends on the popularity and openness of the institute - about some it can be said in advance that even submitting documents is useless. That is, they will, of course, be accepted from you, but you still won’t be able to enter - all the places have long been distributed among “their own”. Competition for RAS institutes ( Russian Academy sciences) can reach up to 4-5 people per place, some departments of the RAGS (Russian Academy public service) - 5-7, for the departments of the faculties of Moscow State University - rarely exceeds 1.5, but usually this is just the case when "all of them". There is usually no competition for paid graduate school, you just need to pass the exams. Perfect option- if you manage to convince your superiors that the company is interested in your training. Then it will be called "target graduate school" and your employer will pay for it. If not, you pay yourself and this pleasure will cost an average of 1000 to 2000 USD. e. per year; correspondence is cheaper, but not much. And be prepared for the fact that your investments may not end there, for example, they will require you to pay for the collection of the dissertation council or the work of opponents. The time of the exams depends on the institute, usually it is either the period from the end of May to the beginning of July, or September-October. Rarely in January.

So, who needs a graduate school?

Postgraduate studies are needed - not only for those who dream of becoming a "great scientist" or tritely mow down from the army, this additional opportunity your professional and personal development. Ultimately, you do it for yourself, for your pride and satisfaction. own ambitions. Plus - you get experience in analytical work, writing scientific articles, preparation of reports and reports. By the way, many people just like the process itself: communication with smart, educated people is worth a lot.
What does graduate school give you besides moral satisfaction and additional method self-expression? Education is important not only to receive, but also to be able to use it. Clearly understand what you are doing and for what purpose. Maybe nothing will happen as a result, except for one more no one required diploma in the back drawer of the desk. Or maybe you will get another promotion, marry an academician, become a laureate Nobel Prize… Everything depends only on you. As always.

Admission to graduate school for postgraduate professional education and dissertation writing are important decision which will affect your life in the future.

Reasons to understand what graduate school gives

Most often, pedagogical and scientific personnel require the presence degree which is a necessity for obtaining this vacancy.

This does not mean that they must plunge into work immediately after completion. university education. Just make sure you have good reason, how scientific novelty of the research for admission to graduate school.

Some of the reasons listed below are more valid than others, but they all have common causes, by which people determine what graduate school gives:

The flip side or cons of studying in graduate school

1. High competitiveness. There is competition for places in research positions related to departmental politics.
2. It takes the ability to prioritize. It takes a lot of discipline and foresight. This can be a strain on family and personal relationships, not to mention yourself.
3. Relationship strains. If you are married, housing can be a problem. You may be offered a position and free education but not housing for your spouse in a hostel.
4. Stress. Emotionally exhausting - having completed graduate school, a PhD requires emotional maturity.
5. Dissertation writing. Writing an original thesis is not easy compared to a term paper or thesis and it often takes much longer than training.
6. Requires support. You may need a strong support network to get through everything emotionally.
7. May take 2-7 years of its life. Not for everyone, this can end up with a dissertation defense in a typical 2 or 3 years. Personal obligations often interfere or lack of funds makes defense difficult.
8. Additional cost of education. If you do not intend to work during your studies or do not get a job as an assistant or a tuition waiver.
9. Does not guarantee high salary. Earning a PhD does not necessarily mean that you will be offered a job with a much higher salary.
10. Limited employment opportunities. If your PhD is in an academic field, finding work outside of teaching or research can be difficult.
11. Too qualified. During an economic downturn, if you find yourself looking for a job, having a degree can be a burden. You may hear "sorry, you're overqualified."

Is going to graduate school worth it?

The structure of education is different than in the university. Hardly ever lecture classes, all or almost all classes will be small workshops with a few graduate students. Even just 2-5 people in a class is not uncommon.

It is necessary to be ready for seminars, to speak and participate in intellectual conversation. Your professors will be interested to hear your findings. Expected high quality works, presentations and group projects. You will be able to devote much more time to each discipline than you could in high school.

This is what a graduate school provides - an advanced study program that focuses on a specific scientific discipline or professions with the possibility of defending a PhD thesis.

Master's programs are followed by postgraduate studies - the choice of those who feel a craving for scientific knowledge. The terms of study for postgraduate students differ depending on the choice of the form of study. Full-time students approach the dissertation defense in 3 years, correspondence students prepare for a year longer.

Apply for training

What work needs to be done throughout the course

There are no restrictions on the terms for defending a dissertation work. It can become both the first serious application of a young scientist, and the work of his whole life. But there are strict requirements for the period of postgraduate study itself.

You can get to the postgraduate level of higher education in graduate school only if 2 conditions are met.

• Passing the first stages of training with high score(the university determines it independently).
• Successful passing of tests ( profile subject, philosophy/history of science, foreign language).

The passing score is determined by the university. For those who did not find themselves among graduate students, a “workaround” is open - an applicant for a scientific degree. The latter must pass candidate exams and attach himself to an educational institution for a maximum of 6 months.

The practice of training future scientists/teachers involves a huge layer independent work. For 3-4 years of study, the student must:

• Engage in the creation / promotion of copyright / co-authorship of scientific works. Registration of patents, development of author's projects, generation of research reports are welcome.
• Publish articles. The minimum set of publications was determined (from 4 from the list of VAK, from 3 from the RSCI index). It is desirable to expand it with articles scientific journals, newspapers, catalogs not indexed by the RSCI, outside the list of VAK.
• To speak at conferences with a report on their own research. Active participation in such events largely determines the prospects for further research practice.
• Carry out practical laboratory classes students to lecture. Full-time graduate students take an exam in pedagogy.
• Pass candidate exams, pass intermediate certification.
• Attend classes (at our university they are held in the evening for a convenient combination of work and study).
• Collect material (empirical, scientific, theoretical) for a future dissertation.

What level of education is postgraduate study

The standard program of the Bologna system assigns postgraduate studies the third level of education after the bachelor's and master's degrees. But there are clarifications here related to the relatively recent transition to international program training of professional personnel.

Thus, bachelors cannot become graduate students without a master's degree, but graduates of a specialty can. For the latter, this is the second step. Students who have completed postgraduate studies have the right to reapply as applicants (this is already the second higher or 4th stage).

What degree is awarded to a graduate student

Unlike bachelors, specialists, undergraduates, graduate students do not receive a qualifying diploma. They are awarded the degree of Candidate of Sciences. It gives the right to conduct pedagogical activities, take part in joint scientific papers, pretend to state support when conducting research.

Is it possible to further improve the level of qualification

University studies are coming to an end, and while some are enjoying the opportunity to relax, others are planning to study further. Does it make sense to continue studying? Yes. It’s just that those who plan to further connect their activities with science or gain unique experience in independent research and writing projects, move to another level of education.

What is graduate school?

This is one of the types of postgraduate vocational training. It is the main step in the preparation scientists and scientific and pedagogical staff. During postgraduate studies, people acquire the skill of independent work with scientific research. In other words, this level of education is great opportunity improve your qualifications and get a scientific title.

Who can become a graduate student?

Those wishing to become a graduate student, as a rule, already have a higher education, and their further studies in graduate school are associated with writing and defending a dissertation for the degree of Candidate of Sciences. That is, a person who has a master's or specialist's qualification can become a graduate student, and he must also be a citizen of the country in which he plans to study. Otherwise, acceptance foreign citizens carried out in accordance with the regulations of the higher education institution.

Postgraduate Pros

Most do not see the prospects that can open up for those who receive education in graduate school. For many, the point of further study is to get a degree. But its advantages do not end there:

1. This is an opportunity for continuous improvement. Studying is given to young people much easier than to the older generation. And without constant self-development, it will not be easy to achieve significant heights in the chosen activity.
2. Occupation scientific activity. After all, even if a graduate student is not going to defend a dissertation, he can attend scientific conferences and perform at them, which will give invaluable experience public speaking before the scientific public.
3. Opportunity to practice pedagogical activity. After graduate school is completed, the graduate receives not only a specialty, but also the opportunity to teach at universities.
4. And of course, getting a PhD degree - but this is only in the case of defending a dissertation. This immediately opens up many possibilities. Apart from material bonuses, there is an opportunity to get a PhD in the future. And this is already good prospect career development in the selected area.

Cons of graduate school

In addition to the pros, there are also cons to being a graduate student. Therefore, before deciding to study further, one should take into account not only the positive points:

1. It's pretty a long way to achieve the goal. You need to be prepared for the fact that you will have to study the same way as before, attend all classes and prepare for the defense of your dissertation, which is undoubtedly more difficult than term paper.
2. Conducting seminars with students. For some, this is not at all the ultimate dream, because ordinary students (not studying in pedagogical universities) do not practice this, because they are not prepared for further teaching activities.

Forms of study

Forms of obtaining this type of education can be as follows:

• full-time;
• correspondence.

The differences between part-time and full-time postgraduate studies are small, but still there. Of course, when in absentia it is possible to combine work and study, but you will almost always have to do it yourself.

Now readers already understand what graduate school is and why some people are so eager to go there. The main thing is to adequately assess your capabilities, because, despite all beautiful words about self-improvement and scientific activity, it all requires self-discipline, dedication and willingness to constantly learn.

Who is being trained here and how to enter graduate school

Getting into graduate school is not as difficult as many people think. If you know the subject well and are prepared, then pass entrance tests it won't be hard for you. What exams are required for graduate school:

1. Special discipline that corresponds to the program.
2. Philosophy.
3. Foreign language.

Many begin to guess at who they teach in graduate school. A list of postgraduate specialties is available at each university where a future postgraduate student intends to study. It is not at all necessary to act only in your own direction - you can choose any, you just need to be prepared for a larger amount of information.

What documents are needed for admission

In order not to waste time in vain and then not to search in a hurry required documents, it is better to prepare them in advance. Typically, the list looks like this:

• an application for admission to study and an application to it;
• recommendations of the Academic Council (if any);
• your scientific works and articles that have been published, and if there are none, you need to write an abstract in the desired specialty;
• copy of diploma higher education and an insert to it;
• if you do not enter immediately after the university, but after working at the enterprise, then you will need to submit personal sheet from the personnel department;
• if you work, you need a reference from the place of work;
• 3 photos - 3 x 4 and one 4 x 5;
• topic and substantiation of the dissertation.

How is the training

Having dealt with the question of what a graduate school is, having weighed all the pros and cons, and deciding that further education it is necessary, it is necessary to form an approximate idea of ​​how the educational process is built.

Each graduate student is assigned scientific director, under the strict guidance of which he is working on his dissertation. In addition to the dissertation, the graduate student also has individual plan work. It specifies the time frame for submission. candidate minimum. There are also specified dates when you need to hand over some parts of the dissertation work.

Postgraduate student duties include visiting extra classes which take place in the first year of study. It is also desirable for a graduate student to participate in the work of the department to which he is assigned. If he does not comply calendar plan, then it can be expelled.

Efficiency of PhD studies in Russia

Despite the fact that there are a sufficient number of universities in the country, the number of graduate students is decreasing every year. This can be explained by the fact that there is a reduction budget places, and not everyone has the opportunity to pay large amounts of tuition. But certain part experts believe that not enough high efficiency associated with the human factor. It refers to the motivation of graduate students, their values ​​and personal characteristics.

Also, not all graduate students are ready to engage in scientific activities in the future. Some go to graduate school because the award of an academic degree is considered prestigious, others want to extend their student years, and for young people, a deferment from the army is a nice bonus. Society still continues to believe that it is much easier for a candidate of sciences to build a career. Perhaps there would be more students willing to continue their studies if they were explained what postgraduate studies are and what opportunities open up for those who defended their dissertations.

Often, when we meet a person who has entered graduate school, there is a desire to ask him one the only question: "Why?". What made a person make such a decision? If you had to describe graduate school in three words, then “long”, “useless”, and “low paying” would be perfect. Most people see no point in going to graduate school and dedicating their lives to science in order to get a degree. But there are students who, after graduating from the university, decide to also go to graduate school. In today's article, we will talk about why people go to graduate school and what opportunities it opens up for them.

In fact, there are many reasons that push people to go to graduate school. Below we highlight four main ones.

First reason

Most students go on to graduate school in order to achieve a candidate's degree as a result. The candidate's degree is The final stage postgraduate studies. If you think that only those who really love to study go to graduate school, then you are mistaken. In fact, 90% of graduate students just need the appropriate mark on their resume, which will be a big advantage when looking for a high-paying job. As practice shows, candidates of sciences have a lot of bonuses and privileges. A person with a candidate's degree can count on a decent position and a high salary. In addition, PhDs move up the corporate ladder faster. Given all these points, then admission to graduate school no longer seems so pointless.

But not everything is as rosy as it might seem at first. It suffices to give one small example to refute all the advantages mentioned above. Let's imagine the following situation: you became a Ph.D. information technologies. According to current legislation, a person who has received a candidate's degree in this field cannot count on an increase in salary of more than 30%. Fortunately, this limitation is not relevant for other disciplines.

In comparison, a typical fourth-year student who studies at the Faculty of Information Technology and speaks several programming languages ​​has a good chance of finding a job and receiving a higher salary than a graduate student who cannot even count on a normal increase. So is it worth going to graduate school? The answer to this question again does not seem so unambiguous.

If we consider this issue more globally, then in developed countries PhDs are considered very important people and highly valued by employers. For some reason, many people believe that all PhDs work in such large corporations as Google and Microsoft, but this is not entirely true. For example, in the United States, holders of a scientific degree consider work in scientific institutes and research stations. This approach is a little unusual for our mentality, but it also has a right to exist.

The second reason

As a result of recent statistical surveys, it turned out that many people enter graduate school in order to continue family tradition. Often, relatives of future graduate students already work at the department, and this gives them a slight advantage in admission.

Third reason

The person who passed full course postgraduate studies, receives a large array of theoretical knowledge. But the problem is that this knowledge is not fixed in practice. It turns out that a candidate of sciences already at a fairly conscious age will have to adapt to the application of theoretical knowledge. In turn, people who have received a regular diploma of higher education are already honing their skills to the fullest and getting decent money for it.

This does not mean that the theory is absolutely useless. It is just as important for a specialist as practice. Just theoretical knowledge should always be consolidated in practice, and graduate school, unfortunately, does not create necessary conditions. No matter how harsh it may sound, but graduate school slows down the development of a person in the workplace.

Fourth reason

Postgraduate studies are a great option for people who have a lot of ideas but don't know how to implement them. Created in graduate school ideal conditions for the implementation of ideas and their further promotion.

It is worth noting that in order to defend a dissertation, a graduate student must submit all the published works that he wrote during his PhD studies. This item is required. It turns out that a person can implement his ideas, write about it, and then use these articles in the process of defending a dissertation.

Fifth reason

Some people go to graduate school to be able to study teaching activities. So they can earn extra money and raise their social status. In addition, the future candidate of sciences can make a lot of new acquaintances and gain valuable experience as a result of communicating with colleagues.

Everyone has to decide for himself whether or not to go to graduate school. It is important to take into account not only the advantages, but also the obvious disadvantages of this undertaking. We hope that our article has become useful for you, and you have received answers to all your questions.