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If earning a lot of money is your goal, a science graduate degree is not the best choice. Pursuing a business or law degree would be a better option.  It is the love of discovering, understanding the mystery of life, and delving into the unknown that draws individuals into the biology field.  People work in biology because they love what they do, and that is worth much more than how much money one has.

Therefore, the first general question one has to ask themselves is, “Do I want to have a career in biology?”  If the answer is “Yes”, then the next decision after an undergraduate degree is to whether to pursue an advanced degree.  This is not an easy decision, and an advanced degree may not be best for many.  It is wise to get as much information as possible and weight the cost and benefits.

A typical question potential graduate students (and some already in graduate school) ask is, “Why would someone want to go through the trouble and agony of pursuing an advance degree and is it worth it?”  Hopefully this advice will provide you with more information and the answer to your questions.

A main fear students tend to have is that pursuing an advanced degree will delay starting a career from 2 to 7 years.  This is compounded by the low income students get while in school. In addition, an advanced degree does not ensure a job.  In fact, having a higher degree may actually decrease the number of jobs available for you.  The job market in some biology fields can also vary over time. This is especially true for jobs positions that are dependent on governmental grants.

However, you have to look at the long term goal.  Having an advanced degree will likely lead to a higher paying job. Although you may not be paid as much during your graduate studies as those working directly out of undergraduate school, our table below shows you how much graduate school will “pay off”.

<table border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 bordercolor="#C0C0C0" style='border-collapse:
 collapse;table-layout:fixed'><col class=xl26 width=61 span=7><tr height=16><td rowspan=2 height=45 class=xl24 width=60>Years after B.S. Degree</td><td colspan=2 class=xl25 width=122>B.S. Degree</td><td colspan=2 class=xl25 width=122>M.S. Degree</td><td colspan=2 class=xl25 width=122>Ph.D. Degree</td></tr><tr height=29><td height=29 class=xl24 width=60>Yearly Salary</td><td class=xl24 width=60>Running Total</td><td class=xl24 width=60>Yearly Salary</td><td class=xl24 width=60>Running Total</td><td class=xl24 width=60>Yearly Salary</td><td class=xl24 width=60>Running Total</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>1</td><td width="60" align=right>30000</td><td width="60" align=right>30000</td><td width="60" > </td><td width="60" > </td><td width="60" > </td><td width="60" > </td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>2</td><td width="60" align=right>31800</td><td width="60" align=right>61800</td><td width="60" > </td><td width="60" > </td><td width="60" > </td><td width="60" > </td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>3</td><td width="60" align=right>33708</td><td width="60" align=right>95508</td><td width="60" align=right>40000</td><td width="60" align=right>40000</td><td width="60" > </td><td width="60" > </td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>4</td><td width="60" align=right>35730</td><td width="60" align=right>131238</td><td width="60" align=right>42400</td><td width="60" align=right>82400</td><td width="60" > </td><td width="60" > </td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>5</td><td width="60" align=right>37874</td><td width="60" align=right>169113</td><td width="60" align=right>44944</td><td width="60" align=right>127344</td><td width="60" > </td><td width="60" > </td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>6</td><td width="60" align=right>40147</td><td width="60" align=right>209260</td><td width="60" align=right>47641</td><td width="60" align=right>174985</td><td width="60" align=right>60000</td><td width="60" align=right>60000</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>7</td><td width="60" align=right>42556</td><td width="60" align=right>251815</td><td width="60" align=right>50499</td><td width="60" align=right>225484</td><td width="60" align=right>63600</td><td width="60" align=right>123600</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>8</td><td width="60" align=right>45109</td><td width="60" align=right>296924</td><td width="60" align=right>53529</td><td width="60" align=right>279013</td><td width="60" align=right>67416</td><td width="60" align=right>191016</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>9</td><td width="60" align=right>47815</td><td width="60" align=right>344739</td><td width="60" align=right>56741</td><td width="60" align=right>335754</td><td width="60" align=right>71461</td><td width="60" align=right>262477</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>10</td><td width="60" align=right>50684</td><td width="60" align=right>395424</td><td width="60" align=right>60145</td><td width="60" align=right>395899</td><td width="60" align=right>75749</td><td width="60" align=right>338226</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>11</td><td width="60" align=right>53725</td><td width="60" align=right>449149</td><td width="60" align=right>63754</td><td width="60" align=right>459653</td><td width="60" align=right>80294</td><td width="60" align=right>418519</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>12</td><td width="60" align=right>56949</td><td width="60" align=right>506098</td><td width="60" align=right>67579</td><td width="60" align=right>527232</td><td width="60" align=right>85111</td><td width="60" align=right>503630</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>13</td><td width="60" align=right>60366</td><td width="60" align=right>566464</td><td width="60" align=right>71634</td><td width="60" align=right>598866</td><td width="60" align=right>90218</td><td width="60" align=right>593848</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>14</td><td width="60" align=right>63988</td><td width="60" align=right>630452</td><td width="60" align=right>75932</td><td width="60" align=right>674798</td><td width="60" align=right>95631</td><td width="60" align=right>689479</td></tr><tr height=16><td width="60" height=16 align=right>15</td><td width="60" align=right>67827</td><td width="60" align=right>698279</td><td width="60" align=right>80488</td><td width="60" align=right>755286</td><td width="60" align=right>101369</td><td width="60" align=right>790848</td></tr></table>
Having an advance degree will also put you in a position where you are more likely to manage others and direct projects. Some positions may even be closed to you unless you have an advanced degree.  Therefore, it is important to have an idea of your end goal, in order to know whether an advanced degree is right for you.

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