Do you think you are smarter than me because you have a graduate degree?

[Anonymous]

Nope, not smarter than you because I have a graduate degree. I am more educated than you, though.

Many of the smartest people I know have little to no college. One of the smartest men I know did not graduate from high school

Having more education does not make you smarter. It makes you more knowledgeable about the areas you studies. That does not have to come from a classroom. Knowledge and wisdom can come in many different formats.

[Anonymous]

The annoying degree are the public policy degree, complete garbage only employable in dc

[Anonymous]

I don't think I'm smarter than you because of my graduate degree. I think the odds are good that I'm smarter than you because I've always been smarter than most of my peers.

I'm not usually such a dick about it, but you asked, so there it is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, not at all. In fact, some graduate degrees are complete wastes. It is one accomplishment, the worth of which differs.

Just wanted to add an example, I think most people who get law degrees from lower-tiered law schools are not too bright. Very poor financial decision.

It depends. If they have a family law practice, why does it matter where they go. What if their parent has connections and they just need the degree, wouldn't it just be a waste to pay more for the degree, law or otherwise?

Note the word "most." Of course, like everything else, there are exceptions. If they can pass the bar and the job is guaranteed, then that might be one. But that is an extremely rare situation, much more frequent is unemployment (or underemployment) with a very costly piece of useless paper.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I get the impression from many posts on DCUM that people with graduate degrees thinks that this bestows on them some kind of superiority over those who don't.

Sure, I give you props for doing that studying, especially if you have a PhD, but it doesn't make you innately more intelligent than I am (without a graduate degree), just because you have that degree (though you probably have more specialized knowledge than I do in the one specialized area that you studied). I have worked with and known many people with impressive educational qualifications and rarely has their intellect blown me away. In fact, I regularly come across people with graduate degrees who don't learn particularly quickly or have very deep insight into whatever we are working on/discussing, or have extremely little knowledge of the world around them.

Basically the difference between you with your graduate degree and me, without one, is that you bothered to apply, pay a lot of money and study for an extra couple of years. I could have done that too. It wouldn't make me any better at my job. It wouldn't make me superior to my pre-grad school self.

Likewise, when I hire staff I am more impressed with solid work experience than graduate school.

This seems awfully defensive! My graduate degree likely does make me more knowledgeable than you in a few specific fields. It also makes me better at my job; actually I would not be able to do my job without it. ::shrug:::

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I get the impression from many posts on DCUM that people with graduate degrees thinks that this bestows on them some kind of superiority over those who don't.

Sure, I give you props for doing that studying, especially if you have a PhD, but it doesn't make you innately more intelligent than I am (without a graduate degree), just because you have that degree (though you probably have more specialized knowledge than I do in the one specialized area that you studied). I have worked with and known many people with impressive educational qualifications and rarely has their intellect blown me away. In fact, I regularly come across people with graduate degrees who don't learn particularly quickly or have very deep insight into whatever we are working on/discussing, or have extremely little knowledge of the world around them.

Basically the difference between you with your graduate degree and me, without one, is that you bothered to apply, pay a lot of money and study for an extra couple of years. I could have done that too. It wouldn't make me any better at my job. It wouldn't make me superior to my pre-grad school self.

Likewise, when I hire staff I am more impressed with solid work experience than graduate school.

This seems awfully defensive! My graduate degree likely does make me more knowledgeable than you in a few specific fields. It also makes me better at my job; actually I would not be able to do my job without it. ::shrug:::

PP here--Fed law requires it (not a law or medical license, though)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I get the impression from many posts on DCUM that people with graduate degrees thinks that this bestows on them some kind of superiority over those who don't.

Sure, I give you props for doing that studying, especially if you have a PhD, but it doesn't make you innately more intelligent than I am (without a graduate degree), just because you have that degree (though you probably have more specialized knowledge than I do in the one specialized area that you studied). I have worked with and known many people with impressive educational qualifications and rarely has their intellect blown me away. In fact, I regularly come across people with graduate degrees who don't learn particularly quickly or have very deep insight into whatever we are working on/discussing, or have extremely little knowledge of the world around them.

Basically the difference between you with your graduate degree and me, without one, is that you bothered to apply, pay a lot of money and study for an extra couple of years. I could have done that too. It wouldn't make me any better at my job. It wouldn't make me superior to my pre-grad school self.

Likewise, when I hire staff I am more impressed with solid work experience than graduate school.

It sounds like you spent a lot of time crafting that message. Kudos.

Let me ask you something, though: do you think you're more superior to people without a college degree? I agree with your post but I would suggest that the same applies to people even without college degrees.

Now go ahead, get all up in arms about how people without college degrees just aren't as good as you!

Huh? OP here. First, no I did not spend a long time crafting that message. (WTF?)

Second, I previously said (in a different post) that two of the smartest, most successful and accomplished people I know don't have college degrees at all. In fact, one of them barely graduated high school. However, once you have a college degree (and I can only really speak with experience about my own degree which was not gained in the US and was much more specialized than many degrees here appear to be) you have achieved a certain level of education and demonstrated that you have the skills to learn. On the whole, a masters degree doesn't add much to that, particularly in non-science subjects.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think number of degrees = intelligence, but I am very proud of my graduate degree. I earned a fellowship which paid for it so graduated with no debt. I need it in my field - I'm in policy and it's competitive here in the DC area. One differentiator is that all the jobs I have been interested in, in the last several years, have required or strongly encouraged a grad degree for consideration.

My husband does not have a grad degree, though he has an awesome career and makes more than me.

OP here. Do be proud of your degree. You worked hard for it. I don't mean to negate that. I just don't think that it means that you are automatically smarter or superior to someone who doesn't have one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think I'm smarter than you because of my graduate degree. I think the odds are good that I'm smarter than you because I've always been smarter than most of my peers.

I'm not usually such a dick about it, but you asked, so there it is.

haha. OP here. Me too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I get the impression from many posts on DCUM that people with graduate degrees thinks that this bestows on them some kind of superiority over those who don't.

Sure, I give you props for doing that studying, especially if you have a PhD, but it doesn't make you innately more intelligent than I am (without a graduate degree), just because you have that degree (though you probably have more specialized knowledge than I do in the one specialized area that you studied). I have worked with and known many people with impressive educational qualifications and rarely has their intellect blown me away. In fact, I regularly come across people with graduate degrees who don't learn particularly quickly or have very deep insight into whatever we are working on/discussing, or have extremely little knowledge of the world around them.

Basically the difference between you with your graduate degree and me, without one, is that you bothered to apply, pay a lot of money and study for an extra couple of years. I could have done that too. It wouldn't make me any better at my job. It wouldn't make me superior to my pre-grad school self.

Likewise, when I hire staff I am more impressed with solid work experience than graduate school.

This seems awfully defensive! My graduate degree likely does make me more knowledgeable than you in a few specific fields. It also makes me better at my job; actually I would not be able to do my job without it. ::shrug:::

Did you read my post?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, not at all. In fact, some graduate degrees are complete wastes. It is one accomplishment, the worth of which differs.

Just wanted to add an example, I think most people who get law degrees from lower-tiered law schools are not too bright. Very poor financial decision.

It depends. If they have a family law practice, why does it matter where they go. What if their parent has connections and they just need the degree, wouldn't it just be a waste to pay more for the degree, law or otherwise?

Note the word "most." Of course, like everything else, there are exceptions. If they can pass the bar and the job is guaranteed, then that might be one. But that is an extremely rare situation, much more frequent is unemployment (or underemployment) with a very costly piece of useless paper.

Not really. Most kids (you know) are unemployed because they thought they were going big law with big office and big salary that goes along with that big head everybody has been giving them since they scored 99% in some meaningless test in elementary school. If they would just gut it out and take a job doing small time criminal law work... they would have a job not a useless paper... the useless paper is all the honor awards they were given along the way.

[Anonymous]

I base my relatively superior intellect to you, OP, not on my graduate degree but instead on the fact that you posted this shit.

[Anonymous]

I think it took going to graduate school to make me realize just how many people are smarter than me (one degree in stats, one in econ). There are some smart mo-fos out there, for sure.

Now...teaching the undergrads. *Shiver*

How do you get to college and understand NO basic algebra? None.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I get the impression from many posts on DCUM that people with graduate degrees thinks that this bestows on them some kind of superiority over those who don't.

Sure, I give you props for doing that studying, especially if you have a PhD, but it doesn't make you innately more intelligent than I am (without a graduate degree), just because you have that degree (though you probably have more specialized knowledge than I do in the one specialized area that you studied). I have worked with and known many people with impressive educational qualifications and rarely has their intellect blown me away. In fact, I regularly come across people with graduate degrees who don't learn particularly quickly or have very deep insight into whatever we are working on/discussing, or have extremely little knowledge of the world around them.

Basically the difference between you with your graduate degree and me, without one, is that you bothered to apply, pay a lot of money and study for an extra couple of years. I could have done that too. It wouldn't make me any better at my job. It wouldn't make me superior to my pre-grad school self.

Likewise, when I hire staff I am more impressed with solid work experience than graduate school.

Sounds like someone needs a red sports car.

[Anonymous]

I went back for a graduate degree just before I turned 30. For me it was a personal mission to prove something to myself - I grew up pretty poor and I'm one of a few people from my high school class who went to grad school. However, since then, people from said small hometown like to remind me - constantly - that I'm not that smart, or they want to argue with me about politics or policy. In fact the day I graduated, my best friend made a comment about how you don't need these degrees.

So while I don't think I'm necessarily smarter than everyone - maybe just better versed in a particular topic - it gets old having to listen to anti-intellectualism.