Grad school

I was just wondering how important, if at all, grad school is for sports journalists? Do editors pay enough attention to applicants w/ grad school on their resumes that it would be worth while, or would it just be burning money?

 

For a job in the newspaper business, probably burning money.

But a master's degree gives you more flexibility if you want to teach or do something else later in life. I wouldn't recommend against it if you can make it work financially.

 

My boss told me once that if I planned on a career in reporting, a master's would not be worth the money. I did go to grad school after I became an SID (HUGE tuitition discount for university employees), taught a class or two for a couple of semesters and was then offered a fulltime teaching gig at my undergrad alma mater. Pay is better than reporting or SID work, the hours are much, much better (I don't have any classes on Tuesday or Thursday and am through at 4 on MWF) and more flexible. I have a few weeks off at Christmas and I'm off all summer unless I want to teach a class for extra pay. My wife is an elementary school teacher and has the same holidays.

If you can at all swing grad school, do it. You might not need the degree now, but if you're looking for something else down the road, it can sure come in handy.

 

PS - I've been writing for MLB.com for the last two years, so I have some experience, but that hasn't done too much for me as far as at least getting an interview... so far. If I, or anyone else for that matter, was to go to grad school, what are some of the top programs for sports journalism?

 

The usual suspects -- Missouri, Northwestern -- but I agree that if writing and/or editing is what you plan on doing for life, the master's isn't going to do that much for you. But if you want it for your own education, or teaching, that's a different thing.

 

If you're already a reporter, a master's in journalism isn't going to do much for you unless you plan on teaching. A business or political science or law degree would give you a lot more flexibility than a J-school degree.