Master's Degree Worth It?

:spiral_calendar: Degree Planning :spiral_calendar:

Hey, everyone. I haven't started my term yet, but I'm debating on going for the Masters right after the Bachelor's. I'm starting with max transfer credits around 70, and am hoping to get done the whole bachelors in 1 term. Therefore, hopefully getting the Master's done in 1 term right after. Then follow that with going 4/4 on the CPA, with no work history. I have unlimited time, basically for years if I want, a privileged spot I know. To pass this in 6 months I'm going to have to grind and have full focus on this. What I'm in between right now is, I'm not going to need the 150 credit hours to sit for the CPA, only 120. However, if I get the Master's I can cut the work requirement time in half to 1 year instead of 2. I'm leaning heavily towards not working during the CPA studying/exam to knock it out as fast as possible regardless. So would getting the Master's be worth it for short cutting the work time for 1 year, or would it not matter in terms of promotion path for the 1 year opportunity cost of getting full licensure in that time. Plus I would be paying out of pocket for the exam prep(possible reimbursement from a company), and Uworld is a sweetner on top after you complete the Master's, $2,000 value to take off the $5,000 term. Plus I may want to teach way further down the line. I'm definitely not going to be able to do the big 4 hours for very long at all without burning out, general PA (not big 4) is more reasonable hours for me. Additionally, I may want to do Industry/Government at some point later, I hear they occasionally offer a $5,000-$10,000 on top of your salary for a Master's, obviously not all of them. I feel like for me it's a no brainer given all of this, but I've rarely seen anyone say it's worth it, in any case. Thank you, I look forward to any advice.

Posted Jan 14, 2026, 12:08 AM UTC

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