Estimating the Benefits and Costs of Your Choices

According to studies of graduates of bachelor-degree programs in psychology, entry-level positions tend to pay relatively little and may be relatively unsatisfying. Although the positions, pay, and reported job satisfaction of psychology majors tend to significantly improve many years after graduation, those who enter the workforce immediately upon graduation risk at least a few years of less-than-satisfactory employment (Landrum & Elison-Bowers, 2009; Rajecki & Borden, 2011).

Although graduate school can be a route to a better paying, more satisfying job and career, it is quite expensive. According to the APA (2003), a doctoral degree results in most students entering into debts worth $50,000 to $75,000 or even more. The median debt incurred for a master’s degree is approximately $25,000 (Kantrowitz, 2011).

Using your textbook, the Internet, and the Argosy University online library resources, research choices such as entering the workforce immediately upon graduation or enrolling in a graduate school. On the basis of your research, respond to the following:

• Select one of the options: entering the workforce upon graduation or attending graduate school. Identify at least five benefits and at least five risks associated your chosen option. For example, if you choose to enter the workforce immediately upon graduation, identify the benefits and risks of doing so. Cite at least two sources of this information.
• Design a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation illustrating the risks and benefits. Include at least one graph, chart, or table to add to the presentation’s visual appeal.
• If you have chosen to enter the workforce, imagine you are designing the presentation for a job fair at which you are a recruiter trying to convince new graduates of undergraduate programs to work for your organization.
• If you have chosen to enter graduate school, imagine you are designing the presentation for a professional conference where you hope to recruit undergraduate seniors to apply to your graduate program.
• Include one slide with a speech or a persuasive narrative, in your own words, to persuade students or recent graduates to make one choice (join the workforce or enter graduate school).
• Include at least one slide addressing recent trends in the job market and analyzing whether this is an optimal time to enter the workforce or to continue your studies in graduate school.
• Include at least one slide addressing the pitfalls recent graduates from bachelor’s degree programs face and how best to avoid those challenges. One pitfall must be related to the financial risk of or the debt incurred as a result of making each choice (joining the workforce and continuing school).

Refer to the sidebar to download and review a copy of either the Microsoft Word poster template, or else the Microsoft PowerPoint poster template.

• Support your statements with information from academic sources, one of which can be your textbook. Be sure to include in-text citations and a reference list on the final slides of the presentation