How To Become A Master: What It Is and Career Path

What is a master and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

A master's degree is a postgraduate degree that is above an undergraduate or bachelor's degree but below a Ph.D. People study master's degrees to advance their education by specializing in a smaller area in their field of study. It involves both theory and research programs and takes on average 1-2 years of full-time study or 3-4 years of part-time study.

Usually, you are required to complete a dissertation in the second year of study, which involves doing a research program with guidance from a supervisor or mentor. This qualification will increase your knowledge and employability. Most people work alongside their master's degree, gaining knowledge and experience.

There are different types of master's degrees, which are: MA ( master of arts), MSc (master of science), MBA (master of business administration), and MRes ( master of research). MSc includes STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) programs, while MA usually includes social programs such as law and MRes is a purely research-based degree.

ScoreMasterUS Average

Salary

5.5

Avg. Salary $69,786

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.1

Growth rate 1%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

8.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.80%

Asian 4.95%

Black or African American 9.48%

Hispanic or Latino 18.86%

Unknown 4.23%

White 61.69%

Gender

female 35.85%

male 64.15%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress level

8.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.0

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

3.4

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a master

Explore master education requirements

Most common master degrees

Bachelor's

50.9 %

Master's

14.5 %

High School Diploma

13.5 %

Start to develop specific master skills

Skills	Percentages
Hand Tools	15.55%
Social Work	14.64%
Customer Service	11.73%
Ladders	10.96%
Patients	9.61%

Complete relevant master training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New masters learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a master based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real master resumes.

Research master duties and responsibilities

Design, construct, and manage web content using HTML/CSS, MySQL, and PHP.
Lead change management initiative to innovate new QA procedures in master data to support automation for the team.
Manage employee recognition awards program design to recognize top performing sailors.
Recommend resources or support require to accomplish total force manpower program objectives.

Prepare your master resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your master resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a master resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable master resume templates

Build a professional master resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your master resume.