I have just finished a quant master degree. I wonder if I should continue to do a phd degree...I have heard that master holders will end up under phd holders in the career path. Is that true?Thanks for any comment in advance.

Depends on how long it's going to take to do a PhD.Work experience propels you up the ladder as well.If you're in the UK and got a masters after the 1st year of a 3 year PhD program, do the PhDIf you're in the US, have just picked up and MFE and are going to spend 5/6/... years doing a PhD, don't bother as you'll likely never catch up to the guy with an MFE and 5/6/... additional years work experience

QuoteOriginally posted by: ppaupernever catch up to the guy with an MFE and 5/6/... additional years work experienceI think it is more accurate to say you'll never catch up to yourself in an alternate universe with 5/6/... additional years work experience.

QuoteOriginally posted by: ddd999I have just finished a quant master degree. I wonder if I should continue to do a phd degree...I have heard that master holders will end up under phd holders in the career path. Is that true?Thanks for any comment in advance.what r ur options? have you got a PhD/ job offers? a top job / phd should be chosen.

Actually I get my master degree in Canada, and have a PhD offer in a Canadian school, ranked about 5 in Canada.I expect to finish the phd degree in 3 to 4 years. (Less course requirements than US programs) One advantage of this offer is that my potential supervisor has collaborations with Bank of Canada, meaning thatI will do practical research in the years to come. Is it worth a bet?

QuoteOriginally posted by: farmerQuoteOriginally posted by: ppaupernever catch up to the guy with an MFE and 5/6/... additional years work experienceI think it is more accurate to say you'll never catch up to yourself in an alternate universe with 5/6/... additional years work experience.exactly !

QuoteOriginally posted by: farmerI think it is more accurate to say you'll never catch up to yourself in an alternate universe with 5/6/... additional years work experience.If you do a Ph.D. only for the money, chances are that you'll get frustrated and drop out (hopefully still with a good job) before you graduate. I did my Ph.D. in a field completely unrelated to work because I loved the topic and I felt that someone would have to write a book about it. If one doesn't actually have a topic that one would really like to work on, a somewhat more structured master's program followed by a research-heavy job might be a better solution than Ph.D.

Thanks a lot for your advice. There are a number of reasons for me to do a PhD. First, I believe I have the ability and interest in doing mathematical research. Second, I wanna do a research-type job either in academia or in industry. A PhD seems a prerequisite for an academic job and a necessity to move up the ladder in the industry. I'm not sure about the latter though. Please advise. I used to have an internship in doing portfolio analysis, but the work wasn't interesting....That leads me to think about a PhD. A master graduate can hardly qualify to do an intensive research job. Lastly, money is not my only concern. I'd prefer an interesting job with less salary. After all, life quality is not only about money.QuoteOriginally posted by: LStabilityQuoteOriginally posted by: farmerI think it is more accurate to say you'll never catch up to yourself in an alternate universe with 5/6/... additional years work experience.If you do a Ph.D. only for the money, chances are that you'll get frustrated and drop out (hopefully still with a good job) before you graduate. I did my Ph.D. in a field completely unrelated to work because I loved the topic and I felt that someone would have to write a book about it. If one doesn't actually have a topic that one would really like to work on, a somewhat more structured master's program followed by a research-heavy job might be a better solution than Ph.D.