Career advice, I have just completed college/undergraduate study in History & International Studies & I've realized that a postgraduate study in the field is a waste. Why? I can't possibly land a great role in the Nigeria govt without paying my way into govt offices or networking with politicians or someone influential. I don't have the resources and connection. I decided I'll focus on content marketing, which I've always loved. I've been writing for five years now, & it's been three years in content marketing. I have learned and experimented with B2B content and although I haven't landed my dream roles (writing for known agencies/companies), I'm increasing my skill set & preparing myself for it. Since I've zeroed my mind on pursuing postgraduate studies on something related to int'l relations, I thought about MBA in Digital Marketing. It's where my question lies: 1. Many don't study MBA to be recognized as an expert, do you think it'll be a waste of time esp when I learn a lot from industry podcasts, blogs, newsletters, & social media timelines of experts? 2. I'm interested in leaving Nigeria because I'm not eligible for many remote roles that fit into my portfolio. Studying abroad could take me out of the country, but I'm second-guessing that an MBA may be a waste of 18 months or so. What do you suggest I do? BTW, Relocating without an MBA scholarship is freaking expensive; it's not something I can afford right now. 3. Do you think I need a degree to be a reputed content marketer? Of course, I'll pursue certifications from industry academies & experts, but a degree? Thank you.

A number of universities in Taiwan offer IMBA programs taught in English and many offer fully paid scholarships. Quite a few of my friends have graduated from these programs and say they’re high quality and led to job success for them—in Taiwan and abroad. You also get free Chinese classes thrown in. It might be worth looking into.

Thank you @billowy-lighter-49964. I'll definitely do this. I'm concerned about the cost of living, but I'll research that too. Thank you.

I always suggest looking at the people with the jobs you want and seeing what they’ve got experience wise, education wise and such. Why: You’re competing specifically for such work. That’s usually easy to check out via LinkedIn and other online sources. People get (more) education for various reasons, including better career prospects. But there are many ways to learn skills and thinking, not just formal education. If it were me, I’d figure out what ROI would look like, given money and opportunity costs. (To me, time is the most valuable resource we all have, because it’s finite.) As someone who hires content folks, in all my years of managing, I’ve cared about someone’s degrees only once — and that was because we needed them to work with scientists and other experts along those lines. Otherwise, I’ve never paid anyone a cent better for having a degree or more. I don’t usually require ANY degree for writers or editors — you can either do the work or you can’t. A degree makes no difference to me in such cases. Some corporate employers care more about degrees, but less and less so. Important to consider: Most colleges are poor at teaching marketable skills. Often with content and marketing, you can learn more and faster on the job and/or via (online) classes taught by practitioners (rather than academics). And you can do that more affordably. Some people also go to school to build networks. My POV: I can build network much more effectively, quicker and at higher caliber outside of school. YMMV, of course. When I hire, I prefer people who are self-taught or who learned on the job. Why: It takes greater self-discipline and motivation to do it that way vs. showing up in class. I look for people who are intellectually curious go-getters. Note: I have a journalism undergrad degree that I don’t even mention on LinkedIn and yet I get recruited a lot, by employers big and small. And I make more than nearly all content folks. That’s because savvy businesses realize that business results matter most when hiring. How I decided to not consider degrees: I spent decades in journalism and worked with many high-caliber colleagues, yet I saw no correlation between education and ability. To me, if degrees were so worthwhile, I’d expect to see clear patterns of outperformance by people with them. And degrees obviously matter more in some fields than others. In content, we can review work samples, interview and test people, and we can look at their business results. Why do I need a degree from someone if so? In our kind of work, degrees are often used as proxies or assumptions of ability. I know how to discern the real thing. Why would I need a proxy if so? Plus, if I care about diversity in hiring, why would I screen out people who can do the work, just because they might not have a degree? And FWIW, I’ve hired many people — ones with no degree, OK degrees, fancy degrees, law degrees and MBAs. I’ve yet to see a pattern of differentiation in my content work that would lead me to change my hiring screening practices. And I’ve had latitude to hire whomever I wanted, with the resources to match. I’ve also mentored a good number of people who are much better educated than I am, at their requests.

@brief-oyster-42975 COL is relatively low in Taiwan.

Your response is rich, @white-potato-56800, thank you so much. I understand looking into people with my prospective role, I'll do more of that. Yeah, on learning without formal education, it's why I invest time in podcasts, newsletters, blogs etc. I totally agree with you, Maggie. But more degree, sometimes, is an object of pride. My dad, for example, calls me a professor & was sad when I said I'm no longer pursuing a future in academics. He appreciates me, I am the third child but I earn way more than my siblings; he's content, he just appreciate the status that comes with titles. I'm not under pressure, I'm just stating this. I'd like to pass on pursuing a degree, but I'd still love to gain a scholarship as a means to relocate from the country & eventually pursue work/residence visa in a western country. Thank you for your insight, Maggie. God bless you.

I hear you, @brief-oyster-42975. As I mentioned, people get education for various reasons. General life enrichment, family pride, status — sometimes connected with marriageability in some cultures, etc., can vary a lot. And your ability to potentially move elsewhere can be a factor, of course. In the context of this group, we can speak better to the professional factors, rather than some of the others above. Best wishes on your journey!

I understand, @white-potato-56800. Thank you for your time on my matter, I appreciate you profoundly. Cheers to a successful career.

You definitely do not need an MBA to make a great living as a content marketer … however, sounds like leaving your country might open you up to many new work opportunities that aren’t possible now. But if you’re in a full-time MBA program you won’t have time for a full-time job … do any of the MBA programs you’re looking at give sponsorships if you attend part-time?

@white-potato-56800 I appreciate your in-depth comments here and your experience. Would you mind if I DM'd you about something career-advice related?

Thank you for your insight @mammoth-printer-71922. I haven't seen any part-time MBA programs that require me to leave the country. They're mostly virtual, & I don't want to lose the connection/interaction physical classes come with. I understand that full-time MBA will affect my career. I'll keep looking, but it seems I'd prefer paying to emigrate to another country in the end. Thanks for this input. I appreciate it.

Hi Peace! I just listened to a Superpath podcast episode with Tamilore Oladipo, a content marketer in Nigeria. She touches on some of the points you ask about, and this webpage links to her LinkedIn and Twitter, if you’d like to connect with her: https://www.superpath.co/blog/episode-25-tamilore-oladipo-on-building-a-content-career-from-nigeria

@aloof-parrot-18664 Sure, but to be transparent, whether I answer will depend on the question. Why: 1. I get more requests than time allows and I pick what interests me. 2. I usually prefer to comment in groups, because greater reach for time spent.

Thank you @busy-ocean-82073. I'll def check it out. Thank you xoxo.

Hi @brief-oyster-42975, I'm having similar challenges. I am a content marketer and I definitely want to grow in my career but most roles are not location agnostic. The next best thing is freelancing which I have been at for 3 years, (I love freelancing, don't get me wrong) but I have always dreamt of working full time. I graduated from the university last year(Linguistics, UNIBEN). I’m thinking of a masters degree in marketing in Canada as that will help me settle down and land a job in a few years. I think we should talk, we could motivate each other and do research together. My email is aiaigbinijennica@gmail.com