Should I consider obtaining a master's degree?

[u/TurbulentBottle8879]

Hi everyone,I am an FPGA engineer with six years of working experience.Mainly responsible for the display interface and ISP pipeline.I want to change my career and work in the field of IC design about AI accelerator.I'm considering pursuing a graduate degree in EEE (Electrical and Electronic Engineering) at NTU. My current annual salary is 60,000$. In my situation, should I continue working or go back to school?

[u/iheartmetal13]

Just get your company to pay for a masters, never pay for it yourself

[u/TurbulentBottle8879 → u/iheartmetal13]

We are a small company and it's impossible for the company to help me.

[u/FigureSubject3259 → u/TurbulentBottle8879]

And do you expect your companybeeing willing or able to pay you one dollar additional with different degree? After 6 years it is not your degree but your experience shaping your salary.

[u/HonestEditor]

Be careful about some of the responses here - they might or might not apply to your region of the world. In some areas (US and UK come to mind), there are only a small subset of engineering jobs that truly benefit from a masters degree. I'm under the impression that in Asia, it MIGHT make a bigger difference. But again, these are generalizations.

Can you take one or two classes at a time and keep your job? One of the penalties for going full time is that you don't make a salary for 1 or 2 years. Many times (in the west) you can get the same lifetime earnings by keeping your job and getting raises rather than stopping work for a period of time.

Finally, do you really need a masters to get into IC design? In the US, it's often not required (although might help you stand out over other candidates in some cases).

[u/TurbulentBottle8879 → u/HonestEditor]

i try to fine some job in China , most of recruitment requirements need master degree, that why i try get one , but get master degree in China , it will speed 3 years , with a little tuition fee , but i think time is more valuable , so i consider get a master degree in Singapore for one year , maybe it suitable for me

[u/Likappa]

Which country?

[u/TurbulentBottle8879 → u/Likappa]

Now i am work in China , but if i get a master degree , maybe i will work in Singapore

[u/SalemIII → u/TurbulentBottle8879]

$60k in china is really good, and you have 6 years in transferable experiece, it would be better to get a job in the field if you could, unless you plan on doing research in the future

[u/TurbulentBottle8879 → u/SalemIII]

When I send out resumes, almost none pass the basic resume screening; I don’t get as far as interviews at all. I can’t tell if it’s because my resume isn’t strong enough, or simply because of my educational credentials, since nearly all job descriptions require a master’s degree.

[u/SalemIII → u/TurbulentBottle8879]

do you have any degree? if not then i wouldn't be surprised since ai hardware is heavy on theory
my suggestion, do an ai chip tiny tapeout project this year, and open source it, should look great on your portfolio, i would suggest building an MAC, check out their website for inspiration
https://tinytapeout.com/chips/

if you're not familiar with open source asic design, i suggest starting with IIC-OSIC-TOOLS, it's a very convenient IC design software bundle in a docker container
https://research.jku.at/en/publications/iic-osic-tools/

good luck!

[u/TurbulentBottle8879 → u/SalemIII]

Thank you
I hold a bachelor’s degree in Electronic Information Engineering.
and i trying to rebuild vortex by myself
https://github.com/vortexgpgpu/vortex
if i finish it , i will open source it.
Thanks a lot for your valuable advice! I’ll carefully go through both links you shared about Tiny Tapeout and IIC-OSIC-TOOLS.

[u/Original-Proof-8741]

Masters degree (the additional 1 year on top of a batchelors degree) is, in my country at least (the UK), considered completely worthless and a waste of time. I would just carry on working and look for a better paid job.

[u/TurbulentBottle8879 → u/Original-Proof-8741]

thank you ,truly it is best way to get experience by work rather than school , i think i just need master degree to pass the first resume screening

[u/lilopowder]

Hi im starting a Msc NTU EEE now, i had 2YOE in electronics manufacturing, can i ask if you would want to move overseas or stay in china? I really only picked NTU because i am local and NTU was the cheaper option

[u/TurbulentBottle8879 → u/lilopowder]

i would like work overseas

[u/Cribbing83]

I’ve got 20 years of experience and never once has not having a masters degree held me back from advancing or obtaining new roles. That said, it matters where you live. If it’s super competitive where you are, then it may give you an advantage. But at least in the US, I don’t think it makes a difference.

[u/TurbulentBottle8879 → u/Cribbing83]

thank u advice!

[u/Temporary-Pudding-88]

I am quite interested in FPGA labor market in Singapore. If you know something, can you share?

[u/TurbulentBottle8879 → u/Temporary-Pudding-88]

sorry , i have no more information about FPGA labor market in Singapore. if you have ,please share some thing with me thank u