[thompo]

My girlfriend is the assistant director of nursing at a 175 resident long term facility.

She is two months from finishing her MBA online through University of Phoenix and will be taking an $8,500 raise (from $66,500 to $75,000) just for completing the program.

This article discusses what a mistake it is to leave your current job to obtain an MBA while completely ignoring the fact that you don't -have- to leave your job to get your Masters anymore.

"When you look at today’s most evolved business organisms, it is obvious that an MBA is not required for business success."

You could argue that an undergrad degree isn't even required for business success. That's not the point. There are plenty of career paths that having a Masters is still a HUGE benefit and the health care industry might be one of the biggest.

http://www.va.gov/opa/bios/

Read the executive bios for the VA and count the number of people that don't have a masters degree.