Degree can boost career but experience still key
While the majority of HR professionals believe an advanced degree in HR might be overkill, they also believe it can boost a generalist HR candidate’s career, according to the latest Pulse Survey.
The survey of 1,180 Canadian HR Reporter readers and members of the Human Resources Professionals Association found 52.1 per cent agreed or strongly agreed an advanced degree in HR might be overkill.
However, 59 per cent thought such a degree gives an HR generalist candidate at least a small advantage.
“If the master’s program has business components in it, it would make them a better strategic partner in the business. That’s where HR people are lacking today,” said Lynne Bard, owner of Beyond Rewards in Guelph, Ont., and a senior HR consultant with 25 years in HR.
An advanced degree also shows the candidate has up-to-date education and is staying informed of changes in the industry, said Cathy Heyland, a 20-year HR veteran in Nelson, B.C.
“It differentiates the market. It used to be that an undergrad degree was really something. You put that on your resumé and you stood out from the crowd,” she said. “The bar has been raised.”
While an advanced degree can be a tiebreaker if there are two candidates who are similar in all other areas, it really depends on the requirements of the position in question, said Cristina Conterars, a human resources advisor in Brampton, Ont.
In her experience in various sectors including health care and manufacturing, Conterars has seen more value given to experience, with an appropriate undergraduate degree or diploma, than advanced degrees.
“People who have more of the experience are more competent versus someone who has a higher education but not as much experience,” she said.
Ideally, someone looking for a senior HR position should have both, said Mary Rozenberg, an independent HR professional with more than 25 years’ experience in Ottawa.
“You need both the experience and the further education,” she said.
Along with experience and an advanced degree, many employers are also looking for a candidate with the Certified Human Resources Professional designation, she said.
Of various graduate degrees, an MBA is most likely to help HR professionals advance their careers, according to 28.9 per cent of respondents, followed by a master of human resources management (23.8 per cent).
“An MBA is good to have for HR because it will give you the business acumen that you need,” said Bard.
Just 18.8 per cent of respondents thought a master of industrial relations and human resources will help HR professionals advance their career, followed by a master of industrial relations (nine per cent) and, finally, a master of industrial or organizational psychology (8.1 per cent).
The value of these degrees has increased drastically in the last five years because the profession itself has evolved, said Bard.
“HR has changed so much over the last 10 to 20 years,” she said. “At one time, a degree wasn’t really looked at for HR so much. Now you’re a strategic partner in the organization.”
However, only 48 per cent of survey respondents agreed the value of degrees has increased in recent years, while 44.8 per cent said the value has stayed the same.
If a professional wants to climb the ranks of the HR department and be part of the senior management team, an advanced degree is very important, said Bard. But college degrees and diplomas are also very useful, she added.
“I’ve seen better candidates in HR come out of the colleges than universities because college is more hands-on whereas at the university it is more about textbook learning,” she said.
Respondents were also split on whether or not they would recommend a friend pursue an advanced degree, with the largest proportion saying it depends (44.7 per cent), while 32.9 per cent would recommend it and 22.4 per cent would say the degree isn’t worth it.
To be of use in a wide range of industries and positions, the degree should cover a broad range of topics of importance to HR, said Rozenberg.
“You need to have a really good multi-disciplinary master’s degree as opposed to strictly focused in business, strictly focused in HR or industrial relations because they all are critical to be a strategic partner at the table with the senior executive team,” she said.
