Decided to post this here as opposed to the education sector as I would really appreciate some advice from an employer’s point of view.

I am currently doing a double major in Economics and Finance at a UK university and barring any major catastrophe will finish with a 1st class. I intend on coming back to Nigeria to work but everyone keeps going on about the importance of getting a Masters.

I personally think an Msc doesn’t give you that much of an advantage for entry level positions and wouldn’t have bothered doing it except my sponsor is willing to pay for a year of further studies, an opportunity I don’t want to miss and considering I graduate before my 20th birthday, I can afford a year or two of further studies and still be younger than most people entering the job market.

Now, I’ve looked at a few Economics and Finance Masters programmes at top universities and none is getting me really excited. What I do find really exciting though is the chance to study law and I can come out with an LLB or BA Law with senior status (Both qualifying degrees) after two years. I wouldn’t be studying the law degree not necessarily to practice but I love the course and the challenge it throws at you. My take is if I’m going to spend sometime doing a second degree anyway I might as well do it in something that tests me, gets me excited and vastly improves my knowledge base.

The law degree will cost more and is a year longer than the standard Msc. I will have to finance the second year of the law degree myself which isn’t a problem as I currently run a number of small businesses and should be able to afford it.

From a personal point of view, the Law degree adds more to me but my question is

1) How much more would a top employer in Nigeria value the diversity of adding a Law degree to an Economics and Finance one as opposed to an Msc in Economics? 2) Is the premium big enough to justify committing an extra year of rigorous study and tens of thousands of pounds?


Thanks

You profile seem impressive, scaling the hurdles at a younger age than other graduates you will meet out there. Adding a law degree to your current degrees is a good option if you plan to practice law, but a few years down the line you will still contemplate getting a masters, so getting it now will get it out of the way. There are PG courses in the UK that combine a range of modules that include economics, international business and law and other industry relevant courses.
Equally as important is you getting corresponding work experience that matches your degrees, that will be more valuable to you and your employer.