Of course there is value in obtaining a degree.  The value, however,
should not be confused with some sort of ability to stimulate income
production.  Most of us, rich or not, are in the field because we are
curious.  If you are incurious, go into the development side or don't
go into museum work.  Almost by definition, if you do museum work you
learn about new things or peculiar aspects of things you thought you
already knew.  We collect things, we collect learning, we seek to
understand.  If taking courses and writing theses will help in the
search, do those things.

But don't ever believe that those activities finish it or provide an
asset base or that they may be bad because they don't complete your
intellect  or enable you to make pots of money.  In this region, $7.00
- $10.00 hourly is okay for part time (hourly, not vested) workers.
And these are good people with more than a baccalaureate degree.  Our
best use their time to acquire understanding about field work,
collections work, exhibit development processes, or administration.
You know, what didn't get learned in school, no matter what the
faculty said.  If one thinks of one's initial series of positions as
postgraduate education rather than fulfillment, we (supervisors and
the supervised) are likely to do better for each other.

This is not intended as a flaming.  We must all find a way to address
our worlds without feeling as though we have submitted to enslavement
or indenture, and we would all rather have you join us in the eternal
process of inquiry than have you feel abused, neglected or put upon.
Seven bucks is starvation wages, but starvation is what roommates or
small mobile homes exist to help us through.