5 reasons why attending grad school as an experienced professional makes sense for me (and possibly you too).

I recently decided to go back to school. I’ll be in an Executive Master's blended program for Corporate Communications at IE Business School. This means that I’ll go to school in Madrid a few times during the year and then attend classes virtually from home for the rest of the year.

I see this as something necessary for my career and personal growth. I think sometimes, you need to take a step back, get some formal training, network, and prepare to make a leap on your career journey. Even though I'm experienced (20+ years in my field), I think there is always room for additional career education.

I think we can all agree that professionals need to include continual job training and education in their daily work. So much changes every day in the technology field that it can be almost a full-time job to stay on top of new products, ideas and approaches. You can keep up by:

• Reading - this could be overwhelming because there is so much happening. It can be hard to pick and choose what to read to stay current.
• Attending courses - courses provide a great foundation for learning best practices in a short timeframe (which can also be complemented by reading articles and books, but it will take you longer to get the same information).
• Watching videos or webinars - a great way to get knowledge quickly. It's almost faster than reading!

And I'm sure there are more educational approaches - including going back to school - but these are the key ones I have noticed that people use to keep current.

It seems younger professionals are more open and willing to going back to school to jump-start their career. I think that's why some people find my decision to go back to school a little odd - especially since I am exploring a related part of my existing career.

I'm sure others in my position have heard similar feedback too.

Here are 5 reasons why going back to school makes sense for me - and may make sense for you, too, if you are an experienced professional.

1. I noticed a shift in the industry and I need to get new baseline knowledge to fill that gap.

I'm noticing a strong shift in UX - a move from clicks/taps to conversations.

(We all use conversation to communicate with each other. Why not use it when we communicate with a device, right?)

Sure, one could say that it is a conversation when a user selects button and the system displays a result because today this is the only a way to interact with a device and provide it with our intention. But I’m noticing the unification of content strategy, social media, bots, and UX to create customer experiences. This can be partly attributed to technology shifts that are bringing these worlds together, and partly attributed to content ruling experiences. Content was always king, but conversations that encourage engagement are becoming the emperor.

With the rise of chatbots, AI and voice technology coupled with smaller mobile devices and IoT, the trend that is naturally emerging is to touch the device less often during interactions. Touch technology is great, but it is getting harder to touch these smaller devices in the right spaces mainly due to physical constraints. Human fingers have a specific size - you can only get so small. I think over time we will be designing less and less for tapping on a screen or using a keyboard and more for speaking to a device. I think gestures will get lost along the way too. They just aren’t really necessary, except if you are hearing impaired and can’t speak. Even then, there may be a way to interact with a device we haven't fully discovered or explored yet, like touch holograms or a way to track eye movements to define intention or something else.

This is why I strongly believe that conversations are the way we will interact with devices in the future. And what's the best way to learn about conversations but to study communications - how to structure them, and how to guide them.

2. I wanted a crash-course in best practices for communications.

I wanted to get formal training on how to create a company and product message. I have worked with a number of marketing teams and learned a lot about how communications work within each one. But the best practices at each were slightly different. I ended up learning about communications on the job through a catch-as-catch-can approach. I’d like to learn how messaging and communications should work and apply it to digital experiences. Basically, I want formal training.

I'm not knocking on-the-job training. Most of us learn about our professions through that approach. Heck, I learned a lot about what I do for work through that approach. But there is a risk of on-the-job-training - you learn how one company solves problems and their approach isn't always best. You can read articles and books to broaden your perspective and learn better approaches and best practices, but training courses gets you the information you need quickly in a single sitting (or in a few sittings).

3. I wanted to expand my network.

This isn't a top reason why I'm going back to school, but it's a reason I realized as pretty important. School is a great way to meet people and expand your network. Not only do you get to know your classmates and they get to experience, first hand, how you work, but you are part of the alumni network of your college or university. There is something to be said about alumni networks.

I have been active in the Simmons College network on and off for a few years now. It is always a treat to catch up with alumnae at different events and functions. I learn so much about their lives and accomplishments and how they contribute to the school and the community. I also notice how we share a similar approaches or passions in life. I don't think you realize how similar you are to other alumni/ae. Simmons alumnae are typically driven, confident women. MIT alumni share a love of technology.

I can't wait to meet my classmates at IE and learn about the qualities and traits we share.

4. I wanted to know what it means to work in a truly global - and virtual -environment.

I have always worked virtually with worldwide teams. There have been times where a good number of the colleagues I work with live in different time zones and countries. I have learned a lot about virtual communication, cultures, and how to respect people's daily schedules (such as, not asking them to be on a work call at 11pm their time). I look forward to meeting classmates from other parts of the world not only to learn how they do business in their countries, but learn about their cultures, their perspectives on the world and their contributions. I think this will be the richest part of my education during the next year.

The Internet has made the world accessible at any moment. You can go on Skype or FaceTime or WhatsApp and with a few taps, communicate with anyone in the world. The future world is smaller than we ever thought possible. More and more we'll be working with team members who may be in a different time zone in a different country, only a click away, but we will be feeling like they are sitting right next to us. Actually, we are doing that already today with offshoring, regional and virtual teams. I think this will only become more accepted and commonplace.

5. I felt the call to go back to school in my heart, because, well, age really is just a number.

You are never too old or experienced for school. The choice is really up to you.

When I told some people that I got accepted to the program, some were congratulatory, some questioned why I felt I needed to do this, and some said nothing. So many different reactions! But what the experience so far has taught me is that we are never too old or experienced to learn something new and expand your career. You have to look into yourself - your needs and goals - to decide what's right for you to make that next career leap. My heart drew me to the opportunity and given how the process to apply and get accepted at IE happened quickly and easily for me, it almost felt like it was meant to be. That alone was validating. But what is more validating is that I feel it is the right next step for me.

I'm excited about the change.

If you are considering going back to school as an experienced professional and the thought of it gets you excited - do it! It can only help you go where you need to go on your journey. That's probably the best reason of all to go back to school.