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After reading over the other thread about college, I was wondering if those that have their Masters degrees believe they're actually paying off. 

Also, how does financial aid work with a Masters program?

What are some scholarships to apply for?

I'm still doing my undergrad, so I'm no authority on this.  I'm double majoring for my Bachelors, and I'm still unknown about my Masters.  Personally, I'm going to get educated until my career takes off.

As a teacher, I get more pay based on how much education I have.  So, my Masters degree pays me about $200 extra each month.  Yeah, that is worth it.

Whether teachers SHOULD be payed extra for having more education is an entirely different matter.  I won't derail your thread with that debate.

I think everyone needs to do the math, because it will be different for everybody.  How much more will you make with a Masters than a Bachelors, like in the above example.  $200 a month more is $2400 a year.  Then look at how much you are having to borrow for those last 2 years, and see how much it would end up being by the time you make the last payment.  For example, if it only took at extra $10,000, after interest and everything, to get the Masters, then at $200 a month you can recoup that cost in a little over 4 years.  But if your Masters will cost you $50,000 more because of the school that you chose, just to make an extra $200 a month, then it will take almost 21 years just to break even.  Did that make the two extra years of school and debt worth it?  Maybe not.

Stefferweffer is right.  Crunch the numbers for your own situation. 

Another thing to consider is whether you are getting your masters while working.  If you stop working (or delay the start of your working, or work fewer days, etc.) to get your masters, then you are also losing that year or two of pay.  That makes a big difference, and might tip the balance toward (not worth it).

Thankfully, I was able to get my masters degree taking night classes, so I could use my salary to pay for my classes.  I was blessed with never having to borrow a cent to pay for any of my education.  Academic and athletic scholarships (plus a decent chunk of $ from my parents) paid for undergrad.  A full time teaching job paid for my Masters degree while I worked.  It took years to finish the degree, because I couldn't afford the time or $ it required to finish the Masters degree faster, but I was glad I was able to avoid the debt.

stefferweffer is right - He never gets anything spot on

One must also put a value on the pursuit of knowledge . Money isn't everything, folks.

Give me the bible though over anything that man knows any day of the week. 

He who increases knowledge increases sorrow, and much study is wearisome to the flesh

Yes, it's worth it. Not only will you make more $ than lower degrees, it will open up more job possibilities for you. It also opens up the possibility of continuing your education if you want a doctorate. It would be wise as others have stated to look directly into the field you are choosing and compare the "ceiling" for the job types and the $ you will make between those different degrees so you can make the most informed decision. Also, ask people in your field with those different degrees what they think. Make sure your masters will be directly transferrable into the job of your choosing. If you are able, do it now while you are young. The older you get, the more difficult it becomes because of demands on your time, desire, and drive. Grab any scholarships/loans/assistantships you can get-the college counselors can help you with this. Don't be intimidated by losing $ at first since it is an investment--it will pay off in the long run. I wouldn't be too worried about the academics--you will have to make A's and B's (a C in grad school is like an F), because you are only taking classes in your major, so you should be good at it. Have fun!  

I finished my Master's Degree last spring (almost a year ago now, which feels so weird) and honestly, I can say that it was the best decision I've ever made. It was hard work, but it advanced me in a field I wanted to be in (my Master's isn't the same field as my Bachelor's). And, if you can get an assistantship or some other financial assistance that doesn't involve loans, it's even more awesome!

A Masters is definately worth it. Some degrees require you to have a Masters to get work anywhere. However, make sure you dont overeducate yourself. I have known some people with doctorates who couldnt get jobs because the places of hire couldnt afford to pay them at that level.

Just make sure your Master's is in a different field/major than your Bachelor's. You also have to crunch the numbers like stated earlier. Any Grad school that you are going to for a Master's should be paid for. I think you will find this out in your major classes later on from the sound of it. But most students that get into a Master's program in Grad school have it paid for. Talk to your advisor when you are more in your major classes. If it is not paid for by your school then you have to look at the numbers. If 2 years in Grad school is highly expensive, and your degree makes good money with opportunities for development and advancement, then maybe an extra $25,000 in debt and two years that you are out of making money is not worth it. It really depends on your job and major.

I agree with this, except for the first part. In certain fields, you can really only get into Master's programs with a Bachelor's in that field, or a very closely related field. For example, I majored in Electrical Engineering for my undergrad, and am currently a Master's student in EE. If you're going into engineering of any kind, you should either be a major of that type of engineering, or physics with an emphasis in that field (or possibly chemistry/biology if you do biomed/chemical engineering). I can definitely see how different emphases would help in certain fields, but from my experience, most engineering grad students have a bachelor's degree in their field of engineering.