Is it viable to pay for MS if your future goal is a Ph.D I am currently working as a software developer. I have a degree in computer science. However, my country, Turkey, is not a technology favoring country, and research in the fields I am interested in is very rare, and only available at a few select schools. From job, location and opportunity perspective (too many applicants for too few places), getting an advanced degree at these schools is next to impossible for me.

I want pursue Ph.D. badly but I need a MS degree first because I don't have any research experience. So I have decided to apply for US schools and do some research there applying for a Ph.D.

Is paying for a master's degree a good idea and will I be able to do quality research there? Do master's students convert their degrees to Ph.D., if so is it easy or difficult? What to expect from a MS for getting good research experience?
In principle, yes, that's a viable plan.  But there are a few stumbling blocks to be aware of.

First: There are two types of MS degrees in computer science in the US.  Research master's degrees have a significant research component, usually ending with a formal thesis.  Professional master's degrees require only taking classes; this is no expectation and little opportunity to get involved in research.  A successful research MS is good preparation for a PhD program, and many CS PhDs started by getting a master's degree first.  (I'm one of them.)  But a professional MS is generally considered a terminal degree, even with a 4.0 GPA.

Second: PhD applicants with MS degrees are held to higher standards than PhD applicants with only undergraduate degrees, because they have had an extra year to build up a research portfolio.  In my department, for example, strong applicants with master's degrees but no formal publications are usually rejected.  See the previous point.

Third: Strong graduate programs in the US also get too many applicants for too few positions.  Competition at the top departments is fierce.  Even getting a research MS is no guarantee of being admitted to a PhD program.

To address the first three points, I strongly recommend asking the following question of any MS program you apply to:


  What fraction of graduates from your program go on to get a PhD?


Fourth: If you don't have any research experience, how do you know that you want a PhD?  Getting a PhD is not like getting an undergraduate degree; doing research is not like taking classes — it is much more open-ended, much more self-directed, and much much riskier.  This is not a question to answer here, but definitely something to address in your application statement.