<prompt> Human: I dont know if this is the right place for me to ask this question, but heres my situation:I work in Environmental Health and Safety and love my chosen field, but I didnt study for it. I graduated with my undergrad in 2012 in Business and finished my MBA in 2017. Ive been doing this in progressive roles for 6 years now. The one thing I do have in my field is that Im a CSP, which is a pretty big deal in the industry. My parents never contributed to my education so Ive got federal student loans that are now at 65k. My only other major debt is my house currently owe 83k, the home is currently worth 130k according to Zillow and Redfin. Im married with a stay at home wife and two young children, have 12k in a 401k I contribute 6 of my income to. Job info: Im hourly, make about 22 an hour and work about 45 hours a week. I like my job just fine, good benefits and they match 55 of my 401k up to 6. Been here a little over a year. They also have tuition reimbursement for up to 4500 a year with a commitment to stay for one year after you finish your degree. I found a masters program for occupational health and safety that is well respected in the industry and is fairly cheap, 900 a class and 12 classes for the program. Ive already been accepted. So heres my question: with my resume right now I wouldnt have a problem finding a job that would pay me 80k a year in my area. Is it worth it for me to go back to school and stay at this salary with small raises of likely 2 for another 3 years or should I ditch my current employer and go after the higher salary? I live conservatively, and my goal is to be debt free by 45, so Id like the salary to start paying off my debts sooner, but the MS program could help be demand a salary of over 6 figures a few years down the line. Total expenses for me and my family are about 400 a week, with the rest going to food, gas, and savings.  <response>: The highest earning years of your career are at the end. You need to think long term and figure out which path puts you on the best long term trajectory. 