If you are already a human resources professional, you may really enjoy your work, but you may find that you have been passed over for promotion. Maybe you are a little bored with mundane or routine duties and are trying to find a way of improving your career prospects. You may even have tried applying to other organizations, but just can't seem to get an interview in spite of your experience. This is where master's degrees in human resources can really make a difference. You may study a whole range of subjects such as negotiation, collective barging, labor relations history, employment law, or organizational psychology. Economics, tax, and information technology may also feature highly during your program. Many schools also help train you in negotiation skills, with mock disputes to help you resolve disagreements "in real time".

Human resources tended to be fairly low key and out of the public eye. This is changing rapidly and some top executives are now involved in policy decisions which affect organizations, labor force, pensions, budgets, and benefits. A higher level of training generally allows you a higher level of responsibility in an organization. A combination of relevant experience and master's degrees in human resources could make a whole range of interesting opportunities available to you. These might include director of human resources, director of industrial relations, contract negotiator, mediator, and arbitrator.