Maybe things were different in the past, but I’ve met very few people in my career/life with graduate degrees who demonstrated any level of competence or intelligence. The opposite is usually true.
The exceptions - some MBAs, hard sciences, engineering, law.
I used to think medicine was part of the exceptions, but Covid changed my mind about that. I’ll give them a 50/50 chance.
Advanced degrees in education, communications, sociology, psychology, etc. are huge red flags that you’re dealing with an arrogant and possibly dangerous asshat.
YMMV.
A friend had a Korean War story about shutting down pompous pr*cks asserting credentials based primacy.
Bob was a runner, in the CO’s bunker on the line when a wet behind the ears 2LT reported to his company commander in the 187 RCT, an airborne unit; Lt. “Smith”, West Point, ‘51, sir.
Bob said his CO, a hard bitten WW2, 101st Airborne vet with a battlefield commission recalled for Korea removed his cigar and returned the salute with “Scagnelli, Bulge, ‘44.”
IMO, a lot of the “squishy” degrees are held by the “manchild” or “womanchild” types who are afraid to leave school, grow up, and get a real job in the real world. They become teachers so they can stay in the comfortable confines of school, and lord it over students.