Mastering Clay

While I was doing my BFA at Art school, going on to do my Masters in Art was something I was planning on doing.  Considering I was pregnant with our first son a mere 4 months after graduating from my undergrad, I knew it was going to have to wait a while.  And here I am, 10 years later, and my head is starting to think about it again. Questions like 'Why would I do a Masters program?', 'What would I work on in a Master's Program?', and 'Is a Masters really going to make that much of a difference for my career?' have been floating around my brain.  It's a discussion I need to have with myself before I would embark on such a venture, especially considering that I've never had anyone ask me if I have my Masters before they bought my pottery. 
I know that the decision of whether or not to do one's masters in art is extremely personal.  My own journey of art-making, specifically ceramics-making, has been 17 years long.  I've had numerous instructors and been to countless workshops, spent hours and hours learning a variety of techniques, while developing my own in the process.  I feel as though I've already come up with my own voice in the medium.  I also feel as though my time away from the academic realm has been rather refreshing.   I've had time to really decide what is important to my practice and have had time to listen to customers, rather then getting caught up in rhetoric.  So there's a big part of me that wonders what I would accomplish for myself by doing my Masters.  Not to mention the cost.  Or the time involved (=time away from my family).
On the other hand, I do see that there is a level that is reached by people with their Master's that may take me that much longer to reach.  And there is that little voice inside my head that is telling me perhaps I could teach if I got tired of the business side of things.  So while I haven't made up my mind about it, and I really want to aim towards doing a residency for a month (perhaps next year??) before I even think about applying for a Masters' program, it's in the back of my head every now and again, and I thought I'd talk it out on my blog.  I would be curious to hear what you think too- not necessarily about me and whether I need/don't need my Masters, but perhaps you have a reason you went for it or not.