Once a bachelor's degree in anything was all you need to be set for life. Then you needed a masters to compete, a Ph.D to distinguish from the oversupply of masters, then whole fields were put into comparisons where people started to use a language that you need a degree in something useful. Multiple degrees became popular and now schools are pushing for life long continuing education. It's like the system is gaining tolerance of formal education as the way people feel good about education now is similar to that of taking narcotics, temporary high to escape reality as with all the time, money, and energy put into education there has been an ever increasing noise about education for the benefits of a degree to be obvious.
I would would say a few do education just for the fun of it, love of learning. I would say that's more true for college than for masters, doctorate level. The world is competitive, so some people conclude that if they get the one degree higher they'll be more marketable. Unless they go to a prestige program, it won't end up being this way. In short, for any post-secondary education, either go prestigious or go to the best public school in your area.