Getting an MBA is not the right decision for everyone. A Forbes opinion piece a while back gave a thumbs down to the MBA route. And it made some valid points. The true key to success is indeed mastering the process of idea and solution discovery. And if you can figure that out to the degrees necessary for your success, then maybe you should save the $150k!
Of course, though, there's more to it than that. For one thing, we shouldn't soft pedal the number of people who have experienced the highly structured learning environment of an elite MBA program as exactly the milieu for mastering just such skills. That though isn't the only matter that has to be weighed in taking the measure of such criticism.
Here are a few questions you might ask yourself.
Let's pretend the unlikely scenario that the academics are of little value to you. This may be misguided, but not impossible. What though about the benefits of a great professional network? Do you value that? Where else are you going to get the kind you will while doing an MBA at a top school? It's common for business superstars to come in as guest lecturers. And don't underestimate the opportunity to social with them that such schools provide. And don't forget your own classmates. Many of your peers will become the hot up and comers in your industry.
Making these great connections while you're all still climbing up the industry latter will great a camaraderie that will serve you a lifetime. (Though, this does require, as we've emphasized elsewhere, choosing the right program for your chosen industry). And don't forget too the special perk of an MBA: a strong, influential alumni association.
Have you considered the blank slate effect? Obviously, graduating from an MBA program doesn't mean that in any way your past experience is erased. However, neither are you limited to or constrained by it. When the potential employer looks at you freshly out of your MBA program, they don't look at your past work history as a summary of your future potential.
On the contrary, your work record now merely provides a supplement to a record of achievement that makes you a promising new potential colleague. Someone who was able to break the mold of their earlier life and take the initiative, exerting the discipline, to embrace an entirely new set of opportunities, with new skills, knowledge and professional connections. You're now a freshly minted promise of better things to come.
Finally, though it might at first seem a bit esoteric, there's a lot to be said for a person who demonstrated the ability and willingness to step outside of their comfort zone? It's great to talk about challenging oneself, people talk about it all the time. Doing it, and showing everyone you are doing it, is another matter. Entering an MBA program is a statement about your ability and willingness to take on unprecedented challenges. Don't think it doesn't go unnoticed.
When you carve from your busy life the dedicated time, and commit the resources of your efforts, to pursue personal excellence, you place yourself in an environment that demands the best of you. Lots of people say they will challenge themselves, but how many do? When is that magic day really coming? Taking the great leap into an MBA program silences all such doubts -- from yourself or anyone else. You've taken the challenge and have to rise to your best to succeed.
It's probably true that a lot of money and time is wasted on MBA pursuits that might have been better left unfulfilled. However, even aside of the curriculum there are many subtle, though extremely beneficial, perks of an MBA which it would be a mistake to underestimate. These are some the questions you should be asking yourself to be sure that it's the right choice for you.
Of course, though, there's more to it than that. For one thing, we shouldn't soft pedal the number of people who have experienced the highly structured learning environment of an elite MBA program as exactly the milieu for mastering just such skills. That though isn't the only matter that has to be weighed in taking the measure of such criticism.
Here are a few questions you might ask yourself.
Let's pretend the unlikely scenario that the academics are of little value to you. This may be misguided, but not impossible. What though about the benefits of a great professional network? Do you value that? Where else are you going to get the kind you will while doing an MBA at a top school? It's common for business superstars to come in as guest lecturers. And don't underestimate the opportunity to social with them that such schools provide. And don't forget your own classmates. Many of your peers will become the hot up and comers in your industry.
Making these great connections while you're all still climbing up the industry latter will great a camaraderie that will serve you a lifetime. (Though, this does require, as we've emphasized elsewhere, choosing the right program for your chosen industry). And don't forget too the special perk of an MBA: a strong, influential alumni association.
Have you considered the blank slate effect? Obviously, graduating from an MBA program doesn't mean that in any way your past experience is erased. However, neither are you limited to or constrained by it. When the potential employer looks at you freshly out of your MBA program, they don't look at your past work history as a summary of your future potential.
On the contrary, your work record now merely provides a supplement to a record of achievement that makes you a promising new potential colleague. Someone who was able to break the mold of their earlier life and take the initiative, exerting the discipline, to embrace an entirely new set of opportunities, with new skills, knowledge and professional connections. You're now a freshly minted promise of better things to come.
Finally, though it might at first seem a bit esoteric, there's a lot to be said for a person who demonstrated the ability and willingness to step outside of their comfort zone? It's great to talk about challenging oneself, people talk about it all the time. Doing it, and showing everyone you are doing it, is another matter. Entering an MBA program is a statement about your ability and willingness to take on unprecedented challenges. Don't think it doesn't go unnoticed.
When you carve from your busy life the dedicated time, and commit the resources of your efforts, to pursue personal excellence, you place yourself in an environment that demands the best of you. Lots of people say they will challenge themselves, but how many do? When is that magic day really coming? Taking the great leap into an MBA program silences all such doubts -- from yourself or anyone else. You've taken the challenge and have to rise to your best to succeed.
It's probably true that a lot of money and time is wasted on MBA pursuits that might have been better left unfulfilled. However, even aside of the curriculum there are many subtle, though extremely beneficial, perks of an MBA which it would be a mistake to underestimate. These are some the questions you should be asking yourself to be sure that it's the right choice for you.
About the Author:
See the superb analysis in Thomas Ryerson's most recent piece on looking behind the rankings of business schools.
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