Couldn't get to the NBA, so I guess this is the next best thing Any advice on how to prepare would be much appreciated; tips on how to bring it up to my boss would be particularly useful Thanks!
I'm assuming by "bringing up to the boss" you're either: 1. asking for time off to go back to school 2. asking for tuition reimbursement for your degree 3. both ? As far as how to prepare...have you taken your GMAT/GRE? Have you looked at potential schools? Have you applied? You're leaving out certain details that would help us help you. And, yes, I have a Masters in Healthcare and Business administration.
Yes, I have an MBA and a CPA. My advice to you is too not get one unless you know exactly where it will get you. Better to figure out where you want to be and then figure out how to get there. Do not get an MBA, and then see where it will take you.
OP gave up on his dream after seeing this video ... <iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/PMqhYzQlCQ8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
10000x this ^ I'll admit that my work experience wasn't on par with some of my classmates but at least I had work experience. Most of the kids during my time in grad school had just gotten their Bachelors and jumped right into the MBA program with ZERO work experience expecting to fetch $80K annual overnight. One kid was asked by the professor if he had any work experience. The kid said no. The prof asked if he ever worked even a regular job as a waiter or any regular summer job. The kid said no. The prof said his semester project was to go and find a job. At the end of the semester the prof asked for a status update and the kid said he found a job. The prof was excited at this point and asked what was he going to do. The kid said, with a smile on his face, that he was going to paint fences for the summer.
Thought about it, and eventually decided against it. The career path that I'm interested in doesn't require it, and I'm projecting to only work in it for the next 15-20 years or so. I'm more focused on making that happen at the moment.
Thanks for the replies! I haven't prepared at all. I studied for the gre for about a month before accepting a position at my current company. To be completely honest, I have no idea what schools to apply to or what I want to do specifically with the mba. But I would like to eventually get into some sort of project manager or consulting position. I'm not sure how to ask my boss about tuition reimbursement. Is it a good idea to just bring it up the next time I see her?
I don't have one. A few years ago I was planning to get one at UH by taking evening classes while working full time, but my boss advised me strongly against it since there is no way I would have been admitted to a top 5 program. And even if I somehow got into the UT or Rice program (wasn't gonna happen), she couldn't guarantee that it would actually help. Plus, I'm usually ready to turn my brain off after a 9-10 hour work day. I couldn't then go to 3-4 hours of classes. I would snap after a couple months and blow all my money on booze and cocaine. But if you can do all that work, and like others said, have a specific reason for getting that MBA, then it is something to look into.
Honestly, I think you are going about this the wrong way. Can you be a "project manager" or "consultant" in your current company? If so, you need to explore what the job requires and put yourself on that path. Go talk to your recruiters or HR. If your company does, and they want people with MBA's, then yes, I think it is reasonable to ask your employer, although if it is a larger company, the handbook should pretty much tell you what the policy is. If your company doesn't have those positions, it doesn't behoove your company to invest in you, ie tuition, if it will simply motivate you to leave for another job.
Here's my short answer (to piggy back on what HR Dept said): Unless the next position you're looking at requires an MBA, don't do it yet. You just accepted a new position so why put more stress on you with grad school? If two-three years down the road your boss tells you "Hey, there's an opportunity for you to move up but you need an MBA" then look into grad school. Work your butt off, make your numbers look good, get noticed by your superiors, network, and only do grad school if your career path calls for it. As far as project management, you don't need grad school for that. You can get PMP certification without an MBA and that, in my opinion, is almost as valuable depending on your field. In the mean time, look for the low hanging fruit. Does your job offer any LEAN or Six Sigma training? If so, take it. Get your LEAN certification, SSGB, SSBB, etc. These are much cheaper than an MBA and you get real hands on usage out of them. After doing that, THEN decide if you still need an MBA.
Your boss sounds like she's easily turned on by superficial things if she thinks "UT or Rice or nothing at all!" in terms of grad school.
Don't do it breh. I say, settle down first, get married, have a couple of children... then see where you want to go.
I jumped into my MBA program right after my Bachelors back in Fall of 2011. I was working full time with my first job. It was tough. I left my job for the family business. I ended up taking several breaks during my MBA due to work. Every time I came back, the more the classes made sense since I had actually experienced some of the things being discussed by the professor from my job. I am now halfway done with my MBA and even though it may not give me any advancement with my family company, I do believe it'll help me make better decisions as well as networking. everything I read in this thread has been fairly accurate, and I would not just jump into the MBA program without experience in hopes of better pay grade. You gotta earn that with experience as well.
That's not what I meant. She never mentioned any specific schools; she was asking if I could get into a really good MBA program. And realistically I could not. So, she advised against it personally but said if I really wanted to do it then she would do all the necessary paperwork for me to get my tuition reimbursed (I think it's 90% reimbursement here).
But what if you could get into Bauer at UH? Does she think that that's a good program? That's what I don't get...she's saying do it only if you can get into a "good program" and not do it if the program isn't "good"?
That's right. I don't see where your hangup is. Do you dispute that a good program is better than one that isn't good, or that some MBA programs are better than others? She didn't define "good" so that was up for me to interpret, but yeah, I don't think an MBA from SHSU (where I got my undergrad), for example, would be worth the time or effort. Would one from UH? I wouldn't know with certainty, but after speaking with her and others, and reflecting on what I wanted to do in my career, I decided an MBA from UH wasn't worth it for me. I may get one someday if it's needed for a job path I want to go down, but looking back I'm glad I didn't try to get one right when I first started my career.
I read your original post as your boss implying "Don't bother getting an MBA unless it's from Rice or UT". I read your response as your boss implying "Don't bother getting an MBA unless it's from a good program otherwise it's not worth your time". So I apologize for how I misunderstood what you were saying. In all honesty I think you and I can agree that it all boils down to what rewards can you get out of an MBA like an increase in pay, a wider range of job opportunities, etc.
