Need help. Talk about MBA.

I researched getting an MBA for quite a while as soon as I graduated in 2002, and I came to the conclusion that it was not worth it. The jobs weren't there like the were a few years back, and the risk of paying all that money for it was just too much for me knowing that many companies were backing off of MBAs.

If you do it, then you need to do it right and go to a GOOD school(at least top 25). From everything I've heard, with the MBA it's all about where you got it from. If you get it from a no-name school with no reputation, then it probably isn't going to help you one iota.

The problem is that most top 25 MBA schools is going to run quite a pretty penny.

Good Luck!

 

I am looking into this as well.

UT has an executive program here in Dallas, but it is expensive ($56k). SMU and TCU are not much cheaper.

University of North Texas and Texas A&M Commerce look to have some good programs for less money.

Here is a site I am using for information.
mba.com

I too would appreciate any advice people can give.

 

good advice, I get the same from a lot of professionals I know. You can probably learn more about business doing self study than through an MBA, but IMO, business sense comes from experience.

of all the professional degrees, i feel a JD provides the most force and respectability with the least amount of time (although the effort is high) and with less concern on where the degree is recieved. but it might not be applicable in your case.

 

Here's a couple of references for you guys that you might want to check out to help you make your decision .. The last one is kind of a worksheet to help you decide if it's a good move or not.

Of course if any of you guys can get a company to sponsor you, then that is obviously the best way to go

http://www.vnunet.com/features/1154806

http://cbet.uwaterloo.ca/MBA-reallyworth.html

http://management.monster.com/tip/022601/

 

Everything you said is right on. Unless you're going to a top school, don't bother. An MBA from one of the UT satellite schools is something that you can go ahead and wipe your ass with.

 

Real Suggestions:

1. Go to a good school. Top 15 quality.
2. Get working experience first.
3. Attend full time, take advantage of the B-school's career help.
4. Prepare to switch career.
5. If you do the above, then you pretty much have to go to consulting or investment banking to justify all the costs incured.


An MBA is fantastic if you can achieve at least 1-4, otherwise, it's likely not worth it.

michecon

 

I can tell you from personal experience goto a good school. I decided to go back to get my MBA in 1999 and I applied to a couple local schools. I ultimately picked a small private school with a good undergrad program rather than Ohio State which has a top 25 program (situation was OSu wanted me to take 2 pre-reqs which would have delayed my start until September 2000 since they only start MBA students in the fall.

Let me tell you about my executive MBA experience. First of all about 50% of the students who were there seemed to be there just because their employer picked up the tab (no desire to do any work, etc). next many of teh professors were as bad as teh students as far as teaching. Also it quickly became known that "If you pay the fee you get a B". You would really have to be a problem to get below a C.

So I learned in the program, and I graduated with a great GPA (3.92) but that degree does nothing for me once I get outside of Central Ohio. So I'm not sorry i did it but I wish I would have thought it through more and invested teh money at OSU.

So honestly if you're going to do it, do it right. Find a great program and find out what you have to do to be accepted.

 

Did you go to Case Western by any chance?

michecon, I plan on one day getting out of the engineering world, and moving into the supplier quality/procurement arena. For that, I would need a MBA.

 

Capital University in Bexley

 

Definitely. Supply Chain management is one of the hotter, and promising area in the business world right now.

 

I've looked into this as well. I have a very good undergrad business degree, though and have currently come to the conclusion that it isn't worth it. Going to a top 15 school is nice and all, but unless its public and you live in state, be prepared to take out a lot of debt - Stanford, for example, suggests that a single person living off campus will pay over $62 a year for 9 months. Stanford is probably at the higher end of the specturm, but still.

That said, if your undergrad business background isn't as strong, or you feel like the contacts you make will be worth it, then go for it.

 

Amen. Just about all of i2 just moved to India.

 

I got an executive MBA from the University of Chicago. I feel that it was worth it, even though the price was steep. Not necessarily in terms of short-term payoff, but the experience, the contacts, being associated with the "brand name" and the education you get are worth it, in my opinion.

I don't think the GPA is important in an exec. MBA program. It's more of a benchmark for yourself if you are really putting enough into the program - because the more you put into it, the more you will get out of it in terms of knowledge.

However, I think the actual knowledge you accumulate is really only part of the whole package you "buy", and probably not even more important than the other aspects I mentioned combined.

 

^^when you apply for jobs, is there any distinction made by prospective employers between a "regular" MBA and an "executive" MBA?

 

interesting thread. i'm mulling the possibility of attending grad school, but only if i can get into one of the top tier programs. otherwise, it doesnt really seem worth it. but i've still got a year to a year and 1/2 of undergrad studies and probably at least 6 months of interning before i can do the b-school thing.

thanks for all the info so far fellas.

 

I'm working on an MBA at my alma mater, Middle Tennessee State University. I know that it is not a top school, but I am going there for 2 reasons:

1) Location
2) Cost

Besides, I am not getting an MBA to get a huge raise; I am doing it so I can say I am not the only person in my family without a master's degree. Also, I feel I am learning some stuff that could prove to be useful in my job.

 

don't waste #10000 Manny!

 

I will also be applying to business school in the fall. In fact, I start Princeton Review next week for GMAT preparation. It's been a long time since I've taken any sort of standardized test...

My first choice for school is UT (where my dad and sister got their MBA degree). I have no second choice...

(Well, actually, my wife would love to move back to Ithaca and wants to me apply to Cornell, but I'd rather kill myself than live there again.)

 

Eh, I thought about doing some elaborate post, but I guess my heart isn't into those type of things anymore.