How much $ do you currently make?

If you're in a front office finance role (IBD / HF / PE / S&T), you will most likely have made 125-150k+ by the time you go to b-school (assume one goes after 3 years). First year analysts out of undergrad were making $70k/year, last I checked. Factor in the $60-70k bonus that they received, and your all-in is close to $150k. There are obviously always those outliers who did finance before school and continue in finance after so their first year pay, post-MBA, is some astronomically high number. I think Poets and Quants gathered up some info on this.

I would caveat the above by saying that this is definitely not the norm. Many people attend b-school not just for the career prospects but also for the network, education, etc.

Maybe make this a poll?

Nice to hear they throw in some edication!

I make an obscene amount of money. You don't even know.

LOL sorry, I had to. It's going to be hard getting a true idea of everyone's salaries on here because most folks will prefer to keep that information confidential. Due to the competitive nature of this exercise, I suspect the few that will reveal their salaries will be the ones that actually make much higher than average. Your best bet of determining average pre-MBA salaries is probably looking at individual school stats on their websites or gleaning information on from databases like this one:
https://rankings.ft.com/exportranking/global-mba-rankings-2011/pdf

Or you could do a poll like someone suggested, with salary ranges.

I'll bite. I've worked in the CPG industry for 9.5 years and make slightly under six figures with bonus. However, my benefits/perks bring my true compensation up by another $15K-$20K per year. For example, I drive a company car so I do not pay for gas, insurance, maintenance, or a car note. Also, half of my rent is subsidized by my employer. They gross up the rent payment and pay the taxes for me. All of this in addition to my salary + bonus would probably put me in the mid range of incoming MBA students.
Umm...will someone remind me again why I'm leaving.

Meh, it's anonymous anyways, so I'll contribute my info as a data point. Unless of course I end up with one of you guys/gals at the school I'll be attending (which will definitely remain nameless to ENSURE that I remain anonymous! ). Unless of course I blabber it out in another thread.

Annnnyyyyways...

I'm an anti-personnel expert. In other words, I'm a contract assassin. I usually charge 50k to start, up to 250k if they are very high profile or risky. I usually do one per week, so my income is pretty good. Especially with all the turmoil going on in the world, business has been VERY good. Last year I took home north of $2mm, best part of all is that since I'm paid by wire from offshore accounts to my offshore account, it's all tax free.

*now that I woke up from my Hollywood fantasy dream*


I currently work as a CPA in the IM industry. My compensation this year is just about the average starting salaries (not including the $500k hedgie outliers!!!) at the schools I applied to (top 15 range). If the year had been better it would have been much more. I also get a ton of benefits, to the point that other than rent + basic necessities, I usually end up not spending anything at all during the week. Bonuses are also highly variable, which can range from bleh to POW.

I am giving up quite a bit, in terms of the opportunity cost department in going to B-School, but I think my some or all of my reasons will ring true to many people.

First, as much as it is about the money, it's not ALL about the money (yes, it can be hard to swallow sometimes!). At my current job, if I worked hard, I'm sure I could get some pretty good raises as well as a growing piece of profit-sharing. Will my post-MBA earnings (after taking into account lost wages+salary), especially once properly discounted, exceed my earnings had I not done the MBA?
I'm almost sure they will, and hopefully many times over. But even if I end up the same, or ever-so-slightly less, would it still be worth it?

In my mind, yes. And I have thought about it a lot throughout the application process and even after I gained my first acceptance. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate my job, but at the same time I don't love it. Then again, who LOVES their job right? (It's called WORK for a reason heheh). But seriously, I believe that the MBA will place me on a different trajectory, and a different path than the one I am on now. Even if I do end up returning to the finance community (my initial plan), the MBA will enable me to take on a different, more interesting role. However, there's also the possibility that I'll end up doing something completely unexpected, either immediately or the years after my MBA. The opportunity to learn, network, (and party on a first-class level LOL on a two-year "vacation"), is well worth the price of admission, and then some. Let's say I end up making the same. Fine. More? Better. A bit less? Still fine. One cannot measure job satisfaction and happiness on pure money alone (if you don't believe me there are actually studies done on the amount of $$$ that makes one happy, and once you exceed that number, the marginal difference in happiness for each add'l $ rapidly decreases).

Please excuse the digression. I may sound like a crusty old curmudgeon for what I'm about to say, but I'm about to start b-school with 6 years of experience at matriculation. Making more money is one factor that came to my mind during the application process. But most of all, I looked at myself and saw my current path, and realized while it could be financially lucrative, I'd quickly get bored doing it. Money is very important to me, but I've also realized that needs become wants as one makes more $, and the process will forever continue. Part of being happy is being able to restrain yourself, sometimes. It all comes down to priorities, really.

As for me, I know work will always be work, but I'd like to be as happy and fulfilled as possible while doing it (now I'm coming off as a hippie, must be the fact I grew up around them. But that's another story for another time). While the MBA is NO guarantee of riches or happiness, it surely increases the odds of that intersection coming true. And at least to me, it's a calculated risk that's worth it. YMMV.

LOL @Niners. Interestingly enough, I think I watch too many movies as well because I"ve had the same thoughts...

I vote we relabel the last option to: "Enough to choke a hippo"

I'm sure the vast majority will be between $50,000 and $99,999.

Most people are likely going to be from NYC and California. I would guess that just about everyone younger than 28 making over $100,000 lives in one of the two.

My company I think pays 20% more if you live in California, and 30% more if you live in NYC or SF. The cost difference is even greater - though you get the "luxury" of living where you do.

Anyway, money is suck a tricky thing. I bet someone living in Oklahoma City making $60,000 can save more for B-school than someone in NYC making $100,000.

ukulelegal85 - good job with setting up the poll...you have a pretty good idea of what the Gaussian distribution looks like now.

Side note: For those folks making over $150k, the MBA is effectively costing you double (or more) what it's costing the average Joe (as far as "average-ness" goes in the GMAT club!). I'd be interested to know your motivation to do an MBA. It seems like an astronomical price to pay for the MBA experience, contacts, networking etc., especially knowing that you will most likely not be making more money than that immediately after graduation. Career switchers maybe?

While I don't make quite 150k, with about 8 years in the work force and continual progression in responsibility and title, I've come to the realization that in order to move into a more senior management role, an MBA is absolutely necessary. The one thing I've noticed however is that while there are many people that are high performers that would do well in the higher roles, at larger organizations, it starts to become more about who you know then what you can do. An MBA from a top school will help me gain the network to hopefully move into one of those coveted roles (this is anecdotal experience only).

I am in a position I consider no man's land; I am on the older end of what would be appropriate for a full-time program and on the younger end of an executive MBA program. While I haven't hit any road blocks yet (5 promotions in 8 years), I can see my rapid career advancement slowing considerably. The people I'm competing against have 20+ years experience and years of building their professional networks. I figure an MBA will provide the educational foundation necessary to compete against their experience and the network to capitalize on business opportunities I otherwise would not be privy to.

... are you sure you really want to leave all these behind and go back to school?

As long as I don't think about all that I'm giving up, I'm 100% sure. Honestly, I know it's a bit crazy to leave such a sweet deal, but my heart isn't in this at all. I guess what they say is right. Money doesn't buy happiness.

im going back to have a more constant stream and unlock a slightly different career progression. killing it one year and then lackluster the next is getting too wearing on my bones ;p averaged out im top tier on poll.

I think its more about time off from work and shifting the direction of your career then financial gains. I mean that is a bonus, but not why I am going back. I make slightly over 6 figures right now plus bonuses and fringe benefits.

How about you forgo b-school and just use that salary to support me in the lifestyle to which I've become accustomed?

Haha I would but I need a 2 year break from work...