MBA Admissions Consultant
Joined: 26 Dec 2008
Posts: 2457
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Re: Is an MBA worth the investment for mid-career?
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29 Oct 2011, 08:20
I think the knowledge you get from an MBA program can be valuable - but then again you don't have to enroll in an MBA program to get that (you can find a lot of the textbooks and material by buying them on Amazon and studying them on your own). Also, strangely enough, you can get a lot of info just talking to business owners casually - at the store, at a restaurant, hotel, etc. etc. - a lot of people love to talk shop - go to any small business and ask them how their business is going, and you'll find so many will love to talk, whether it's complaining about vendors, landlords, banks, dealing with employees, etc. Do that enough times, and you'll develop a real instinct for what makes businesses work and what doesn't - knowledge which you can learn in a b-school, but the instinct which no b-school can really teach (if you know what I mean by the difference between knowledge and intuition).
As a credential, it can also be valuable too, without it having to be a top tier program especially for someone with no business background.
So in terms of the actual education itself and the credential, it can be valuable.
BUT, it hinges on cost.
In short, I don't think paying $100,000 in tuition is worth it for someone like yourself at your stage in your career/life. But if you are able to get a degree for free or it's nearly free (through a combo of scholarships and the GI bill - I assume that the military is willing to pay for your education?), then the only cost to you is time, and so if you're willing to spend the time doing a part-time degree at very little cost, go for it.