Are you looking to gain the skills and network to launch your career in a new direction? These days, few people stay with one company or even on one job track throughout their entire professional life. So-called career switchers can use the MBA degree to develop connections for future employment. It can also expand international job opportunities. And then there’s the potential for long-term income and financial stability.
Advice for career switchers from non-traditional backgrounds
The 2019-2020 application season is ramping up soon. Does your undergraduate degree or work experience fall into the nontraditional category? Then make sure you clearly convey your long-term career goals within your application and essays. Explain in detail how you arrived at the conclusion that an MBA would help you further your professional aspirations.
Business school demands a huge investment of your time, energy, and finances. Make an airtight case to the admissions committee for why you want to go into this new field. Show that you know what the industry requires, the challenges you expect to face, and convey all previous experiences that demonstrate you have the transferable skills to make this switch.
Emphasize aspects of your work experience that relate more closely to the new career path you wish to follow. If necessary, take additional college-level math courses to demonstrate your quant proficiency. Or, call attention to extracurricular activities that clearly support your career shift.
Career switchers should maximize their time at b-school
Once you’re in business school, you have the opportunity to see how you fit in that new industry through coursework, student groups, internships, or networking with alumni. Self reflection and exploration are key components of the MBA experience. Students have a chance to sample various fields and functions without making any firm commitments.
Embarking on a new career path with a freshly minted MBA tucked under your arm isn’t just about new knowledge acquired in the classroom. It’s about leveraging your existing experience with enhanced skills, and even more so, it’s about making the most of personal relationships.
All of the people, classes, activities, etc. in an MBA program will catapult you into a whole new sphere. You may come out with completely new ideas that help facilitate career change in ways you would not have thought of before.
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You can read more about career switching in this great story on the Forte 360 Blog, Not Your Parents Job Market: How to Stay Relevant and Reinvent Your Career.
The post Applying to B-School in the Fall? Our Advice for Career Switchers appeared first on Stacy Blackman Consulting - MBA Admissions Consulting.
