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maram
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 28 Nov 2009, 02:20
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Hello everyone,
Thank you all for this amazing forum, It has been really helpful !
I will be finishing my undergrad degree end of december in Computer Engineering, and I am hoping to get into a good MBA program in the US ( I live and study in Dubai right now)
I am 21 years old and I have no work experience , never had a real job and I just finished a summer internship which I didn't do much in.
Although many programs that I am targeting did not say explicitly that they require work experience, I am having the feeling that my chances in getting in are very low compared with people with experience about 5 years or even more.
And I am not sure if coming from engineering background will make my application stronger or weaker !

I would really appreciate your opinions on this
and hoping for some encouragement
Thank you
Maram
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milano
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 28 Nov 2009, 15:26
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What is your reason for wanting an MBA and why now? If you're aiming at a top MBA, you'd serve yourself better if you got a few years of work experience.
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BarneyStinson
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 28 Nov 2009, 16:08
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GMAT is one thing, getting an admission into a reputed bschool is another thing and getting an admission with significant work experience is definitely the best thing.

Get a job, prepare for GMAT simultaneously and give it your best. Only experience will teach you if you would even wish to pursue an MBA ahead in the future.
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 09 Dec 2009, 16:55
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"As I said in my previous email, an MBA will help you get started in your career, and for most people I know (including myself), that's the best (or perhaps the only) return on investment. If this is true (which is my opinion), why wait until you have worked for a few years? The longer you have worked, the less "impactful" it is."

My friend wrote me this in an email when I ask for his advice. It makes a lot of sense to me, it's just that I think my chances of getting into a good B-school is pretty low, without some working experience.
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 14 Dec 2009, 13:42
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wilbase
"As I said in my previous email, an MBA will help you get started in your career, and for most people I know (including myself), that's the best (or perhaps the only) return on investment. If this is true (which is my opinion), why wait until you have worked for a few years? The longer you have worked, the less "impactful" it is."
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whoever suggested you whatever, my take is just one and only one thing. What is taught in the classroom as management is definitely not what goes alive in the real-world out there between bosses and employees. If you perceive it first-hand in a job and then come down and sit in a class and listen to some brainy folks blabbering about stuff that they comprehend and think is what happens, that's when you'll learn management. Management is undoubtedly an art, but it can be developed with a scientifically chalked out plan and approach. With no real world experience you'll not be able to appreciate or even strive for any difference than an MBA degree could make to your life, especially when you are pursuing it at a b-school. The after effects will usually end up bad.
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 17 Dec 2009, 09:06
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Thanks. I can see your point. I can also see my friend's point. Either way, I think I will need to find the balance. I will have to have some good working experience to be able to be competitive in my b-school application anyways.
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 17 Dec 2009, 09:55
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why mba and why now are the two most important question which will be asked to you. You should have solid explanation for the Adcoms.

Personally I would like to advice you, do MBA when you really feel you need it, not just to earn more.Think about it.
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 17 Dec 2009, 12:52
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Maram,

I just posted in another forum regarding a similar topic. Here are some considerations for working experience.

A lack of work experience is considered a weakness to most adcoms because you won't have the ability to relate curriculum to personal experiences within an organization, or you won't bring as much to the table as other students who can share pertinent real world examples. Whereas an undergraduate degree may have been more theoretical, an MBA is experiential, and is intended to recreate real world decision making situations.

As others have suggested, be ready to make a compelling argument for why the time to earn your MBA is now.

Best of luck,
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 17 Dec 2009, 13:34
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Dear all,
Thank you very much for your input , you have been very helpful and it was really helpful for me to read your opinions.
Actually, there is a reason why I want to go for an MBA now . I come from an engineering background , and I got sick of engineering and thats why I wanted to go for B-school in masters. A lot of people told me that an MBA is the best thing you could ever think of in B-school.
and regarding your question , why now?
well the reason is , I have a scholarship that is available for me now, it is the same scholarship for my undergrad that is going to be extended for my masters. If I end my scholarship and get a job , applying for masters after few years will not be that easy. So I have the chance now.
right now I am thinking of Masters in information systems , which belongs to B-school too , but requires less work experience. But i am still trying to make the decision weather i should get a job for a year or two then apply for an MBA , or apply right now.
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am I too young, too inexperienced for an MBA?? 21 Dec 2009, 22:21
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Hi there maram,

A friend of mine went to grad school and is now competing to get a job targeted at undergrads. Why? Because employer doesn't really value your graduate degree if you don't have prior notable work experience. Unless the degree is in something that you can't learn otherwise (read: technology, hard science) I suggest you postpone it for another 2 years or so and try to get a job now - or better yet, take the PT program if available. This way you can build up your professional WE and at the same time get a degree of your choosing.