Do you really need an MBA to suceed as an immigrant in Canada ?
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24 Feb 2016, 12:58
Hello there !
i was asking myself that question since i roamed through hundreds of linkedin profiles based in Canada and i noticed that most immigrants with a top tier Canadian MBA will most of the time be working at a big4 firm or Accenture (that's the best outcome i've seen so far) And they're generally working in IT or operations... Nothing as sexy as MBB or bulge brackets. I noticed that these jobs are taken by those canadian-undergrad educated people, mainly from Ivey (HBA) or UofT or Queens (for those working in Toronto).. Now i'm not saying it's a bad thing, these guys are pretty successful (some of them do manage to make partner at these firms) but is it really worth paying 80-100k$ (plus the opportunity cost). I thought for a time that this was actually mandatory because so many people say that in Canada, experience and degrees from non Canadian or non-Us school aren't recognized. But i've also seen people who were working at big4 firms prior to coming to Canada, and they simply made a transfer from their homecountry to Canada, without going back to school, without paying 100k$, and without being out of a job for the duration of the program. I'm not a prestige-whore, but paying 100k$ + living expenses for a year or two seems a bit too much for getting a 75k$ salary at Deloitte after graduation.
So do you really get something out of that business school experience ? From where i stand it's basically just wasting $$$, losing time (a year or two) not to mention the time to find a job after you graduate (could be 1 week, could be 4 months...). Maybe not having a canadian-degree could backfire later on ? (Some people actually manage to get to the top without it)
Is the transfer within your firm the best compromise ? How hard is it to do that ? After all it allows you to get that so-called North American experience + you don't lose all your savings and without any transition, seems like the real deal to me.
The only downside that i can see will probably be the lack of contacts/friends you'd get from the MBA. Although i've heard the program is quite competitive and people tend to be focused on themselves. But anyway even that ain't worth 100k$$ especially if you seek is just switching coutries and not careers... What do you think ?
Thanks for your insights !