Which Job to Take pre-MBA?

Hello Folks,

I got admission to a well-known MBA but I deferred it for one year. Part of the reason was that I wanted to save up a bit more money and then go to MBA with less pressure and more comfort (=more focus), but also I was offered an adventurous job opportunity - to teach GMAT/GRE/LSAT/SAT prep in Dubai! I thought this will be perfect to blow off steam before I dive in to the MBA challenge and thereafter.. but in the last moment, I was offered an engineering job at a 30M revenue company in the same city as my MBA. Now, my previous experience was shabby, two years working for a family engineering business (not my family) and two years teaching English in Asia. I have an engineering degree, and the engineering option finally gave me the chance to experience true engineering in a real setting. Finally I don't have to feel like a vagabond when I get into the MBA classroom and can talk business with any of the consultants and the like. On the other hand, I think that Dubai, other than providing a great life experience, also offers wonderful networking opportunities. I connect to people very easily anywhere in the world, andd I was thinking that I might miss out on meeting some rich Emirati kids in the classroom, then leveraging those connections later on as a management consultant or an investment banker. The salary is about the same, because I would pay no tax in UAE.

I would appreciate any comments on my dillema, especially from those who've been through an MBA classroom and know how these things are judged there.


Thank you!