Put admissions/acceptance into MBA program on resume?

Question

I've been accepted into a top tier MBA program and have already committed to matriculate in 2011. My current employer pays a paltry $5k/yr for graduate studies, and I plan to start job hunting for a company whose more willing to invest in their employee's future.

My first question is how realistic is it for a company to be willing to pay more than $5/yr for an MBA program these days? I also realize a lot of places will only contribute after you've been on for over a year, but how amenable have companies been to negotiating the cost of continuing education during the hiring process in recent history? And finally, should the acceptance into a tier 1 MBA program be on my resume at this point in time?

I've heard different opinions on this, and was hoping to get more perspective on the matter.
Thanks in advance!

riverripper · Answer

I assume you are talking about a PT program...I dont think any company is going take you on if you are FT guy. If you are doing PT I dont think it is going to help you get a job these days, it would probably hurt your chances as many companies are trying to minimize costs. Once you start you just put it on your resume under education field. You haven't started yet so it doesn't really count as you being a student until day 1 of classes.

oldguru82 · Answer

sorry, a bit off topic... would you put in your linkedin status/description that you've been admitted to an MBA program?

I'm in a competitive industry and almost every week a headhunter contacts me in Linkedin. Perhaps my MBA plans will stop them to spam me.

nink · Answer

So if I am understanding your situation correctly:
1) You got into an MBA program
2) It's PT MBA program
3) You want your employer to pick up portion of the cost and your current employer only picks up $5k every yr
4) You want to find a new job with a new employer if that new employer will pick up more of the education cost

Well here's the thing:
1) Do other employers pick up more than $5k? Yes. A CPG (based in NYC) that a fellow MBA student interned with, picks up $10k per yr. But a lot of companies either eliminated similar program or pick up about $5k/yr (just like your employer). When economy goes south, perks get reduced - nothing new.

2) Is it a good idea to change your job so a new employer can pick up more of the cost? Ehh, in many cases - not really. A lot of companies force you to accumulate at least one yr with them before they will let you use perks like the education reimbursement program. So before you take that leap, find out if your new employer has such restriction.

(Actually if you do think about it - asuming that your new employer will pick up $10k/yr - you should take that leap because typically, PT MBA students complete their degrees in 3-4 yrs. Even if your new employer fails to pick up any expense in the first yr, they will pick up twice as much as your current employer, and in the end, you will be better off)

Can you do it? Sure. Plenty of people do. (Is that ethical? Depends on who you ask. I am with river that you are technically not an MBA student until you start the program but a lot of people put that stuff on their resume before starting school for various reasons) They usually put in something like "MBA Candidate" or similar with expected year of graduation next to the description.

Will it stop headhunters? Nope. They will bug you because headhunters don't work for you. They work for the hiring companies. They like to "keep in touch" and will bug you even when you are in bschool.

Put admissions/acceptance into MBA program on resume?

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