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May 2110:00 AM EDT
-10:30 AM EDT
Most candidates submit a resume built for a recruiter. Admissions committees are reading for something else entirely. This session covers what adcoms actually evaluate, where strong candidates lose ground before a single essay is written, and why...
May 2208:30 AM PDT
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Get the inside scoop on what makes Emory’s Goizueta Business School great and how you can present a strong MBA application. Explore the difference between our One-Year MBA and Two-Year MBA programs, talk to our admissions team, and meet students.
May 2203:00 PM EDT
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The old MBA recruiting playbook is dead. Here’s how top admits are getting ahead this summer.
May 2308:00 PM PDT
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May 2910:00 AM PDT
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Jun 1006:00 AM PDT
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Register for the GMAT Club Virtual MBA Spotlight Fair – the world’s premier event for serious MBA candidates. This is your chance to hear directly from Admissions Directors at nearly every Top 30 MBA program..
25 Aug 2014, 17:14
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi all, I have been hit with a quarterlife crisis these past few months (I'm sure many of you have gone through this), and started toying around with the idea of an MBA.
I'm a 27 year old male, educated in Engineering, and work in the oil industry for a large corporation in Canada for about 5 years. Recently I have been hit with the quarterlife crisis, where I have been feeling I am not where I want to be, the grind of a 8-5 job, and unsure what I want to do next. I have ambitions to work international, but with the economy doing so well here, most jobs in my company are locally focused. So I toyed around with the idea of getting an MBA as this is a "time to reflect" and I would "find myself" and land that international opportunity. I had a gung ho stint at researching schools, dreaming of getting into a top 3 B-school, and getting pumped about destroying the GMAT. How awesome would that life would be compared to the mediocre grind I go through everyday!
As I got into more research, I started to calculate opportunity costs and realized how much it would actually cost me. I am very fortunate that I have a lot of savings and I would not need to take out a loan to do B-school. However, I recently started to make six figures in my last promotion, and the opportunity cost to forego all that salary to do school would be substantial. On top of that, I work in an industry where experience and achievements are valued a lot more than the three letters you get afterwards. So the MBA is worth essentially nothing financially.
Going forward, I was looking at taking an educational leave of absence from work and attending a school outside my country. This would get me that opportunity to live elsewhere and work with people from all over the world to get that broadening perspective I desire. However, I would need to pay for the schooling myself and I would not get any sort of raise afterwards.
Alternatively, the company would pay for me to do my MBA part time, but it would need to be in the evenings and it would need to be at the local university. This does not appeal to me as I feel a part time MBA would not get me the full experience of an MBA program, plus I would still be locally focused.
Long story short: Doing an MBA will have no immediate financial gain for me. I am hoping to gain some unique international insight and leadership/business skills, which I hope will pay off in the long run through my performance and promotions. My question to you all is, if I am not in management consulting, finance, or looking to switch careers, would I be getting the MBA for the wrong reasons?
I'm a 27 year old male, educated in Engineering, and work in the oil industry for a large corporation in Canada for about 5 years. Recently I have been hit with the quarterlife crisis, where I have been feeling I am not where I want to be, the grind of a 8-5 job, and unsure what I want to do next. I have ambitions to work international, but with the economy doing so well here, most jobs in my company are locally focused. So I toyed around with the idea of getting an MBA as this is a "time to reflect" and I would "find myself" and land that international opportunity. I had a gung ho stint at researching schools, dreaming of getting into a top 3 B-school, and getting pumped about destroying the GMAT. How awesome would that life would be compared to the mediocre grind I go through everyday!
As I got into more research, I started to calculate opportunity costs and realized how much it would actually cost me. I am very fortunate that I have a lot of savings and I would not need to take out a loan to do B-school. However, I recently started to make six figures in my last promotion, and the opportunity cost to forego all that salary to do school would be substantial. On top of that, I work in an industry where experience and achievements are valued a lot more than the three letters you get afterwards. So the MBA is worth essentially nothing financially.
Going forward, I was looking at taking an educational leave of absence from work and attending a school outside my country. This would get me that opportunity to live elsewhere and work with people from all over the world to get that broadening perspective I desire. However, I would need to pay for the schooling myself and I would not get any sort of raise afterwards.
Alternatively, the company would pay for me to do my MBA part time, but it would need to be in the evenings and it would need to be at the local university. This does not appeal to me as I feel a part time MBA would not get me the full experience of an MBA program, plus I would still be locally focused.
Long story short: Doing an MBA will have no immediate financial gain for me. I am hoping to gain some unique international insight and leadership/business skills, which I hope will pay off in the long run through my performance and promotions. My question to you all is, if I am not in management consulting, finance, or looking to switch careers, would I be getting the MBA for the wrong reasons?
25 Aug 2014, 17:47
Kudos
Bookmarks
cgmat2014
First, let's look at your reasons for getting an MBA. This part of your post most clearly answers your question:
cgmat2014
1) Business school is for people who know what they want to do. When you start writing your essays, you'll find that all schools are looking for clearly defined career goals. If you can't articulate that, you'll have a slim chance of getting in, especially at a top 3 school.
2) If the grind of a 8-5 job bothers you, business school will only be a temporary solution. Student life is definitely different from an 8-5 job, though not without its own set of stresses. However, once you graduate two years later, you'll be right back where you started - an 8-5 job (or worse).
cgmat2014
^^In other words, your business school life would be better than a mediocre grind, just like undergraduate was more fun. But it'll only be for two years.
cgmat2014
Wanting to work internationally is a more concrete goal, but still rather broad. I definitely wouldn't mention in your essays that you want to go to business school to "reflect" and "find yourself." That's something schools will have expected you to have done before you apply. Of course, they understand that your experiences in business school may shape your goals differently.
cgmat2014
To be honest, you're more likely to gain international insight and leadership / business skills from working internationally, not getting an MBA. That's just my two cents.
And finally...
cgmat2014
cgmat2014
Money isn't everything, but it sounds like an MBA isn't going to further your career for you. You say yourself that an MBA isn't valued in your industry, and you're not looking to switch careers.
In conclusion: I think you are currently considering an MBA for the wrong reasons. However, don't let that dissuade you. Think through your career goals. Maybe take some time off to travel and do some soul-searching (heavens knows that would be cheaper than going to b-school). Figure out what you want to do. You might find that an MBA is indeed what you want or you might find another calling.
