the future with debt?

dcdevil & SBbound - I sent you guys a PM. It looks like all my recent PMs are just sitting in my outbox (anybody know why?). Let me know if you receive it?

It stays in your outbox until the recipient reads it. After they read it, your PM box will show it as "sent."

This is a great example - Malcolm has a special talent for great analogies.

We had the CEO and founder of Oaktree Capital speak in the Restructuring class today - smart, insightful and sharp guy with a great sense of humor. His investing advice was simple: "Be bold when others are fearful, and be fearful and others are bold" and I think it is generally applicable to big decisions like investing into your own future, too. If it is not scary, it is an easy decision, and so everyone is capable of making a similar one.

MBA is an expensive toolkit, but it is well worth it, and I would always wholeheartedly recommend Wharton MBA to anyone anywhere.

Graduating with an MBA into a down economy is thought to reduce the impact of the education on your career, but you will be in a much better position vs. not having an MBA.

Thank you!

I think you're absolutely right, and in my gut I know I've already made my decision and it's the right one (the expensive one). It's nice to know, however, that I'm not the only one who has the jitters...

Thanks for all the encouragement, everybody, on this thread and across this forum!

"and steal all your best lines from more successful business men."

Well add me to the club of jittery thinkers.

I got my loan approved this afternoon and the money won't cover it, so I'll be scraping by and applying for every scholarship in existence I qualify for.

This step has kinda turned the excited factor towards nerves. It's like when you're in line to go on a roller coaster, and when they're giving the safety instruction you keep thinking how much you wanna get off the thing.

I'm so scared about the debt, the life transition, and whether this is the right decision for me - am I sure I wasn't meant for med or law school?

A very interesting topic..and no right answer.

Two other things to consider:
1. if you did not get an MBA, would your current career path be secure? It may be a mistake to think that your current job/path will stay at status quo (think all the folks in the dot com industry in 2000s or financial services in 2008s). On the other hand, if you work at a small-to-med size business and have a strong trajectory, maybe the MBA is not needed right now and/or can be done in a part time basis.

2. if you know what industry you would like to land in, compare MBA & non-MBA routes there -- there will be individuals that have succeeded via both channels. If a non-MBA alternative appears plausible, it is worth considering.

One variable here -- the MBA does give you flexibility not just coming out of grad school but beyond into your 2nd or 3rd job. While experience matters more at that juncture, the MBA is still sometimes a 'minimum' bar that employers look to.

Good luck!
Aveek Guha, President, www.mbadaycamp.com

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