Travel Budget during MBA

Question

For current MBA students: How much would you say I should budget if I'd like to do my fair share of traveling as a student (both recreational and course-related)?
For soon-to-be MBA students: How much are you setting aside for aforementioned travel budget?

Thanks!

bb · Answer

It's a highly subjective question. There are a few factors that impact this amount, in particular your style, your travel preferences, any school related trips, and if you doing study abroad or any kind of exchange program. It only takes into consideration Fun travel and excludes things such as internship search, interviews, and MBA fair travel.

Also if the country you were studying in is not your native country, for example you're from US and you're going to study in England, you're much more likely to travel a lot more and have a lot higher budget then somebody from San Francisco going to school in Los Angeles.

Now that I got the disclaimer out-of-the-way, I would say budget as much as you can. Traveling during school is probably the best time you will have to travel and keep your mind off the school related stress.it also takes advantage of being without a job or a vacation limit. You will also have a large number of like-minded individuals happy to travel with you and making the whole experience a lot more rich, interesting, and fun. Many groups set out on various trips throughout the year (though mostly on breaks and holidays) to do something fun and I wish I had more money during bschool to join more of them.

After you graduate, your emphasis will be on getting a job making enough money to pay your loans replacing your outdated wardrobe, getting a new car, relocating, getting a new apartment or a house. You will also be working your butt off in the new job trying to establish yourself. You will most likely meet somebody have kids with them and so on it goes. Make no mistake – this is your last chance to travel and enjoy it. Do it while you can.

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jasminea12 · Answer

Thanks so much!! I will try to budget as much as I can-- I absolutely plan on taking advantage of this unique time.

mgg234 · Answer

$8-10k per year is realistic. Here's a hypothetical Kellogg budget:

Y1

$3500 for Kwest
$2000-3000 for spring break ($6000 if GIM)
$2000 for Skii trip
$1000-2000 for small trips, treks, etc

Not everyone goes on Skii trip, but most do (I had to skip this year). Almost everyone goes on Spring Break and Kwest. Small trips and treks vary - I went on no treks, but did go back to NY, and there's occasional weekend trips to Cali or whatever (there's a lot of these smaller trips if you really want to go, like theres a $1000 weekend get away to napa valley coming up, and a bunch of people went to Mardi Gras).

At most schools, I'd say there are 2 or 3 majors trip per year you need to go to, or you're really going to feel like you're missing out. The rest are fun, but not really necessary. Also, people's spending habits start to change drastically once people get internships and full-time offers, so people stop caring about budgets (You'll get a ton of money from your tax return probably in February, and then you'll get $20k-$30k from your internship you probably didn't even consider in your budget, and then another $25k-50k signing bonus, etc)

jasminea12 · Answer

THANK YOU! This was so helpful & specific. I definitely feel like I have a better idea of what to expect and budget. Thanks so much!

VeritasPrepMike · Answer

When it comes to what you should spend during business school it is a very personal decision. Try not to let others influence you. This is a good time to learn the lesson of how to not worry about keeping up with the Joneses. Now, obviously travel for recruiting is very different. Depending on what you are recruiting for, you might be travelling quite a bit. If you want to go into investment banking, imagine making a trip every other weekend or so to New York. Probably the same is true for startups in the silicon valley.

doloremdeleniti · Answer

Not a recommendation, but I enjoyed reading this very much! The list of places to not visit
is actually super useful if you want to avoid the crazy tourist crowds. A few of the destinations they talk about, such as Girona in Spain or Hokkaido in Japan, are spectacular and far less stressful than other typical hotspots. Definitely providing me with ideas on my next trip!

doloremdeleniti · Answer

Not a recommendation, but I enjoyed reading this very much! The list of places to not visit
is actually super useful if you want to avoid the crazy tourist crowds. A few of the destinations they talk about, such as Girona in Spain or Hokkaido in Japan, are spectacular and far less stressful than other typical hotspots. Definitely providing me with ideas on my next trip!

Travel Budget during MBA

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