What are YOU willing to give up for an MBA?

Question

All,

Forgive me as I'm still very early in my MBA pursuit. However, when I think about how to position my life and my family for 2 years of schooling without an income, I fear some very tough decisions will have to be made in the very near future. So I wanted to list my personal struggles and also get a sense where other applicants are or have been in the past.

If I get accepted into b-school, I'd have to:
- Sell my condo or put it up for rent
- Sell a car
- Move my wife and 3yo son in with my parents (they're willing, god bless them)
- Be away from home/family
- Or bring family with me but fear distraction and lack of income to feed them

Wow, I could go on and it is starting to depress me. Help! Is this all worth it? I can't stop thinking about that MBA though!

eskimoroll · Answer

I don't think it's all that depressing. I think it's exciting. Personally, I'm in the process of making those very "sacrifices." My condo has been rented out, one of my cars is up for sale on craigslist, I'm moving across country, and I am giving up a great job with good income for massive amounts of debt. The only difference is that in my case, my wife has decided to give up her job and move with me as well. While having a spouse (and in your case a child) on campus changes your b-school experience, I'd have it no other way. Oh and loans will feed and house your family so I wouldn't get that dramatic about it.

Sure the cost of b-school education is inflated and a bit ridiculous but for the caliber of schools that you are targeting, it's still a worthwhile investment. Financially, I don't know if it will end up being a good investment, but for the opportunity to study, grow, and network with some of the brightest students and faculty in the country, I'd pay double as I know I will be changed for the better.

Izvos · Answer

It's not such a depressing. Try to read this article. Maybe you will find smth inspiring https://www.businessweek.com/magazine/co ... 029091.htm :-D

MU2011CPA · Answer

I'm newly married (1 year), my wife is a substitute teacher finishing grad school this fall and I'm a CPA. No matter which school I get accepted to, I'll be moving at least 3-4 hours away. My wife and dog are certainly going to be coming along for the ride. I'm hoping to have enough money saved to live comfortably with a loan/grant/scholarship subsidized income while in school. I'm also hoping my wife can land a teaching job, or at least a substitute teaching job in the area that I go to school. This would significantly help the finances.

Her car is paid off and I'm going to "prepay" my car up to at least the time that I'll be graduating so I can knock that monthly payment off the budget for a couple years. The only real worries I have financially speaking are 1) Health insurance for us during school and 2) her student loan payments (which aren't going to be deferred just because her husband is attending school).

Speaking of...does anyone know if most b schools offer some type of economical health insurance plan for students?

Luckily i'm not even applying until NEXT summer to begin Fall 2013, so I have many months to plan and prepare both financially and emotionally.

vixer · Answer

What are you willing to sacrifice by NOT pursuing an MBA? If your life isn't already full of risky/challenging experiences that you have embraced and overcome, then this is perhaps the perfect opportunity to rectify that.

losttraveler · Answer

Assuming I get accepted to one of my top-3 schools (Tuck, HBS, Kellogg).

I'll be either selling my beloved car or "loaning" it out to one of my friends (love BMW but really the payment isn't practical when in school).
Most likely my relationship will be on the rocks if not ended as she is not willing to relocate to Hanover, Boston, or Chicago.
Have to board my dog with my parents (lucky they will).
Watch three years of frugal spending and solid savings go down the drain.

What I will be getting is worth the cost. Really, putting a price on your future is a hard thing to do and while the sacrifices seem difficult in some capacity to all of us... if you don't pursue it what are you giving up?

MBAUncle · Answer

I liked your school choice order ! 8-)

I plan to own a BMW while in school, but an old one. An used but well-maintained bimmer, even with a lot of years and mileage, will always put a smile on your face. Depending on your housing options - ie, off-campus - , you can still take your dog with you. Search the Youtube under the tag "tuckschoolsofbusiness", there is a video about a guy changing careers who enjoy spending time with his dog in Hanover. Do not see BSchool as a "savings drain hole", see it as an investment. Apart from the foregone income, it will consume you another ~$180k in two years. But you will have plenty of opportunities to make $140+ (including sign-in bonus, year-end , etc.) in your first year out of the MBA.

micr0c0sm · Answer

Yikes! I didn't think of that one yet. Guess I need to add that worry to my list of worries!

LifeChanger · Answer

2yrs of my precious young life and of course the numerous prep hours required to give up those 2yrs

eskimoroll · Answer

I used to own a used but well-maintained bimmer. It book a smile on my mechanic's face, not mine. It was a joy to drive but maintaining it was way too expensive for me.

eskimoroll · Answer

Sort of. It's the group rate but not the subsidized rate that most corporate people are used to. For HBS, single students is $1186 for Health Services + $1834 for Blue Cross/Blue Shield for the academic year. For married students, it's much higher ($3000 Health Services + $4500 BCBS). I'm fortunate that my employer is allowing me to stay on their health plan so my wife and I will probably have to only pay the $3000 Health Services fee plus $150 or so a month for BCBS. Don't worry, this is all included in the student budget so your loan will cover it.

Michmax3 · Answer

I'm giving up my obnoxious roomate, friends who I love but are all in annoyingly happy relationships, a lack of people around me who actually want to do new things, a job I am so bored with not to mention the pos company blackberry, over-bearing parents who live just a little too close (although mom will continue to stalk my facebook page) and excruciating 110 degree weather in a city with absolutely no culture. I am so ready!!

ok, my current life isn't really all that bad, just a little stagnant and I am so excited for a new adventure (at least it's one that will hopefully pay off) that I'm coming to terms with having massive debt and no savings for the first time in my life!

ok, my current life isn't really all that bad, just a little stagnant and I am so excited for a new adventure (at least it's one that will hopefully pay off) that I'm coming to terms with having massive debt and no savings for the first time in my life!

Alchemist1320 · Answer

I'll sacrifice

All of my savings so far + selling my home
Time with my baby ( she will be 1 year old by then)
Cricket Matches

RHB · Answer

I'll be moving 3000 miles to go to school, so I'll be losing contact with friends, family, all the stuff that has been around me for my whole life. My main feeling on the subject is guilt. I know that my parents are unhappy with the move, and my best friend drops little comments into conversations like "you wont need me anymore"! So I know he's worried too. I genuinely feel bad about leaving these people. I firmly believe however that there comes a point in your life where you have to make the right decision for you, and for me b-school is it.

Having said all that one of my main reasons for going to business school is that I felt my life was a bit stagnant and I needed to change things up a little. Also on the plus side is that I'll be 3000 miles closer to my long term girlfriend.

Having said all that one of my main reasons for going to business school is that I felt my life was a bit stagnant and I needed to change things up a little. Also on the plus side is that I'll be 3000 miles closer to my long term girlfriend.

riverripper · Answer

It may seem like you are going to give up tons of things. I had to rent out my house (still am renting it), my wife quit her job and had to find a new one, brought my dog to school, downsized from a 4 bedroom house to a 1 bedroom condo with the wife and dog, left friends and family, spend down savings and still took on a bunch of debt (despite a scholarship). Stopped getting to do some things that we loved.

However, it seems like you are going to give up a lot but in the end you end up gaining a lot more than you give up. My wife found a new job that she likes much more than her previous one and still works for them. We both made some of the best friends you ever could. My wife lost touch with a lot of her friends from before because she realized she had much more in common with the people we met when we were at Kellogg, are much more motivated and are more fun to be with than people who hold your success against you. We do lose a little on renting our house but in the end it is not as huge of a burden as you would think (paying a property manager is more than worth the expense).

Career wise it worked out well for both of us. Financially right now we would have been better off staying where we were but that would have been a short term thing and mainly would be due to paying down loans quickly. Last year after bonuses I made more than people three levels higher than me at my previous job, and am on a fast track compared with everyone at my company.

It might feel like you are giving tons of things up but in the end you will gain far more than you are going to give up. Whatever your situation someone has dealt with the same thing. I know people who had 5 kids, spouses who lost job, owned homes they couldnt sell and some who couldnt even rent them. I know someone who had triplets right around the start of school. Accidental pregnancies during school, divorces, broken engagements...whatever you go through you definitely wont be the first to deal with it.

backliteyes · Answer

I will give up:

- Three years of savings (>$20,000)
- Personal space (to save money I'll want to get a roommate while in school)
- My current employment and the 2 years of working/saving
- I'll need to move (thankfully my first choice school is only an hour away)

Thankfully my car is paid off and I have no reason to think it'll die while I'm in school. I've been preparing for this goal for a while, and slowly bringing my life in line with it, so I won't be giving up nearly as much as some people. I will gain much, much more.

What are YOU willing to give up for an MBA?

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