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As with anything in life, there’s no scientific way of determining whether you’re ready to take an MBA. All you can do is put your options on the table, use the best available information, combine it with the advice of people whose intellectual abilities and fondness for you trust… and make a decision.

Our goal here isn’t to tell you what to do, but to give you a structure around which you can collect your thoughts – thus making the decision process easier. There are 4 main aspects you must focus on when contemplating an MBA: academics, career, funding, and emotional stability.

1. Academics

Naturally, if your undergraduate studies didn’t include courses in Finance or in Economics, you may expect some added difficulty in the classroom when compared to fellow students who’ve studied these matters. There are many ways to make up for this possible gap before the beginning of the lectures. Online courses, complemented with the right books, is probably your best bet.
Even if you have taken courses similar to the ones you’ll get in your MBA, talk to alumni and to the Admissions team and do check out any online courses they recommend: as time goes by, our knowledge becomes outdated and we sometimes lose our fluency in technical vocabulary.

The caveat here is that being academically prepared for an MBA depends more on a realistic self-assessment of shortcomings and on your determination to study than on any transcripts.

2. Career

When reflecting on preparedness, most people worry more about the career they’ve had pre-MBA than with the career they wish to have post-MBA. According to our experience, this is a mistake even during the application process.

An MBA is an intellectual and social challenge open to all who demonstrate they fulfill certain entry requirements; having worked in a particular field or hold a particular position isn’t one of those requirements. On the other hand, being able to show how and what you’ve learned so far in your career is key to getting in, as long as you link it to your ambition and post-MBA goals. Basically, we’re telling that you need to sell true potential more than a bygone past.

The problem is that selling potential is an almost impossible task if you haven’t spent quality time reflecting on your post-MBA aspirations. Be honest with yourself and – with the help of your professional network – set career goals you can work towards during the MBA before applying.

Recommended: Planning your post-MBA path

3. Funding

The price tag on an MBA is there for everyone to see, so its financial implications tend to consume most of the potential applicants’ worrying time. However, once you’ve secured funding for tuition and living expenses (including for a possible period of post-graduation job hunting), the question you must really ask yourself is: will I be able to reap the rewards of this investment?

Recommended: Will my Management MBA pay off?

4. Emotional stability

An MBA comes with an emotional cost as much as – or even more than – a financial cost. It’s a very intense experience, with lectures and group assignments and presentations and international exchanges and internships and networking occasions… Remember that you’re not 19-years-old anymore and that you must also pay attention to your family, friends and private affairs in general.

Discuss it all with your loved ones before making a decision and listen to what they have to say. This will help ensure everyone’s aware of your MBA’s emotional toll and allow for time-managing arrangements to be put in place before the rollercoaster begins.

More questions? Feel free to download our free ebook below.