Pros and cons of getting an MBA
Taking an MBA was seen in the past as that most important of professional investments, only available to executives with lots of money. In nowadays’ “gig economy”, keep going back to school is no longer an option, it’s a necessity. Yet why make such a huge investment when there are so many options available? This blog post addresses the pros and cons of getting an MBA.
Let’s start with the Pros:
An MBA adds a unique stamp to your CV
An MBA is still the most prestigious and challenging business Master’s degree there is. Its stamp on a CV offers instant worldwide recognition. It’s also a Professional Certification in Business Administration. This means that an MBA opens many doors career-wise and gives you the chance to negotiate higher salaries. But you must choose your MBA wisely.
Recommended: 5 jobs and career paths for MBA graduates
An MBA gives you excellent networking opportunities
Networking opportunities are a major part of a solid MBA. Yet conferences, parties and “meet & drink” events only complement the most long-lasting kind of networking an MBA allows: the one that takes place in the classroom. If you’re an MBA student, you’re surrounded by really smart and ambitious people. Some of them may become friends for life, business partners in post-graduation ventures, investors that make your ideas a reality…
Recommended: Are you shy? Tips to help you network during your MBA!
Because the market wants MBA graduates
One of the studies ordered by the GMAC (the Graduate Management Admissions Council, the organ responsible for the GMAT) in 2017 concluded that hiring MBA graduates is again an important market trend. According to the research, 79 percent of employers (as opposed to 68 percent in 2016) were on the lookout for MBA graduates in 2017.
Because MBA alumni would do it again
In 2014, Harvard Business Review published an article on a survey that approached 21,000 business-school former students who, when asked if they would’ve enrolled in B-school again at the time they did know all that they’d learned after graduation, over 90 percent answered an unequivocal “Yes”.
As for the Cons:
An MBA costs a lot of money
MBA prices vary widely across the globe: such a program is clearly much more expensive in the US than in Europe, where even postgraduate education tends to be somehow subsidized by taxpayers. The most expensive MBA programs in the market can reach almost 200.000 USD in tuition fees alone. In Europe, tuition fees average somewhere between 20.000 and 80.000 euros. What most prospective students ignore (or don’t pay enough attention to) are scholarships and financial awards: there are literally hundreds of institutions worldwide which can help you pay for your studies.
Recommended: How to approach your employer to finance your MBA
An MBA is a very intense program
An MBA develops students’ soft skills, with a particular emphasis on group work and market exposure and promotes students’ career advancement. These are tough goals to achieve with lectures and group work alone, so top-ranked business schools also bet on academic or professional international experiences during the program. Being surrounded by people who feel the same intellectual and peer pressures may help you put things in perspective and increase your productivity, but an MBA always takes an important emotional toll. Like in all important things in life, you must find your own happy medium.
The outcome of your MBA depends on you alone
Last but not least – and it’s up to see it as a Pro or as Con – an MBA is, after all, just a course. How well you make use of its resources and what you do with what you’ve learned is your responsibility alone.
Good luck!
If you have any comments or questions, reach out to us here. If you want to know more about executive programs and how to choose the right one for you, download our free ebook below.
