Ducati Monster Forum

Ok, so here is the lowdown.  I'm about to graduate with a degree in finance from the University of Missouri.  My GPA sucks, but if I own the GMAT I'll get into our MBA program, which is pretty good.  I could also get into a less prestigious MBA program, too.  Bottom line, if I stay in Columbia, MO for my MBA, I'll have a poor-paying but fun manager position at my bicycle shop, most of my friends would still be here, and I like it here.

Alternatively, I could accept the job offer I've gotten, which is selling home refinancing, auto loan, etc for Wells Fargo in Kansas City.  It pays $30k plus performance based bonuses, and has a nice benefits package.  That's pretty sweet considering the job market for my major right now.  But I would pay a lot more for everything, know no one, and live by myself in suburbia, or maybe downtown KC.

All things considered, what would you do, were you in my shoes?  The job is a safe bet, the MBA is risky but potentially rewarding, and I'm a little overwhelmed with school right now.

See if your job might down the road pay for MBA night school.  Some companies do that.

Quote from: msincredible on May 07, 2008, 10:01:02 AM
See if your job might down the road pay for MBA night school.  Some companies do that.

After working for a year, it would pay for up to $2,500 per semester.

it sounds like you have a lot to think about

is night school an option for you?  It is very ahrd to do by the way.

will your employer allow you to work flexibly and go to school?

education can't hurt you, but you need to have a plan.

be advised that most MBA Programs prefer 2-3 years of work experience prior to getting your MBA.


Personally, I think getting your MBA right out of school is worthless.

You have no real work experience, so the benefit of the MBA is weak.


As a fellow finance degree holder, good luck on employment. Take what you can get.

Everyone wants Accounting Majors.

If you graduate from MU with a BSBA, they love to roll you right into grad school.  Many of our undergrad classes count for both, and they even wave a bunch of application fees.

full-time worker and year around full-time student (part-time during each semesters), I suggest MBA

It probably depends on the profession.

I'm in software engineering management, and I pretty sure that a MBA wouldn't cut much ice vs. solid experience at a reputable company.

In my experience, qualifications get you through the door at the start of your career, from then on, it's track record.

Obviously that's not true for everyone, or there wouldn't be a market for MBAs.

Good luck.

MBA is better in the long run. If you can cut it and it doesn't hurt you in terms of employment later, than do it (in other words, would experience for 2 years count more than MBA for 2 years?). Even if lack of experience hurts you, I still would put an extra point or two in the column of getting an MBA because it'll be better in the long run.

And, as you said, the economy is a bit rough right now. What better way to ride it out than going back to school?

My personal feeling is that having a higher degree will generally increase your options later. Works in almost every profession...

You can always get anecdotal evidence that says experience gets you more than a degree, but I would look at actual statistics in your chosen field.

In my field, which is in science, there is no OJT that will ever make up for an advance degree.  My advice is to do Grad School full time, forget night school, and f*ck Wells
Fargo.  My wife worked for them many years and it was a dead end trap.  Your young and making time for school is much easier now than when you are older and have
more going on in your life. 

I just got my Ph.D. in chemistry, and I haven't looked back. That's why I will always vote for the advanced degree when people ask these types of questions.

Don't know too much about the business field, although all the business people I know are always studying to get that extra certification, so I think the culture of schooling is still prevalent even in business.

Double edged sword here.   If it was any other advanced degree outside of business, I would say get it now while you are young and without kids and a mortgage.  It gets more complicated later in life.

However, the other edge is that unlike a science based advanced degree, a business degree is mere theory without real life practice.   I run a software company and I laugh at young people who really talk up the MBA at 24 years of age.  Imagine taking a motorcycle class without ever riding a motorcycle...great theory until you get on the bike and hit the first curve.

If I was you, I would look at the job you are being offered...is it a career job for you?  Do you need the money right now?  How is your debt situation?   Those are also drivers for you.

No one can really say for certain if the MBA right now is the right thing for you, besides you.

Good luck!!  Hard choice for sure.

Quote from: jagstang on May 07, 2008, 09:53:37 AM
...Bottom line, if I stay in Columbia, MO for my MBA, I'll have a poor-paying but fun manager position at my bicycle shop, most of my friends would still be here, and I like it here....

Bird in the hand man! You're having fun, your friends are there, and you can do the MBA thang for the "future" part of your life. Stick with that shit and don't mess it up by taking some job which might not be all that. It's hard to go back. I usually don't support MBA stuff that much because I think experience is more important, but the "fun" part of your statement got me, and that equals MBA. Stay put.   :)

Great advice from everyone, it's a lot to think about.  I didn't even consider an MBA until this morning, when I jokingly mentioned it and someone thought I was serious.  I have no plans set in stone yet, so we'll see how things shake out.  I think I'll aim for grad school and see what happens.

Thanks!
-Nick

Your opportunity costs will be paid for in 5-10 years if you stay on the MBA path. You could see if your potential employer would pick up the tab, but in my experience they will not compensate you to the point another company will for that same degree.

Definitely get the MBA - but go get some work experience first.  I worked for 5 years before I went back.  I had a totally different take on what an education was by that time - I actually enjoyed going to class.  There's no way to really appreciate what's being taught without the experience of having worked and having personally had many of the problems they're trying to teach you to avoid.  Also, a lot of what I got from my MBA was from other students sharing experiences from their work histories. 

Definitely go work for a while, then go back...

If you don't do the MBA, definitely do the boobies.

Well, according to your poll results right now, people think you should probably get your MBA while you're still at it. They also think you should Boobies. I agree with both.

Personally, I'd say stick with the schooling while you're still at it. Educational inertia is a strong force. Educational static inertia, that is the tendency of an object not in the education system to remain outside the education system, can be devastating.

I got my accounting degree in '04. I didn't get into either of the MACC programs I applied for and decided I didn't really want an MBA at the time. I worked here and there doing everything from data entry to selling stocks and bonds. Now I'm in the Navy and since they're paying for it, I'm going back for the engineering degree I left half finished because accounting was easier.

All things being equal, would 2-5 years of full-time work experience make you more attractive to other MBA programs? Yes.
Would that time make your MBA studies more relevant? Probably.
Are you likely to end up going back to school once you stop? Probably not.

Would I go to work or get my MBA if I had it to do again? MBA, hands down.

Just had another comment.  I went back to graduate school when I was 40.  Even though it was in science, I was amazed how much
my real world experience helped me.  I was enrolled with very smart students and it was my life experience that allowed a dumb ass like
me to compete.  Having said that I had to give up just about everything in my life to do it.  I quite my secure government job including income, hardly ever saw my daughter, locked up everything I owned into a storage unit that I couldn't fit into an Isuzu pickup and drove off to school.  Given the choice I would rather have gone to grad school right after my BS.  I wouldn't have had those life experience to draw on and it would have been harder, but I could have been drawing on what I learned in school as I learned about the world outside of school.  I also wouldn't have had to make the huge sacrifices it took to get my MS.  So, I stand by my earlier advice to get your MBA now.   

Get your MBA, but also look for internship opportunities that will give you better experience than the bike shop. I worked on several university projects during grad school that led to a better "real" job than my peers got right out of school. A lot of them pay really well, too. I was making $25/hour and living the good life!  :wine

Have you considered dropping out and becoming a bacon farmer? 


Wrong thread?
  ;D

Mmmm.... Bacon....

(http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1069/1043531072_69cc02b1f1.jpg?v=0)

Maybe you should go for a Masters in Bacon Analysis?

You probably wouldn't live to see 40, but man would you live like a king until then.

my apologies for getting the thread off topic, but look at what good came from it.  That is BACON!

If you don't get a MBA from a top 50 B school then it is not very worthwhile. A top 25 B school degree will get you lots. If you are going to get and MBA do it now. Don't wait. Life can get in the way.

If UM isn't a top 50 school either go somewhere else for it or else read a ton of business books. Strategic management, Marketing, Finance/accounting. Don't like reading tons, stick to school. An MBA is a good "kick start" for business. It nets you about 10 years of experience. The advantage that the MBA is versus work experience is that you get a broad knowledge of nearly everything in business.

I don't mean to piss on the other business schools but if you are a smart person you'll learn a lot faster with books than at school. Don't be afraid to DYI your education. I did both routes and I am glad I did. Those letters after your name are worth a lot. A smart brain is worth more.

stay in school


bike shops are fun!

Quote from: Obsessed? on May 07, 2008, 05:56:21 PM
Mmmm.... Bacon....

(http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1069/1043531072_69cc02b1f1.jpg?v=0)

Maybe you should go for a Masters in Bacon Analysis?

You probably wouldn't live to see 40, but man would you live like a king until then.

OMG that is some serious bacon.

I'm getting fat just looking at that bacon!  :o

Probably a totally different thing but the basic principle may apply...

I was asking myself and others if i should get an MFA in blacksmithing or just open a shop of my own and use the money spent on school for tools/equipment.  It all came down to the experience and the people you could meet outweighing the 3 years of sweatin bills and the next job and what town to start a shop in.  Oh well so i put all that off for 3 years and go make whatever i want but who knows what door may open.  Lucked out and got in this year (didn't last year)  to the only school in the U.S. that offers an MFA in blacksmithing/metals.

Go to school and enjoy it.