MBAs

[Chaotic]

I'm having a quarter life crisis right now about this.

I have my B.A. in political science.

Going for my M.S. to be a physician assistant. (I've been in medicine since I was 17, just seemed logical)

Have a 98 on SCPD civil service test (105 on list - auto hire) but NYS is in a severe budget crisis and I took this test almost two years ago now and not one person has been hired off it. (Salary for this is 60k to start 100k after 5 years btw)


I'm second guessing the M.S. i'm going for now and was thinking about an MBA - what are some things I could do with it? I couldn't figure out a solid career that was for me - but it seems like it's what all the cool kids are doing atm and it's guaranteed good money.

[Aegdaien]

Some bachelor's degrees are like high school diplomas. Most good bachelor's programs or degrees are not. Just because you went to ITT Tech to get your IT degree or whatever does not make you special.

An engineering or science degree will net you an entire job market that's not available to those with high school or shitty college degrees. If you're gonna go to college for something retarded like psychology with no intention of earning a PHD, at least go to a big name school so the alumni network is large enough they can employ your lazy ass. The only people who talk about a bachelor's degree being worthless are those people who went to a no name college for an easy degree.

Disclosure: I'll be getting both a master's in engineering and an MBA beyond my bachelor's in engineering. Higher degrees are extremely important and worthwhile, but too many people downplay the importance of a bachelor's degree.

[Darus Grey]

I agree with the science thing. I'm constantly amazed at the opportunities I get with my masters in linguistics these days(contrary to what I'm sure most people believe, linguistics is a hard science, not a humanities/soft science). When I first started it nearly a decade ago I assumed it had a similar track to an English degree and kind of resigned myself to the fate of teaching. Now that I actually have it I've gotten offers for things as off-beat as sonic weapon technology.

[Snugglebear]

Originally Posted by Darus Grey

Now that I actually have it I've gotten offers for things as off-beat as sonic weapon technology.

Are you the faggot who did that Dune movie?!

[Darus Grey]

I very well may be.

[chu]

Originally Posted by GrobbeeTrull2.0

As of 2000, 24% of America has a bachelor's or higher. I'd say there's considerable room for improvement, and that having a degree isn't as commonplace as you'd make it out to be.

It is when 3/4ths of the job market in the country is service-based. (McDonalds, Target!, chicken packing factory, etc..)

[Hachima]

I guess it really depends on the degree as far as being 'useless'. A BS in CS will pay $60k a year on average for new grads, nearly double some degrees.

[Tuco]

Most of the info has been spot on with my studies.

I've been looking into getting an MBA, and when I stop being such a pussy (and stop working 70 hour weeks) I'll go back to UofMichigan to get one.

[roosta]

any lawyers about on the forums with info on law schools and first year salaries? my goal when i enrolled in college again was to get my bachelor in history/criminal justice minor and head to law school. the school i would probably end up attending is the only one in north dakota and not remarkable at all. anyone think a UND law degree would get me much outside north dakota? also whats starting salary for a lawyer either in a firm or in their own practice?

[Chips]

Originally Posted by FulorianC

It's more than Harvard or Stanford... MBA from any top 25 school will put you light years ahead of an MBA from random local college. Also, many of them now have programs where, if your income is insufficient to afford Harvard easily (under 200k/yr), they defer some or all of your costs of attending. So... yeah.

You're right its more than just Harvard and Stanford, those were just the first two that popped into my head. Search - Business - Best Graduate Schools - Education - US News and World Report

Also Harvard and Stanford will also pay your tuition if you make under a certain amount of money, but that only applies to undergrad degrees and not graduate school.

Best Bang for the buck schools less than 90k - M.B.A. Table (Domestic) - Forbes.com
Best Bang for the buck schools more than 90k - M.B.A. Table (Domestic) - Forbes.com

Salaries from 2005 - MBA Salaries on the Rise (ignore the Bear Sterns comment on the 2nd page lol)

[Chaotic]

So, what can one do with an MBA?

[earthfell]

Originally Posted by Chaotic

So, what can one do with an MBA?

[Soriak]

Originally Posted by roosta

any lawyers about on the forums with info on law schools and first year salaries?

I'm not a lawyer, but: Bureau of Labor Statistics - Lawyers

Median salary 9 months after graduation: in a private practice $85k, in a business $60k and in government & academia $45k.

[Lyrical]

Originally Posted by revolreggin

Hi guys, I hope a thread already hasn't been made about this, I looked and didn't find anything. I'm getting to the point now where i'm accepting that i won't/can't do my current job for the rest of my life. I would go insane. A little bit of back round, my undergrad degree is in MIS. I'm currently working an IT gig at a small software company. It's not bad, i'm learning a lot, getting experience, shit to put on my resume, references, etc. I'm coming to realize though that I can't do it for the rest of my life. Has anyone ever had that feeling when they get a job right after college?

In an attempt to broaden my horizon's, I've greatly considered going back to school full-time to get my MBA. To make a few things clear, money isn't an issue, I have been saving a lot. I will be going full-time in order to 'knock it out' of the way fast. None of this 'take a night class after working 10 hours!' bs. I know a few people a lot older than me that have a house, wife, kid, etc that it would be impossible for them to not work and go to school full time. So I want to do this while I still can (I'm 25 btw). The program that I am looking into is a 1 year balls to the wall MBA program. Again, I have enough money to live for a year with not being able to work (I could get a part time gig, but it even says in the application for the MBA program that they don't recommend you getting any job, due to the course workload that you will have)

So I had a few questions, as most likely a lot of people on this board have gone through, or considered the same thing. Is the degree (any graduate degree for that matter) worth it - does it broaden your horizons in the job market? I really liked the business aspect of my undergrad degree, and the IT part was fine because I've always been 'into' computers. I want to get into other areas of business though, while still having IT/IS on the backburner. Maybe I'm just using this as an excuse to get out of my job and hopefully get a better (aka different) one instead of pissing away more of my mid 20's. Also, does anyone have any experience here taking the GMAT?

A final question, does anyone here have an undergrad MIS degree (and possibly thinking of getting/or already have gotten your MBA?)? Just wondering what type of job you landed and/or what type of work you're doing. Maybe I'm in the wrong job to begin with.

I graduated from a top 20 MBA program a few years ago. For many of the people, they pretty much were able to garner 2.5 times what they were making before. The average person made about 45K when they started the program and got out making six figures with bonuses.

I can't stress enough how important it is to go to a top 20 school. They are very selective, and you'll need a good work history (with a few promotions), solid references and a stellar GMAT score. But at the end of the day, you'll be better off than the guys that went to schools with no ranking. A friend of mine started his program the same time I did, but at a different school. He wanted to have just the letters after his name. They didn't even make him take the GMAT. Everytime I saw the guy, he was happy and didn't look like he was being worked hard. I, on the other hand, had to put in 20 hours a day from the workload and had to bust ass, since I was in a top 20 program.

We graduated about the same time. His pay stayed the same at 50K. My pay was over six figures in the first year. The first job out of the program was a Finance position that did analysis and consulting for the CEO and VP's of a Fortune 200 firm. It was a junior executive role that was right under VP.

I can't stress enough about going to a top 20 school. The same schools that go recruit at Harvard or Northwestern go to interview the same schools all the way down to number 20. You could go to a lesser ranked school, but realize that some Fortune 500 companies will not interview you or want to talk to you at all.

We've since now made the decision that we want to purchase/start-up businesses. So I won't be working for Corporate America any more (13 years is enough). The SBA is trying to not finance businesses like they used to, because banks are losing so much on homes. Banks are not wanting to lend money like they did also. I have had several bankers state to me personally that they'd rather lend to someone with a top 20 MBA, then to lend to someone that has more cash. They are also being sticklers about having applicants have direct experienec in the industry they are trying to get a loan in. They are turning down other people's deals, but I have had no problems, because they will substitute a top-20 MBA for having work experience in that industry. It makes them feel better about doing the loan, that you were willing to pay the price in blood, and given that top 20 schools are full of over-achievers, they want that attitude. I know of people that have qualified financially for loans and were turned down because of the no industry experience, but we on the deal we are working on now, we had three offers within three days from competing banks.

An MBA from a top 20 school is like having instant stree cred in business. It doesn't matter if I am talking to a CEO of a multi-billion dollar firm, a VP, or banker, or an entrepeneur. And the best thing, is that given that I am an African-American, it levels the playing field. When you graduate from a top 20 school, your race or sex doesn't matter, you are instantly a part of the "old boys network" and one of them. They treat you as an equal. We take care of our own.

I'd say having the degree helped get us financing for a business that we closing on at the end of this month (assuming it passes due diligence).

I am not sure how an MBA would help someone in IT though. I can't stress enough about going to a top 20 school, although a cousin of mine is going to a top 40 school, and their average starting is at 75K a year. If you don't think you can make it into a top 20 program (but you should try anyway) go to a top 40 program.

The only change I would have made is getting the degree when I was your age. I didn't start my program until age 30.

[Vehn]

Originally Posted by Lyrical

...

What if you are working for a company that pays for your MBA and will be working for them after you get your MBA? Would it still be important to go to a top 20 school for them?