MBA Advice

[jlau20]

I'm graduating in May and have been going back and forth on whether or not I want to get a job or continue on with school and go for an MBA. I know it's probably somewhat late to be deciding this since I haven't taken the GMAT yet and haven't really looked at schools. I'd probably end up taking a semester off before starting the MBA program anyways so I think I'd be looking at starting in Spring '10. I want to stay around here, and I've been thinking UWM.

 

Anyone with any advice/opinions on the MBA program at UWM?

[ajgodson]

I don't know much about the program at UWM, but I was in both the Marquette & UW-Whitewater MBA programs so I can tell you some about that. If you're looking to just get through it and get a piece of paper, UW-W is a good choice -- also much cheaper. I did hear that they may discontinue some of their Waukesha classes, so keep that in mind. I would have nothing but good things to say about the Marquette program, but it's nice to have an employer foot the bill.

[honuswagner21]

I've got a BBA from UWM and an MBA from Marquette. I found the MBA program at Marquette to be pretty good and they do a nice job of catering to part-time students who also work. I think that UWM is the same way. The only real difference for me was that I wanted to see a different perspective when I finished with UWM but still wanted to stay local and that is why I went with Marquette. I did work for 3 years between undergrad and grad school which I think was extremely beneficial. I think that having an MBA is a good thing but employers also want experience too. Plus, working for a few years provides a good perspective to draw on with the MBA program.

 

Just my two cents. But to answer your original question I can speak for Marquette and give them a thumbs up but I think UWM does a decent job as well.

[twobrewers]

Get a job.

 

If you get an MBA right away without any real experience you risk being over educated for the entry level job you will still eventually require. I wouldn't go for an MBA until your employer suggests it - or you've reached a ceiling that requires more education.

 

I considered going back for my MBA at UWM, but instead went for my MS-Accounting. (Master of Science - Accounting) because it was a more focused program and would lead to my CPA certification. MBA's are really expensive. I wouldn't consider it unless you know exactly what you are getting it for. (A specific goal that requires an MBA)

 

At least in the field of accounting, UWM has some great professors. (They have some who write the national textbook used by most schools)

[rluzinski]

If you have to take at least a semester off anyway, there is no reason why you wouldn't at least look at job options. And don't forget that many employers will pay for your MBA.

[jlau20]

Yeah, if I were to take a semester off I would definitely still be looking for jobs with hopes of finding an employer that would pay for it. I know experience is great to have before going back for an MBA, but my major is Finance and with the way things are going right now, my thinking is that maybe it would be better to just go for the MBA now, get it done, and hope the job market is better in two years. Either way, I'll still be looking for a job after graduation.

[Point Beer Is Best]

I'll echo what twobrewers said. Right now, the trend is that employers value job experience over an MBA for an entry level position. Articles that I have read suggest that if an employer has to choose between someone with experience and someone without experience but with an MBA, they choose experience every time. Why? Because the candidate with experience knows how things actually work, while the one with an MBA without experience doesn't. Employers will pay for experience, they probably won't pay you more because you have an MBA if you don't have any experience.

 

Get the experience, and then go for the MBA to make you more promotable or marketable to other companies.

 

Somewhat related - when I was in high school, we had a substitute teacher for a psychology class. How did he become a substitute teacher? He decided to go for his Master's in Education before getting any experience. He was overqualified, and no one would hire him full time so he worked in a factory.

[twobrewers]

He decided to go for his Master's in Education before getting any experience. He was overqualified, and no one would hire him full time so he worked in a factory.

I've met several individuals that had the same problem.

 

Individuals with four years of college and then an MBA with no experience often have the hardest time finding a job. (Though, I am sympathetic to a finance major graduating at this time.)

[thevaccinator27]

I'll third the suggestion to get real world experience before going back. My wife got her MBA from UW. Most of the students, but not all, had real world experience coming in. Some didn't. When it came time to interviewing for internships and jobs, those that had real world experience had something substantive to talk about in the interviews and could tell stories from the real world, not just the classroom. Also, from what I saw, those with experienced got the 'better' jobs. By better, I mean the Ibanking (do those jobs even exist anymore?) and the ones that paid substantially more coming out of the gates and had more opportunites for growth. I don't really think it matters what area you work in, either. For example, my wife had a journalism degree and worked in PR before getting her MBA in finannce

 

 

My $.02

[jlau20]

Thanks for the advice so far. I think what I'm looking at doing now is just to take the GMAT in the spring since I believe scores for that will stay good for 5-6 years for most schools. Hold off on the MBA until I have some experience and hopefully a job that will pay for it.

[ajgodson]

Good call on taking the GMAT early....I took it during my senior year as an undergrad and did really well. I start at Grad School for 3 years, but having those scores really helped. I also second having a job before/during getting your degree. Companies will shy away from the big $$$ they see when they think MBA if you don't have any experience.