Is an MBA worth it? - Forum

Hi Emmond,

That's a great question - and certainly a relevant one.

When taking a look at FT's rankings for 2014, graduates from the top 100 schools are still seeing salary increases from 55-166%, despite the weakened economy. When talking numbers, Stanford topped the list with graduates making around $184,566 and the lowest being Fudan University School of Management  graduates with $76,140 annually (163% increase). You can check out the list here.

For top schools, MBAs still seem to be worth the financial investment. For non-ranking schools, the data is a bit sparse. The media has been much on this topic and the conclusions vary, some saying that MBA grads are still reaping large paychecks, some saying otherwise and others reporting that salaries are stagnant from last year. 

Personally, I think salary and career advancement depends largely on the MBA program (ranking, prestige, etc.), an individual's industry of choice and the individual themselves. Well-rounded graduates of well-known schools, going into a booming industry are likely to see worthwhile salary increases. On the other hand, it's not all about the paycheck. For many graduates of small, unknown schools the goal may be to get the skills required to start and run their own business or getting that promotion, improving their quality of life (no six-figure paycheck required). 

Best,

SearchMBA

Hi Emmond,

Thanks for your inquiry. The question as asked is pretty broad and the answer depends on the school attended and the post-MBA career field. On average though, yes, MBA grads experience a very nice ROI on their MBA education. So chances are that if an MBA is necessary to help you reach a career goal, you will join the vast majority of alumni who don't regret their decisions to go back to school.

Best regards,

David Petersam
President, AdmissionsConsultants

I'm a bit torn about this.

I have an MA degree and my view of that is that it's kind of essential and pointless at the same time. Essential because nowadays everyone *expects* you to have a degree, but pointless because it doesn't set you apart from anyone else.

I think MBAs are very different because, being so expensive and time-consuming, they are much more rare and thus probably contribute to your career prospects a lot more. At the same time, I can't shake the sneaking suspicion that it is still a waste of money compared to simply finding a job, getting on with it and progressing your career that way.

In an ideal world, what would happen is that you as a graduate get a job with a company that offers to pay for your MBA as part of your training. Then you would have the best of both worlds!
Of course we are talking BIG companies (Microsoft, Google...) but it's not impossible...