Value of MBA Degree

TheMBA is an expensive investment.Harvard Business School (HBS), for example, has a price tag of about $140,000. Add to that the financial impact of not earning an income for two years and it is clear why many individuals shy away from pursuing the MBA in the first place. Yet, ask anyone applying to business school, and you are likely to hear that they believe that the return on their investment can be significant. The numbers from graduates of top business schools support this: 86 percent of women and 89 percent of men surveyed in a Catalyst study reported that they were very satisfied with their MBA career after attending business school.

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Often, the value of the MBA can be characterized as falling within one of these eight benefits:
  1. Expanded network
  2. Strategic skills
  3. Analytical skills
  4. Quantitative skills
  5. Soft skills (leadership, communication, negotiation, agility in thinking on your feet, team management, etc.)
  6. Increased knowledge
  7. Significant salary bump
  8. Access to new career

The Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) conducts a biannual survey of MBA alumni. Seventy-nine percent of the alumni polled in the 2010 alumni survey indicated that they are positive about their decision to pursue an MBA (Source: MBA Alumni Perspective Survey, September 2010). So if you have decided that the MBA is for you and you are clear on why you want to pursue this degree and what it will offer you in the long term, let’s examine the specific influences that shape which MBA program a candidate chooses.

Skills and Knowledgen

An accredited MBA education is usually pursued by either young professional with only a few years of experience or by experienced employees who want to expand their careers. Either way, these professionals may all reach a certain stage when they become complacent to the repetitiveness of their business environment. These employees may find themselves stagnated in comfort zones that impede their professional development. An MBA program will help students constantly challenge themselves, learn about with the latest issues and apply the newest business techniques at work. Continuous improvement is the key to success in any career.

Networking

Graduate school is always a great place to network with students, professors and others who may provide future employment help and opportunities. Colleges and universities provide excellent networking experiences because degree participants can interact with others in ways that will accentuate their business management capabilities. Most faculty are high-level professionals with former and current connections to important businesses and organizations. This is why an MBA degree program is the best job hunting choice for young college graduates with limited work experience. Most important, students gain access to extensive alumni networks that will pay off throughout whole careers.

Career Development

MBA program graduates have high qualifications, so they have consequently better chances of obtaining and holding high-level positions. An MBA degree is the standard educational requirement for managerial positions in almost any industry. They majority of MBA graduates will become senior managers, leaders, administrators and board directors. These positions do come with longer working hours and greater responsibilities, but they bring along higher salaries. Many MBA graduates will make at least $50,000 per year starting out, but they may end up making $100,000 per year.

Better Perspectives

Most organizations want leaders who understand more abstract and innovative ideas like change, thought and transformational management. An MBA program comes with holistic attitudes and integrated perspectives of the business world. This is partially due to the fact that MBA graduates who become part networks of professionals and organizations that share techniques, establish new standards and encourage problem-solving. This will result in a great overview of the industry, business world and regulatory environment. Deep understanding and receptiveness to change brings about growth.

Authority and Reputation

The best way to strengthen industry authority and personal reputation is through an accredited graduate degree. Graduate students prove to their colleges, clients and the world that they possess greater motivation, achieve harder goals and commit to more intensive work than others. Graduate degree work gives students the opportunities to personally and professionally growth through the support of knowledgeable professors. This makes earning a graduate degree more enriching and collaborative than undergraduate degrees.