Fully agree, but you dont learn soft skills in an MBA program. Either someone knows how to network or he does not. Refinements are possible but I believe you dont turn an introvert into a networker by pushing them through an MBA program. Quite the contrary, if sales skills are asked for then the street is your best teacher. I never fully understood what an MBA program brings in terms of benefit other than "getting to know" others you may later lean or rely on. Maybe a self-confidence booster as well, perhaps?
Honest question: Can you please share a little what you mean with "It prepares you to do the job...". What did you learn in the MBA program that you really needed on the job? If you could explain in the context of a specific job that would be terrific and help to better understand. Thank you.
I don't have an MBA, and I'm of the belief that MBAs are mostly worthless. To me, the only reason to get an MBA would be if you could get into an a "Top School" and want to get into someones "Good Ole Boys Club", i.e goldman or some other prestigious firm. Its not about enhancing your skill set, its about enhancing your network. They teach the same shit at every accredited school, so from a knowledge gain perspective... you're unlikely to see a difference between an Ivy School and the "Harvard of the Southwest" (ASU). I was referring to the difference between what most consider a "Top School", such as MIT or Stanford vs a school like ASU, from an engineering perspective. I see no difference in the quality of engineers produced by MIT vs those produced by most public state schools.... other than a slight sense of entitlement in some folks.
After you get you 1st job out of undergrad or grad, few care what that school was. They care about you current performance. But a school with a good reputation and strong alumni can get you that interview for the first job, while a second tier school or online university might not get you a chance at the 1st job. Bob
I take it from this question and your other responses that you don't have an MBA, but yet seem to pass yourself off as an authority on the subject. An MBA, along with most other degrees, are valuable, but only in certain circumstances. I agree with you that most of the courses taught are not worth the money. When I went to business school, probably 75% of the classes I took were glorified entry level business topics. But the other 25% went way beyond anything taught in undergrad and directly applies to projects I do at my job now. Currently all of the financial professionals at my job have at least an MBA, CFA, or both. Since its a requirement in order to be hired, I would say the MBA was worth it for me in that regard, and the change in salary from pre MBA to post MBA justified the cost of business school. However, if you work at some corporation and think getting your MBA is your ticket to middle management through your new marketing skills and power point presentations, then I think its a waste of your time/$$$.
I know hardly anything about MBA programs hence my asking. Why would your firm require an MBA and CFA? It kind of gets back to my original question. What is special about an MBA or CFA that your firm requires it? I feel you did not really address the question but maybe I missed something. I mean why picking or even interviewing an MBA when you can interview someone from a top quant finance program who has already proven his worth? Unless of course your firm is passed up for better firms by top candidates.
Most U.S. full-time MBA programs are two years. The first year courses are the same at any reputable program in the U.S., and can be undergrad level although at some schools they offer several tiers of each class based on experience. If you had an engineering undergrad and want to be a CFO, for example, these classes teach you a bunch you didn't know that you'll absolutely need for your future job, but it's not rocket science. The second year courses are where a top 5 school is very different from the rest. I took classes co-taught by Andy Grove and Eric Schmidt (while he was still CEO of Google), for example, and that was pretty damn insightful and helpful in the successful startup I founded while there. High profile adjuncts aside, if you want to be an entrepreneur, you can put together every piece of a business and have actual top VCs critique you, actual top venture attorneys negotiate a term sheet against you, and very successful entrepreneurs point out what you've missed. If you want to go into operations or supply chain management, you'll get courses taught by the world's experts in those subjects, and that information absolutely will be used in your job. If you go into corporate finance, again you'll get deep into areas that you can't buy a book about and become an expert (that have nothing to do with trading). You don't have access to all of that in one place at ASU, for example. That's the classes, but the real value is in the network, which IAS_LLC has both right and almost completely wrong. Its funny that so many people here think that's worthless unless you want to be an investment banker or some other "Good Ole Boys Club". Or that its a "soft skill" so its neither teachable or really reputable (I'm an engineering undergrad so I can understand that feeling, but luckily I've grown to realize that belief is probably the technical person's single worst enemy). It really doesn't matter what you do, your network and ability to use it are the key to your success. And it doesn't mean that you get a job because you're in a good old boys club. For example, as an entrepreneur it means you have access to pitch for capital, will have found mentors and advisors, and will have a support network of other entrepreneurs. It means you can bounce your ideas off a classmate at Kleiner and he will not only tell you if they're good, but can also tell you they're good but not a good fit for a VC and then introduce you to the angel that ends up funding your company. It means you can spend a couple weeks working for a guy who finds smart people to buy solid small companies and make them great, and then have the benefit of his advice while you build your own small company. It means when you run into an arcane problem while launching a product, you can find an alumni who's an expert in that area and they'll absolutely take your call and spend an hour answering all your questions and giving you advice. These may be soft skills that anyone can do, but it's a heck of a lot easier post MBA from a top school. Can you start a successful company without an MBA, sure! Can you put together a merger or a secondary offering without an MBA, probably although it would be hard and you'd probably make some expensive mistakes. Can you run a supply chain by moving up the ranks from the factory floor, yes but you'll get killed by the people who treat it as a science rather than flying by the seat of their pants. Is an MBA a "requirement" for any job, not really. However you could really say that about the vast majority of post-grad degrees which are for people with intellectual curiosity who want to be at the top of their chosen fields. People who aren't looking for a job you complete with a rote skill set you learned in school. Generally they hire that kind of person to work for them, so they can focus on the interesting stuff.