Anyone have an MBA?

[lemondrop]

I'm looking for new jobs right now. A lot of the job's I'm qualified for are MBA preferred, but the jobs I'd be looking at in five more years require an MBA.

If you have your MBA, tell me about it.

Did you go PT or FT? Did your employer pay? How hard was it?

Any advice?

[sarahbear]

I'll answer for my husband because he's the one with the MBA. He went part time, at night, for 2 years. His company paid for it. The time commitment was the hardest part, especially toward the end when there was a lot of collaborative group work and a major final project. The university was also a 45 minute drive from home, so he'd get home around 11pm on class days and be leaving for work at 6 the next morning. After he graduated he was able to apply for a different position at work that would allow him to use his MBA. It's been a positive thing for him.

[blackcat]

May 25, 2012 14:48:00 GMT -5 lemondrop said:

I'm looking for new jobs right now. A lot of the job's I'm qualified for are MBA preferred, but the jobs I'd be looking at in five more years require an MBA.

If you have your MBA, tell me about it.

Did you go PT or FT? Did your employer pay? How hard was it?

Any advice?

I got my MBA 5 years ago (holy crap time flies). I quit my job of two years and just jumped in, I wanted to knock it out quickly, so I went full-time, it took me two full years. I worked part time as a grad assistant. I just didn't think I had it in me to work all day, and then sit in class for 3 hours at night. My husband has his MBA and did his part-time, his employer paid for it, that is the way to go, since he now has no student loans.

Was the program hard? I didn't think so, the level of difficulty was about the same as my higher-level undergrad courses, there was just more work, more in-depth projects and papers, etc.

When I graduated, the economy was juuuust starting to tank, so it was really hard to find a job, much harder than I thought, since now I've got this nice sparkly degree. I wound up taking something I was way overqualified for... 5 years later, I'm still with this company and am starting to think about a change, since I haven't had any progression or movement (especially in my pay, the worst part). The organization that I work for has a VERY flat org structure, so there is really no where for me to get promoted to, I am the only person in my division who does marketing. So anyway, I just haven't found the degree to pay off yet, but I am probably in a unique situation.

[jens]

I'm halfway through my MBA right now. I'm actually enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would. I'm part time, it will take me two years total to complete. I'm working full time while doing it, which is a little cray cray, but I work in the same building where I take it, so that's convenient. My employer is not paying for it, but since I work for the university I do get a tuition waiver which gives me one free class per semester, so that's a big help when the classes are as expensive as they are.

It's definitely tough, and we have a TON of group work in my program, but I've really been enjoying it, and it's an excellent way to create a new professional network for yourself. I don't know if you have a family yet, but I recommend trying to get it out of the way before kids if possible. Either way, I highly recommend doing it. I don't think you'll regret it.