MBA Complete - Was It Worth It?

Posted on March 18, 2008

This past Sunday I handed in my final paper for my MBA degree with a Marketing concentration at Drexel University’s Lebow College of Business. The finality is so fresh that end of my long two and half year journey hasn’t sunk in. It is starting though…Tuesday is my normal class night and I got to stay home with my family!

The first question most people will ask is “was getting an MBA worth”? On a personal level, it was a truly great experience. One that has given my a lot of confidence, motivation, purpose, and energy. On a business and pure learning level, I am not so sure. I think something like the Personal MBA or selected great texts from Amazon and a mentor would have been more useful and practical.

The degree cost about $55,000 in tuition and books, but that was 100% covered by my employer. I even made money, since I sold most of my books on Amazon after the class was over. The degree did cost me time, commitment, and the sacrifice of my family.

As for salary, it will be a while before I know, since I don’t get a single penny more from my current employer for finishing an MBA. One article suggests that

According to one salary guide, an MBA is worth about $10-30,000 a year over a bachelor’s degree, but the salary increase you could see may be much less — or much more. Factors that can affect your salary include:

whether you stay with your current employer or seek a job with a new employer.

the amount of relevant experience you have for the job you are seeking.

the reputation of the graduate school you attended.

the type of job you are seeking — and the level of supply/demand for workers.

the industries where you are seeking a job.

the location of the jobs you are seeking.

A fellow blogger with an MBA, FMF @ Free Money Finance, reported that he almost doubled his salary in 5 years during the 90’s. I have no doubt that I might see similar returns.

All in all, I am glad to be done, but it was a great experience. As I collect my thoughts over the next week or two I will provide so more insight on my MBA experience.

Quote Source: Quint Careers
Note: Picture is not me, but a graduation at Harvard the most prestigious business school in the US.

» Filed Under About Me, Chasing Dreams, Salary

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Comments

15 Responses to “MBA Complete - Was It Worth It?”

Sue (11 comments.) on March 19th, 2008 9:30 am

Congratulations on your Drexel degree. My family has 5 undergrad degrees from there including my father -Civil engineer, my brother MIS, my husband Electrical E, my brother in law Chem E and myself Finance and Marketing.
Congratulations on getting your free time back!
Rex on March 19th, 2008 11:07 am

I think you would have been better off (at least financially) getting a degree in professional health sciences. I’m not talking about an M.D., I’m talking about a pharmacist, nurse practitioner, physical therapist, etc. These folks are commanding $90,000-$125,000 right out of school.
The Happy Rock (163 comments.) on March 19th, 2008 11:15 am

@Sue - Thanks. I thought Drexel was a solid school, it seems like your family feels the same way.

@Rex - The top MBA school average starting salaries are ~$125 too. For me, going into one of those fields wasn’t an option, because I don’t have any passion for them. I would take a passionate person with an MBA, rather than a dispassionate person in Medical Sciences any day.
Steven on March 20th, 2008 10:02 am

Congratulations. Of course it is worth it. Any investment in yourself is worth it.

I guess I must be an odd ball, or my mentality is still back in the sixties, but I went to college for an education and to learn how to learn. Getting a degree solely for the purpose of more money was never in the equation.

It was, and still is for me, all about the journey; never the destination.
Paul (1 comments.) on March 20th, 2008 9:38 pm

Congrats Frank.
You are a bright guy and will do well. Don’t forget to have fun and spend time with your family.
As for the question whether it was worth it. I have a friend who does well financially but does not have a college degree. He always claims that he is financially successful and therefore does not need college education. He often compares himself to people with college education who are not as well off as he is.
It always made me wonder how far he would have gotten if he did have a college education.
No regrets
Paul
AJC @ 7million7years (3 comments.) on March 23rd, 2008 5:51 pm

It’s what you DO with the salary increase that will dictate your success; two suggestions:

1. Put aside at least 50% of any future salary increase (towards debt repayment, then towards investments).

2. Start a business part time (use your MBA to promote your writing/consulting/blogging credentials, perhaps) and put aside at least 50% of any future profits generated.
PT (6 comments.) on March 24th, 2008 12:04 am

That’s great! All for free too. Can’t beat that. Way to go. Celebrate!
Kimberly (1 comments.) on March 27th, 2008 2:40 pm

Congratulations on earning your MBA! I’ve looked in to Drexel’s program a bit, and I’m wondering if you took any of their online courses? If so, how were they?
Computer Edge (1 comments.) on March 27th, 2008 7:56 pm

Congratulations! You’ve invested much time and effort for sure. I’m glad you enjoyed it nonetheless.

For me, I prefer short, intensive courses that directly address what I need to learn to be effective in what I do and intend to do.
The Happy Rock (163 comments.) on March 27th, 2008 10:01 pm

@Computer Edge - I tend to agree, but the choice to take on an MBA included a wide variety of factors such as cost, type of learning, motivation, respectability, and so fortth.
The Happy Rock (163 comments.) on March 27th, 2008 10:10 pm

@Kimberly - My degree was designed to by 50/50 in class online split. In reality it was about 60% online and 40% in class. The online classes were more convenient because I didn’t have to travel into the city one night a week, but you give up something to for that convenience. I thought that every one of the in class classes were superior with respect to how much I learned and enjoyed them. The interaction with the professor and students was extremely beneficial and enjoyable. For the online classes, there was more busy work and less real learning. Only a handful of professors truly understood what worked in an online format, and for some of the classes the material just doesn’t work well online. Knowing what I know now, I would have had a tough time shelling out my own $2500 a class for a lot of the online classes. That is just one perspective, other people might fell differently.

I will also say that having a a personal business(this website) or a work situation that I could use as topics for a lot of the papers and projects also made the learning a lot more enjoyable, practical and useful. I came out with a few great papers on marketing this website, and changing my current situation at work.
Jerry (5 comments.) on April 11th, 2008 4:57 pm

Congratulations to you! I’ve been working on a degree myself for several years. Education isn’t insurance you’ll have a guaranteed 6 figure income and 6 figures these days doesn’t go as far as it did before but it’s a start. Going for your dreams leads to happiness and that’s what counts.

Jerry
http://www.leads4insurance.com