Is Going Back to College Worth It? (Are MBAs Worth It?)

In Experience versus Education: Which Counts More in Career Success?, I talked about which of the two made the most difference in a person's career. As we all have discussed this issue through several posts, I think the general consensus is the following:

An education (degree) is often needed to open the door and get a good first job. The degree might also be important for later job opportunities, but generally the importance of the degree becomes less and less as a person's career advances -- and work experience becomes more and more important. In many cases, work experience eventually dwarfs education in importance later on in a person's career.

I realize that the above statement is very general and while it applies to most circumstances (at least in my opinion), there are tons of exceptions.

And here's a piece from Kiplinger that details the case against going back to school -- in this case, he highlights the MBA and how there's little need for it. His rationale:

• Rather than learning what you need, you're buried under mountains of information, most of which you'll never use, and the rest of which you'll probably long have forgotten -- or it will have become obsolete by the time you need it.

• You're often taught in a lecture class (the least effective way to learn,) or in a discussion section, in which you endure more professorial prattle punctuated by student comments often ignorant and/or designed more to impress than to edify.

• Worst of all, most professors are far less qualified than are master practitioners to help you prepare to be competent in your career. After all, they are people who deliberately opted out of the real world so they could study esoteric academic research questions. The more prestigious the institution, the more likely professors are to be hired, promoted, and tenured based on their research productivity, with little regard to whether they confuse or bore the pants off students.

Ha! This guy's singing my song!

I have to agree with him 100% on these. Grad school contained a ton of stuff I haven't used since, was full of meaningless discussions from people who didn't know how the real world worked (including me), and was taught by people who didn't understand the practicalities of American business. It was fairly worthless in preparing me for a career in business except for one thing -- it opened the door for me to get a job I could never have gotten otherwise (and certainly couldn't have gotten at age 24.) After that, my experience took over and my career took off. But I needed the MBA to get it started.

So what does he suggest you do instead of going back to school? He says you should enroll in "You U" -- a self-developed program where you:

• Have a mentor
• Read key articles and books
• Attend conferences
• Do apprenticeships alongside a master practitioner

By the way, I agree that each of these should be part of making the most of your career -- but you should be doing this whether or not you get another degree.

Anyway, the author suggests that you can open the doors that an MBA usually opens for you by writing a specific letter (included in the link above) that convinces employers that you've gone to You U and are a great hire. He claims the letter should be really effective:

I give talks to executives and often ask them, "Imagine you're an employer and you post a want ad that says 'MBA required.' and one applicant wrote this letter." I read the letter above to them. I then say, "Raise your hand if you'd interview him." Invariably, 80% to 90% do.

Ok, now who doesn't understand the real world?

First of all, would the executives even see the letter or would some HR intern weed it out since the guy didn't have an MBA? Second, would 80% to 90% REALLY interview him or are they just saying that in a bogus survey in an artificial environment? Third, an interview is not a job offer. It's far from it.

What do you think? Agree with the author? Agree with me? Something in between?

Comments

[Richard]

The points on a self-developed program are spot on. I started down this route and my career has been growing at an accelerated rate.

You need to decide where you want to take your career before going back to school. While education is important, you don't need the MBA to succeed. Where I work most promotions are given to those with the most company awards. These awards are given for success and accomplishments not what you learn in a classroom.

[Jeff]

I have to say that the letter presented is certainly compelling, but since most candidates are selected by weeding out minimum requirements, I can't see many scenario's where it would get past the initial round of candidate selection. Most HR/Recruiting is based on the principal of thinning the "herd" as efficiently as possible, not having a degree or a graduate degree is often the first criteria used to get rid of some of the applicants.

That being said I will certainly adapt the letter to circumstances of my own and see if anything happens. Adding to the arsenal certainly can't hurt.

[Beastlike]

I completely agree with the comments but like Jeff said, it's an easy way for companies to weed out candidates...

[Russ]

Just from personal experience, finding both an experienced and receptive mentor can be a tough task.

also, I haven't been to b-school, but I would think that an academic perspective on certain issues puts you at an advantage over someone with just work experience. In my mind a person with work experience AND b-school would be a better worker than having just work experience.

[plonkee]

I think that the executive are giving the answer they think they should rather than the one that is actually true.

From my point of view, I found the letter a bit pushy, I bet there are cultural differences between the US and UK which would mean it would have to be substantially reworded for a British market, but the education outlined is certainly impressive.

[Rue]

You need to do both. The MBA is devaluing fast, but having it is a checkmark that gets you in the door.

[CoolHappyGuy]

Did my MBA pay off? You bet it did! After my graduation, I got a 20% raise. Additionally, I did not have to pay as much up front as my company paid 50% of my tuition and all of my textbooks. So, the pursuit of the degree was a part of my benefit package while leading to more benefits. I have also been a better worker. It was win-win.

The stuff I learned was useful as well. I learned so much that I can't even do a good summary in this brief space. However, one of the most surprising and ironic revelations was how coporate culture works. While I am supremely qualified in my industry, I will probably never get promoted. However, make no mistake, THAT IS GOOD NEWS! That means I can stop wasting my time trying to climb the corporate ladder and pursue truly promising paths.

In another course I learned the technical tools as well as the mindset needed to establish a corporate presence on the WWW. I am in the process of creating a blog that will help people find complete and financial fulfillment (these are NOT the same).

I have been exposed to concepts that have changed my life for the better forever.

Having said that, there is a cost behind the MBA that should not be overlooked: TIME. The time I invested in pursuing this degree did take a toll on my wife and me. She was very supportive. However, her sacrifice of me meant putting her own pursuits on hold. You must get the consent and cooperation of your family before you even consider matriculating.

Mentoring is a great idea! Our company has a sort of mentoring program. However, you have to be identified as having "high potential" before this can happen. So, you have to have highly devloped corporate networking skills before you can participate. Too political.

I consider FMF and a handful of other blogs my mentors. You can't underestimate the value of networking and mentors. It will definitely benefit you down the road of like, too. I'm fortunate to have benefited (and AM benefiting) from both approaches.