Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Does it matter where you get your MBA from?

nonplussed · 10-17-2007, 06:21 PM

Getting an MBA is part of playing a credentials game... so, yes, it does matter where you go. You won't learn more at Stanford than you would at Golden Gate but you will certainly make contact with a lot more people with great contacts of their own. And the wow factor on your resume will open many doors.

On the other hand, you say you want an MBA because you "enjoy business, making decisions, and helping people get better at their jobs." No MBA from any institution will help you do those things. Or, to the extent that a program does do those things, Golden Gate will do just as good a job as Stanford.

Do you want to be a really good manager or do you want to be a very senior one? There is a difference. The senior executives are not stupid... they are not something from a Dilbert cartoon. But they are not technocrats. They are skilled politicians.

Personally, I chose to get my MBA from Golden Gate. It took me eight years -- all at night -- while working full time, getting married, getting divorced, getting married again, and living a life. I'm glad I did it and I think it helped me. A second tier credential is better than no credential at all and I believe it helped me get a couple of jobs. It also gave me the personal satisfaction of having stuck something out for so long, which gave me confidence, which helped me perform.

To put this in concrete terms... I am 50 and earn about $150,000 a year. I am respected at the office, can do my job without feeling much stress, and maintain an excellent work/life balance. All in all, life is good and my night school MBA helped me attain it. I will never be an SVP, let alone a CEO and that's just fine with me.

Do you want to be CEO? Then go to an elite MBA program like Stanford, Harvard, Wharton, Chicago, etc. But if you want to get a leg up on a solid business career enroll at the night school. The University of Washington is not an elite school and so the extra money will be wasted. City will give you just as good of a technical education and the very minimal status bump from UW is not worth the money.

10-17-2007, 06:21 PM	#7 (permalink)
nonplussed Tilted	Getting an MBA is part of playing a credentials game... so, yes, it does matter where you go. You won't learn more at Stanford than you would at Golden Gate but you will certainly make contact with a lot more people with great contacts of their own. And the wow factor on your resume will open many doors. On the other hand, you say you want an MBA because you "enjoy business, making decisions, and helping people get better at their jobs." No MBA from any institution will help you do those things. Or, to the extent that a program does do those things, Golden Gate will do just as good a job as Stanford. Do you want to be a really good manager or do you want to be a very senior one? There is a difference. The senior executives are not stupid... they are not something from a Dilbert cartoon. But they are not technocrats. They are skilled politicians. Personally, I chose to get my MBA from Golden Gate. It took me eight years -- all at night -- while working full time, getting married, getting divorced, getting married again, and living a life. I'm glad I did it and I think it helped me. A second tier credential is better than no credential at all and I believe it helped me get a couple of jobs. It also gave me the personal satisfaction of having stuck something out for so long, which gave me confidence, which helped me perform. To put this in concrete terms... I am 50 and earn about $150,000 a year. I am respected at the office, can do my job without feeling much stress, and maintain an excellent work/life balance. All in all, life is good and my night school MBA helped me attain it. I will never be an SVP, let alone a CEO and that's just fine with me. Do you want to be CEO? Then go to an elite MBA program like Stanford, Harvard, Wharton, Chicago, etc. But if you want to get a leg up on a solid business career enroll at the night school. The University of Washington is not an elite school and so the extra money will be wasted. City will give you just as good of a technical education and the very minimal status bump from UW is not worth the money.