r/MBA

I'm in a bit of a unique situation. Active duty officer, 5 years in. My service is sending me to engineering grad school fully funded, but the catch is a 4-year payback obligation afterward. I'm welcome to go or do whatever I want, including get an MBA in parallel, as long as I leave with the engineering degree as well. This looks like a great case for MIT LGO, if I could be lucky enough to get in. LGO does have by far the most involved application of any of the engineering programs I've looked into, and includes studying for and taking the GRE. I'm absolutely willing to do this, but I want to make sure it's worth it before I spend the next several weeks pouring time into this.

I'm sort of sponsored, but the sponsorship is low. The funding provides me $30k yearly. It doesn't cover LGO, where I'd be out roughly $45K yearly of my own money after what the service pays. And the puny funding from my organization precludes me from getting funding LGO. But, unlike corporate sponsorship, I'd keep drawing full salary (~$145k yearly) the whole time, so no opportunity cost, and I would have savings.

The problem is, if I do the MBA now, I graduate in 2029 and can't use on-campus recruiting. The next time I'd be open to work is in 2033 at 33 with the four year old MBA and no real post-MBA experience (except the in-service experience).

What I'm seeing is $90K out of pocket, but I get to keep my salary throughout, and get the credential for a fraction of what it normally costs other students if opportunity costs are included. I just have to accept that I can't use campus recruiting and deal with that in four years.

How badly does a 4-year gap between MBA and market entry hurt for MBB or IB? Is the credential still worth anything, or is it mostly the recruiting events on campus during school? Would you pay $90K for LGO even in this situation?

Trying to get outside perspective on this

Background:

- 10 years in CPG, including effectively functioning as the GM of a nationwide brand. Focus primarily on sales / finance / strategy

- Currently work on a fractional capacity, mostly for brands, but have worked with family offices, PEs, and VCs for due diligence. I work for myself so the $200K feels a lot less than $200K

- 3.3 undergrad GPA from a top 10 school, 4.0 senior year

- Haven't taking the GMAT yet, but practice tests range 750-770. Regardless, I think I'll clear 700

Goals post-MBA:

1. PE investing in consumer

2. Portfolio ops at a fund holding consumer brands

3. Consulting

4. Corp dev or strategy at a large CPG company

Where I'm stuck:

I'm pretty comfortable where I am now, but also tired. I work for myself and have pretty good WLB (although this really depends on how many engagements I'm working on). I also have decent traction with my clients, sometimes turning down projects due to workload. The cost of MBA tuition is high and I'm worried that I'd lose momentum if I leave to go to B school.

At the same time, I like the idea of having an MBA, especially if it's from a top school. Then again, I don't think educational pedigree is that important in CPG; about a third of the people I interact with regularly went to a CC or didn't go to college.

I think the only guaranteed outcome where I would make more money is if I go into PE, but the chance of that is pretty low. While I could jack up my consulting rates if I get an MBA, it would hurt me as well since I mostly work with small brands.

Based on my goals, what schools should I apply to? What kinds of programs should I go for (part time, evening, full 2-year, etc.)? More importantly, should I even bother?

Would love to hear from people who did an MBA after already making decent money and from anyone in consumer growth equity or portfolio ops in particular.

Thanks!

Currently an M7 student and just wrapped up my MBB summer internship. Got a return, but didn't really enjoy the work I was doing, and the office politics was suffocating.

I was in tech pre-MBA and don't have any finance experience. I didn't recruit for IB at all last year- no coffee chat or networking events or anything- but I've always been interested in IB. Do I have a realistic shot at recruiting for it full-time?

thinking of using my GI bill for Chicago booth. how is there weekend plan Ill have to live in Wi with my family to take advantage. is it worth it? I am in software I would not mind moving from engineer to management or business consulting. as I have found I really love the business side of things

Disclaimer- Throwaway account

TLDR. Applied to only one T20 MBA program (location constraint) without any test scores with the goal of pivoting to IB. A week before the launch, I transferred from the fulltime to the part time program, kept my job but lost my scholarship but it wasn’t much to begin with. Networked my ass off while working full time during my first semester and got multiple IB summer offers and decided to accept the offer from an EB. Was laid off from the job at the end of the first semester and got a decent severance, would have quit that job either way for the internship. Worked my ass off during the summer but didn’t get the return, no reason or explanation (I believe age or ethnicity could be a reason though I doubt that, for context Im in mid thirties and non-white). Tried recruiting full time but none of the banks wanted to take up my case (one MD even said it on my face that hiring an associate who didn’t get the return is a big liability). Early second year when I was still trying to get into IB, applied to an corp dev role (60 miles one way) that required 3+ years of IB exp, but somehow got invited to interview and got the offer. Continued working in the corp dev role evaluating deals and performing due diligence through second year while continuing to recruit for financial consulting roles, think A&M, FTI, EYP etc. but got dinged from all of them. End of the 2yr felt the lowest point after seeing all my mates start in their new roles at great places. Last month while scrolling through linkedin came across a VC Sr associate at a F500, applied to it, not expecting to even get a call, but I did and after 6 rounds, got an offer with total comp of 260k that averages 30hrs a week and essentially doubles my pre MBA comp. So long story short, keep hustling and grinding, there’s something in store for all of us.

Can we level set on what an MBA actually is, at a fundamental level? Networking + Core Classes + Electives + an Internship

The core classes are very similar. They are basically 1.2x the core classes in a business undergrad. They go a little farther. Stats goes to multiple linear regression. Corp Fin goes to a DCF. Accounting is basically just managerial accounting, marketing is some conjoint analysis, etc. all geared toward public companies. I went to a T20. Not sure how crazy everyone else got but the curricula seems to be pretty similar.

Then you get into electives. 1 year MBAs are light on electives. Electives are great for broadening your horizons or going deep into a subject. The higher ranked the MBA, the better and broader the electives. HBS has 900 students…they have a lot of electives with a higher density of world class professors.

Internships: I wish I’d understood how regional networking was. It’s easier to network with companies geographically closer to you. Of course HSW places internationally, but you’re going to see more companies down the street, logically.

So if you want to work at a non profit…most of this shit isn’t going to apply to you. You have to ask yourself if the opportunity cost is worth it. If you want to work at a small company, you have to ask yourself if going to HSW is worth $300k. Same with acquiring an HVAC company. But if you want to go into IB, you definitely need to aim high. Going to the best school or getting a masters isn’t always the best option. Probably obvious but I see a lot of these posts.

I guess this is an AMA. I run a small PE backed company and came from a non traditional background. Did tech and IB post MBA.

I believe it would be more efficient to start a company with full commitment and without the distractions of MBA studies, however there are many MBA students starting companies during their studies. Is not it better to skip MBA totally and focus on building a company full-time?

Is it because MBA programs help MBA students to raise startup capital more conveniently due to their classmates and alumni network?

I am thinking to apply for top mba deferred programs in 2027. I am about to complete my pre-final year in 2027.

Stats: UG: Tier 1 in my city , 7/10 GPA(Indian student)

Interns: software Dev intern at a startup.

ECs: played for my high school cricket team for under 14 and 16 was captain of under 14 and vice captain of 16 also part of college team.

Part of the team which organises tech and cultural programs in college. Head of recruitment and marketing division.

Captain of department kabaddi team(Indian sport)
Published a research paper on AI during my high school and also will be publishing my research project work under my prof(he is my guide).

Volunteering: taught English and math for underprivileged kids and was lauded by the local district head .

What are my chances? Any advice is also appreciated. Do I have chance if I can get a good gmat or fee score.

i go to a pretty crappy school (ranked like #1700 in the us).

hypothetically, if i were to somehow get a top 5% score in the gmat / gre and max out my ecs, get decent internships (not like mbb/big4 tho.. it would be hard to get accepted into those companies because of the lack of reputation of my undergrad) would i have a shot at an m7 mba?

is it worth spending the $1000 in gmat/gre exam fees, application fees, resources, retakes, etc? or am i better off not applying at all?

Aiming for full time T15 MBA schools, age 40, have a undergrad gpa of 3.2 (premed) and have a masters in accounting 3.6 gpa. Don’t have the CPA. Have 5 years work experience as assistant director of a healthcare organization. Used the masters after to try and pivot into the big 4 as audit associate for 1.5 years before being laid off. The masters is not helping me break into any roles as of this moment. Never broke 100k in salary either and thinking going back to school for MBA might help through ocr secure those higher paying roles. My 20’s were a mess filled with odd jobs and unrelated work and periods of time I was out of work dealing with mental health, got my act together at 30.

EMBA wouldn’t fit me because I don’t have the two decades of experience to fall back on and I’m looking for the traditional ocr that full time mbas have.

I don’t have children or a family that I need to provide for so being without income for two years won’t be an issue.

Hi everyone,

I’d appreciate your advice. I’m currently 36 years old and thinking of doing a full-time MBA. I currently work as a Lead Business Analyst in a financial firm. I’m targeting colleges like INSEAD, HEC, and IMD. Would it be possible to do a full-time MBA from these colleges at my age, as I’m not looking for an Executive MBA?

I have the chance to do triple major within my school’s business school. I am able to do marketing + info systems + supply chain while also being able to study abroad my junior year spring. Is there any reason I shouldn’t triple major? Like this would make me less employable or leave a bad taste for a recruiter?

Got my B.S and M.S in EE and Robotics at CMU. I’m considering taking a gap year to go back to school to learn something new. Should I go for another M.S at Columbia or Stanford (got accepted to both) or defer them and apply for M3 & Tuck(I did my undergrad freshman year at Dartmouth so I still have a bitter sweet feeling about not graduating from Dartmouth) to see if I get in and if I do, should I go for MBA or just go for Stanford MS or Columbia MS? Which one is more worth it if I want to just stay in tech? maybe I could go for TPM route? Any advice?

Anyone working in investment banking here and could help me a bit in a case study that would make or break my dream job offer (its all I've ever wanted). All I can do is give you lots of prayers and good karma in return!

I’m 21 and graduating this December with a Communication Studies degree. Long-term, I want to build my own media/entertainment company focused on original short films, web series, podcasts, and digital content, primarily aimed at Black and faith-based audiences.

I’m considering getting an MBA while I work and build the company on the side.

For entrepreneurs or creatives who’ve gotten an MBA: was it actually worth the time and money? Did it genuinely help you build and scale a company, or would you recommend learning through experience instead?

I am planning to apply R2 to some of the T15s and was talking to a few consultants to get a sense of where I’d have a realistic shot at. Most of them told me that my resume and my essays would need serious work. Is this something they say to everyone as a sales pitch or I may be seriously lacking? I think I have created a decent application by myself and not sure what value they could add beyond making a few edits.