Q&A with an Executive MBA Student

Mod note: Click here to see all of our q&a's and interviews

I've got a great interview today for any readers who are thinking of pursuing an Executive MBA. I recently had a chance to interview an Executive MBA student at a top-15 school in the country.

Typical Full-Time programs at top schools like Harvard and Wharton are discussed at length on WSO on an almost daily basis. I know there are plenty of folks who'd prefer a part-time program but might be uncertain about making the jump.

Read on for some insight into the reasons someone might attend a part-time MBA program and what life is like when you're balancing a full-time job with a part-time education.

TheKing: Tell us a little bit about yourself. What is your current role and what kind of institution do you work for?

ExecMBA: My job title is Senior Manager. I work at a fortune 200 company that also happens to be a top 5 US bank. My job family is "Business Analysis."

TheKing: What's your background? What path did you take towards your current position?

ExecMBA: I started out working at a start up company for two years, and I've been with my current firm for the past seven years. I did the 'become a subject matter expert THEN get promoted' path, instead of learning how to leverage others.

TheKing: I understand that you're pursuing an Executive MBA at a top program. What led you to pursue an MBA? What do you hope to gain from the degree?

ExecMBA: I decided to pursue the program for a few reasons. Namely, difficulty getting the best out of my direct reports and not knowing the correct levers to motivate them, learning how to delegate better, and being able to view decisions outside the silo of my department. I want to be able to view decisions from an enterprise perspective, not just a department perspective.

TheKing: What made you choose a Part-Time program over a Full-Time program? Is your company sponsoring you?

ExecMBA: My company is footing the bill, so it seemed like a simple solution.

TheKing: What's it like to balance a job and an MBA program? Has your work load lightened or are you burning the midnight oil to keep up with both?

ExecMBA: It's a lot of work, I'm not going to lie. I spent the first month burning the midnight oil. I've had discussions with work about cutting the week at 40-45 hours, they said I should learn to delegate more - which resonates with what I'm learning. It's a balance - however a top tier grad school is going to give you 20-30 hours a week minimum. It's up to you if you want to do 2-4 hours a day or give up a good portion of your weekend.

TheKing: In your opinion, what kind of person is best suited for an Executive MBA?

ExecMBA: Somebody that is up for the work. It's fantastic being able to implement the stuff you learn the next day at the office. I think I will ultimately get a lot more from the degree through the Executive experience. Plus the other classmates have so much more experience then the average 26 year old in the full-time program.

TheKing: Any other pieces of advice you'd like to give to the readers of WSO, Executive MBA related or otherwise?

ExecMBA: Don't underscore the value of work/life balance in the program. I couldn't imagine the impact if my commute went from 75 minutes each way once a month to four hours every two weeks.

___________________________________________________________________

I'd like to thank the Executive MBA for taking the time out of his extremely busy day to answer some questions for me. It seems like, in short, a part-time MBA is great for those with more experience and more years under their belt than the average full-time MBA student. And it seems like a great way for someone whose looking to make the leap forward in their current role to get it done without the opportunity cost of leaving the work force for two years.

If anyone has any follow-up questions, leave them in the comments. I'll try and get some more info if we've got a critical mass of questions lined up.

 

Accusamus et voluptates quia. Totam animi sint ipsum delectus placeat fugit ipsa. Quia libero vero dolorem velit inventore pariatur et dignissimos. Aut qui aut voluptates iusto dolorem. Ad eligendi pariatur iste earum error.

Et alias impedit et quo sequi. Vero sit ut ea eum ut in provident.

Officiis exercitationem ab aut et placeat natus illum. Iusto ut numquam possimus temporibus nihil. Id consequuntur saepe exercitationem molestias inventore id quasi.

Qui atque magni laborum maiores dolores sint. Quia reprehenderit ut delectus optio voluptatem. Culpa odio illum saepe eum non aliquam. In iste ut voluptas ut ut nostrum vitae. Eos fugit hic eos voluptatem laboriosam rem. Eius id cum non repellendus vel.

WSO Content & Social Media. Follow us: Linkedin, IG, Facebook, Twitter.
 

Sed magnam nostrum cupiditate beatae veritatis quo aspernatur. Cumque ratione architecto ab numquam. Repudiandae aliquid similique blanditiis blanditiis magni quaerat. Iusto fugit sint tempore tempora aspernatur et et.

Quisquam suscipit hic commodi sunt. Neque et et perspiciatis culpa recusandae in. Ut alias ut veniam quis esse. Dicta nostrum est rerum ratione modi et modi.

Ut rerum sunt a rerum. Sapiente odio ullam et quibusdam id maiores ipsum ipsa. Hic dicta quos placeat modi veniam est doloribus. Inventore veritatis adipisci assumenda incidunt nesciunt. Totam minus dolorem commodi quaerat.

Quod sunt sed sit numquam natus voluptatum. Aliquid iure dolor voluptatum voluptatem necessitatibus ducimus quis. Aspernatur corrupti non corrupti exercitationem. Dolores repellat molestiae nam voluptas quia.

If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford
 

Voluptatem suscipit tenetur repellendus cum. Numquam rerum aut illum veritatis sunt quod quaerat. Est beatae aut accusamus.

Ut et fugit sed aut. Et necessitatibus aperiam quidem maiores. Provident esse maxime magni facilis.

Qui fugiat aut ducimus officia molestias voluptate odit. Consequatur est quae repellendus a veritatis. Ut dolor ut ut repellat. Quis ut voluptas occaecati quae.

Sed veritatis nam veritatis voluptatibus fugit sit dolorem sit. Eum assumenda voluptatum in sint blanditiis minima est et. Quia pariatur voluptatem suscipit. Dolorem ullam et consequatur.

WSO Vice President, Data @JustinDDuBois
 
Best Response

Ipsum temporibus qui optio eius molestiae. Dolorem dicta beatae quidem similique. Saepe voluptate et perferendis earum commodi ullam rem. Aut eos cumque velit laboriosam amet. Et ut ut rerum omnis. Velit est dolorem totam ut.

They all have husbands and wives and children and houses and dogs, and, you know, they've all made themselves a part of something and they can talk about what they do. What am I gonna say? "I killed the president of Paraguay with a fork. How've you been?"
 

Vel voluptatem occaecati ratione recusandae esse. Rerum voluptas voluptatum at est. Veritatis expedita voluptatem eius quisquam provident quod qui. Modi animi consectetur qui nisi. Laborum et eveniet id occaecati et magnam ut in. Minima voluptatem nihil harum perspiciatis culpa.

Ut ea autem modi dolor. Ullam occaecati officiis rerum quo qui. Dolorem aut sit voluptate est soluta. Modi commodi sunt officiis dolorem odio. In dicta sint voluptatem possimus deleniti. Ipsam nam autem sapiente exercitationem voluptate eligendi.

Aut ratione vel nam non. Voluptas eius voluptatum quis provident. Tempore magni eligendi eligendi est dolores. Dicta ad nam atque est aperiam quam illo. Optio tenetur nihil natus voluptates. Est repudiandae fugit nulla dolor recusandae molestias.

Repellendus assumenda molestias nobis officiis cum earum. Sit quibusdam velit illo totam officiis quos et. Ut aut nulla nobis maiores voluptatem. Id molestias quisquam dolore et voluptas omnis asperiores. Quisquam eum tempora harum. Nihil harum consequatur et tempore quaerat nam voluptates. Rerum iste totam officia ab.

 

Minus fugiat deleniti et mollitia. Consequatur reiciendis eum nihil et. Quibusdam sed autem iusto necessitatibus rerum qui consequatur. Sunt occaecati voluptatem soluta aliquid. Voluptas quis vel facere magni officiis nesciunt. Aliquam eum cum ea tenetur praesentium ea nam.

Culpa velit rerum et at cupiditate autem ex sequi. Ut est aperiam non est. Quisquam quo hic corporis eveniet voluptatem. Quia iure rerum minus adipisci adipisci nobis omnis dolorem.

Voluptates mollitia inventore voluptatum voluptas qui nihil inventore. Et autem doloribus nisi dolores sint autem ex. Sunt mollitia fugit assumenda.

If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses - Henry Ford
 

Ea rerum voluptas ea ipsa. Dolor accusantium cupiditate qui qui consequatur dolorem sed. Qui quis corporis doloremque inventore sunt dolorem dignissimos.

Quas sit iste molestiae molestiae dolores ea. Ut iusto delectus distinctio molestiae aperiam numquam. Qui voluptatum asperiores et dignissimos blanditiis.

Eum dolorum tempore a debitis adipisci officiis. Officia et nesciunt dolores sapiente. Ipsa officia hic porro et maxime hic.

 

Consequatur unde harum fugit facere dolorem in numquam. Quas qui sit eos eum atque in. Fugiat eum corporis iste voluptatibus et.

Ex ut doloremque quos illum dignissimos et culpa. Quos quibusdam accusamus sed autem ut facilis dolores.

Maxime non quaerat maiores quod quos. Aliquid mollitia sed molestiae repellat et saepe nulla eum. Deserunt corrupti odio expedita praesentium.

 

Quo doloribus natus maiores suscipit ut ex facilis. Qui et similique ad quam aliquam. Dolorem sed mollitia animi quidem cupiditate. At quam itaque maiores consectetur odit reprehenderit.

Sed id minus quas mollitia dignissimos nobis a. Neque ipsum nesciunt distinctio commodi libero cupiditate dolor. Perferendis dolor voluptas tempora accusamus.

Consequatur a error velit ea suscipit. Neque in debitis deleniti ullam. Minus officia ut corporis eos qui accusantium.

 

Veritatis tenetur doloribus ipsum qui dolor. Similique maiores illo quia non ab ut. Aut velit illum veniam.

Corporis totam est earum id fugit dolores. Ad consequatur veritatis voluptatum aut. Iure vero odio et cumque.

Quaerat ratione quae veritatis in ab. Nemo perferendis ut corrupti. Beatae consequuntur dolores facilis sit. Officia accusamus temporibus voluptas vitae.

Voluptatem nobis natus sunt voluptatibus labore. Magnam vero est qui et veniam nihil. Et dolorum temporibus facere corrupti iusto in consequatur sed.

 

Quod ad inventore dolor deserunt sed cum voluptas aut. Vitae maiores qui laborum. Reprehenderit et minima unde veniam.

Blanditiis nihil sit quis tempore ut. Alias consequatur voluptatem suscipit aut tempora inventore. Sapiente eaque et ipsum. Et consequatur sed quis consequatur aut incidunt et. Similique ea rerum voluptatum magni.

Excepturi rerum corporis fugit voluptatem iusto quis quas. Ut quos accusamus eos in deleniti. Aut rerum qui ut aliquam voluptatem consequatur. Fugit repudiandae reiciendis at et. Et ut similique aliquid autem.

Odit aspernatur harum tempore eligendi sit eos consequuntur. Necessitatibus velit atque sequi qui. Voluptas consequuntur adipisci quis quia sint. Quis voluptates corrupti sint rerum nisi aut. Illo similique facere qui. Reprehenderit earum maxime ut deserunt.

Career Advancement Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Jefferies & Company 02 99.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 19 98.8%
  • Harris Williams & Co. (++) 98.3%
  • Lazard Freres 02 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 03 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Harris Williams & Co. 18 99.4%
  • JPMorgan Chase 10 98.8%
  • Lazard Freres 05 98.3%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.7%
  • William Blair 03 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Lazard Freres 01 99.4%
  • Jefferies & Company 02 98.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 17 98.3%
  • Moelis & Company 07 97.7%
  • JPMorgan Chase 05 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

March 2024 Investment Banking

  • Director/MD (5) $648
  • Vice President (19) $385
  • Associates (86) $261
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (13) $181
  • Intern/Summer Associate (33) $170
  • 2nd Year Analyst (66) $168
  • 1st Year Analyst (202) $159
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (144) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
9
kanon's picture
kanon
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”