EMBA ROI
Does anyone have an opinion on an EMBA in terms of career and networking value add? So some context on myself, my career outcome so far is better than the median top MBA graduate with about 7 years of experience from a title and comp standpoint. However, I’m realizing there could be downside protection - ease of finding another similar role - and also career advancement opportunities in the job market at the director plus level with an MBA. I think this because just perusing LinkedIn, it seems like a lot of companies still value the MBA in leadership even within software and in general “technology”, which is the industry I work in.
My goal is to stay and advance in my space long term, but I don’t want to index my future to just my employer, which is a mature startup. If we do really well, it’d be great from a PR/branding standpoint as well as from a comp and title perspective. However, I can’t place all my chips on this positive outcome.
So I’m kind of at a crossroads on whether it’d be a net positive to pursue an EMBA or another masters degree from an ROI standpoint especially if I get promoted internally in the near-term, which is likely. My gut tells me that forking over $200k at an 8% interest rate probably doesn’t make sense as I could continue doing well at my current company or hustle a bit harder without an MBA and obtain a similar role if the need arises.
I’d like to hear alternative opinions though. So based on what you know about me and my goals, does pursuing an EMBA make sense?
where is your undergrad degree from? If no-name I personally think it is worth it but would limit it to like the top 5 programs.
The EMBA makes sense for people like you (non pivoters). Pivoting was very challenging in a hot job market like 2021, i imagine near impossible in the post-ZIRP era.
I took on 200k at ~6%. It sucks but it is doable if u keep liquidity for down years like currently when cash comp is likely lower.
The branding certainly helps subconsciously on a day-to-day basis and it certainly helped when i jobhopped in 2021 .. huge tailwind. I am not sure the doors would be as open if i was recruiting in the past 18 month bear market.
Nonetheless, I am taking the long term view. Hopefully it stands to me in my mid-40s and i get the nod to lead a business or geography. Or downside, if i get let- go in my 40s i have the top MBA (EMBA) as a bit of a tailwind.
No name college.
The last part of your reply resonates a lot. If the MBA can meaningfully increase your chance at senior leadership, then $200k is insignificant plus you get some downside protection. Fundamentally, it makes no sense why execs would pick someone based on papered credentials for leadership when accomplishments should speak for themselves, but I believe it does happen especially if you are an external candidate but also internally. It happens even more if the team or exec making the hiring decision have MBA’s themselves.
If you’re going to do with EMBA route, make sure it’s from a top school. For example, the only EMBA worth considering in nyc is Columbia. It has the Ivy name you want, allows you to take regular MBA classes in addition to the weekend classes and even let’s your take the EA instead of the GMAT.
Since all you want is the downside protection of the MBA, I think the EMBA is a great choice for you. But it sounds like you don’t have the 225k in cash, so that would be your only concern. You said you’re title and comp after 7 years of working is high, so why don’t you have the cash saved? Does your comp allow you to pay off this loan in two years?
Because to me and MBA/EMBA isn’t worth the sticker price. I didn’t learn much. And I already have an Ivy undergrad on my resume, so it didn’t do much for me. But I was able to get my mba since the tuition cost was negligible. I had 100k just sitting in cash and my dad paid the rest. And many people I met there either had rich parents or had saved the cash themselves. Very few actually took on meaningful debt. If your situation is like mine, there’s no downside except lost weekends in class. So unless you have that luxury, I’m not sure the downside protection you get is worth the money.
If you can pay for the degree upfront or only need to take on de minimus debt, then go for it. EMBA curriculum is super easy and won’t tax you. But if you have to hurt yourself financially, I wouldn’t get it. And unless your end game is pivoting to corporate, the degree might not even be viewed favorably. In banking, no one seems to care. Just check linked in, so many bankers with degrees from crappy places, so I believe the value of the mba is shrinking, and only seems to hold weight at the fortune 100 type companies.
One other thing for you to ponder, how good is your networking? If you’re outgoing and gregarious, then you do have the chance to really improve your network and make cool connections. But if you’re shy or introverted, then you won’t really access that part of the EMBA and it’s another waste of your money.
All good points. My career hasn’t been linear, so I don’t have $200k of cash sitting around that’s not invested. So while I could clear my investment positions and pay the rest of the costs with my income, it would be sort of like trading insurance policies. In the near term, the portfolio offers tangible financial protection while the EMBA provides in a sense intangible career/income protection. In the long run, the EMBA upside could be greater if it helps my career in terms of acceleration and breaking into the c-suite but these benefits are hard to assess. As you mentioned, at least in banking, the MBA has become less important. Over time, I’d expect that to happen in other industries as well, especially as the old guard retires.
However, it’s just super surprising to see a bunch of job posts favoring or requiring an MBA for director/VP roles in tech, which seems insane to me particularly if it’s a requirement especially when compared to banking. This observation is based on a limited sample set (~15 roles), so I could be off here and would love other opinions.
You are correct that many “executive” type roles definitely prefer for candidates to have an mba. But I never see it as a requirement, it’s simply a preference or want, not a must have.
It’s easy for me to say an MBA is meaningless and you don’t need one, it’s upside is capped and it’s downside protection is limited, since I already have one in my back pocket and the cost didn’t impact me in any way. And after reading your post, I went back and looked up some former classmates, and many have pivoted to new roles, better roles. However, none of these classmates were in high finance or went into that. They are consultants, operators, fund raisers, tech managers, etc.
So, to me, while the MBA doesn’t really hold much muster in traditional investment banking circles, it does seem to be a nice feather in the cap for other industries, tech included. And remember, once you graduate, your diploma won’t say EMBA, it will say MBA, so it’s not like you’re getting a diluted or watered down Ivy League degree.
I will tell you that degrees do seem to matter to people, especially older people. I vividly remember an internship I had. And one word the managers was kind of dismissive to me at first. In a meeting I introduced myself to a client and told him what school I was at. When she realized I was at an Ivy and not a state school like the other interns, it was like a switch flipped and she all of sudden didn’t treat me like a moron.
And in a few recent meetings, my MD throws out to clients my schooling, when he never ever mentions it at work. Especially when the clients are older or we are not in the cat’s nest on a bake off.
And even myself, I tend to interview more favorably the candidates that went to my Alma mater and it definitely breaks ties for me when I submit my recommendations.
I think you need to figure out if your future will lie in things like corporate America, fundraising, sales, etc or if it will like in things like investment banking.
Camaraderie/networking would augment your career for the better. EMBA’s are a solid crowd. If you can justify the financial and time cost I’d go for it 👍
Thank you for the replies everyone. I’ve decided not to pursue an MBA right now. My career is still on an upward trajectory, and if things go right, I’ll have increased my responsibilities and title in a few months in a significant manner. I’m seeking some downside protection in the near term but an MBA decision should really be about long term upside or else it’s basically the most expensive insurance policy that one could get. I could spend time networking just in case I need to jump ship if the startup flutters and I get let go or don’t get promoted. I have plenty of time before anything negative happens, so networking at least partially or maybe fully covers my near term downside in a more effective manner from a time and obviously money standpoint vs. an MBA.
I have not written off obtaining an EMBA for long term upside, so I’ll revisit getting the degree in a year or so.
Can you do an EMBA after doing a FT-MBA program? I did an MBA at a non-target but want to get an Ivy/M7 brand on my resume 5-10 years down the line. Money isn’t an issue as I want it for the network and prestige
You can do whatever you want in terms of getting a degree, but having two MBAs on your resume would seem very odd indeed. Perhaps get a masters in finance or something similar as opposed to the same exact degree.
Just my experience, but almost everyone I have seen attend an Executive MBA program had it fully paid for by their employer, or at least the majority paid for, that is the big draw to those programs. As others have said, I would only look at top programs, especially if you are paying for it. Even then, I think its value ($200K) is limited. If you are going to take out a $200K loan why not get the full MBA experience which is much more valued than an EMBA? I understand your resume and diploma do not say "EMBA", but this information can still come out in discussions and you don't want to lie about it if asked.
If you are worried about downside protection for something that may or may not happen, I don't think jumping into an EMBA and shelling out $200K today is the answer. If things go south at your current company, it sounds like you will still have great experience under your belt. You can leverage that experience to get into a full-time MBA program and pay the $200K at that time, and I think that experience will be much more valuable than an EMBA. If things go great at your company, then you avoid taking on $200K in debt for no reason.
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