MBA or Keep Going in Consulting?
Ultimate Question: What do you recommend I do and why?
Intro:
- I am a 31 yo Caucasian Manager in our Marketing & Sales Practice at ACN making ~$170k a year + bonuses. 700 GMAT (bad quant, killer verbal). 5 years at ACN; 5 years at a boutique consulting firm before that
- I applied to a few MBA programs on a whim late in the 2021 cycle (Northwestern PT Evenings (rejected), Wharton E-MBA FT (reject) & JHU Carey FT (Full Ride)).
- Other relevant info:
- 1) I am not hurting for cash
- 2) My professional network is very strong as is.
Pros of going to an MBA program now:
1) Dedicated time to learn good skills
2) Lots of higher positions like candidates to have an MBA
3) More corporate flexibility (i.e. easier to obtain jobs of different variety with an MBA)
Cons of going to an MBA program now:
1) Loss of ~400k income and 2 years of real-world experience and ability to negotiate for new jobsPros of JHU:
1) Full Ride
2) Strong focus on healthcare/biotech
3) 90% of faculty comes from top B-SchoolsCons of JHU:
1) It's not a top program so networking opportunities in the B-School are likely more limited
2) MBB does not recruit from here
3) I have read that many incoming students are foreign students - which could be both a good and bad thingRoadmaps that I am considering:Option 1
1) Defer JHU admission to next year if they give me a full-ride next year, too.
2) Try and interview for new roles in the mean time to see what I can land in the market
3) Apply earlier to better MBA programs in this upcoming cycle keeping JHU in my backpocketOption 2
1) Do not even consider MBA given where I am in my career.
Thoughts? What do you think I should do?
Thank you!!!!
- lnghrn
MBB is still interviewing experienced hires at the post-MBA level. Why not apply directly?
Regardless of the financial opportunity cost, you may want to consider just the addition to your personal network. You may meet your future partner there (you might regardless of your current status, sadly as many MBAs find out), and you'll develop a huge network of great friends you'll hopefully stay in touch with for the rest of your life, and will get you access to places and things you might not have otherwise. Example: me, got MBA late in life, found partner there, and after 7 years in industry I decided to go MBB. Now I've also met people in my same career path but got MBB without an MBA. However, I literally had 40-50 people from school I could call upon for either an internal referral or casing. I've also made a ton of new 'personal' friends that are in some ways stronger than my undergrad because I have much more in common lifestyle and career-wise. Our kids hang out together, I call them randomly when I fly into a city and often before other types of acquaintances. Very hard to make this huge increase in personal friendships as you get into your 30s/40s.
Finally, you are where you are now- but what might happen in 5, 10 years? It doesn't hurt to have options, and may also help your internal promotion speed depending on your industry.
My sibling was applying to MBA programs last year — do not, at any time, go to JHU MBA. Heard horrible things about the quality of students there, and brand recognition is poor.
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