Are you looking for career leverage, a turning point that brings new change, respect from people and a higher salary? Are you thinking of an MBA as a means to reach your goals?
Or, maybe you think an added credential will make your Resume stand out and you can easily land your desired job. Or perhaps you’re a college senior contemplating obtaining your MBA right after your undergraduate degree?
Regardless of your reasons, an MBA can meet all your demands – career acceleration, higher position, professional knowledge enhancement, with just one condition: you have to choose the right MBA program (in terms of major, competency, and finance).
Types of MBA
One of the questions you’ll need to answer is whether you are interested in a general MBA, which is often shorter in duration, or a specialized MBA, which may take longer but make you more marketable.
In a general MBA, the core topics you’ll encounter include:
Accounting
Quantitative analysis
Economics
Marketing
Organizational behavior
Specialized MBAs offer more advanced study in a particular area of business (such as marketing) or a particular industry. Therefore, you need to determine your needs to choose the program the offers the right values. If you are searching for a big push that fast tracks your career, snagging an MBA from one of the top schools in the country may be the ticket. But, if you’re looking to simply get ahead and move your careers along, don’t discount the many MBA programs that are unranked but that offer you the degree and value you need.
MBA Costs — and Returns
According to an international salary guide, an MBA is worth about id=”mce_marker”0-30,000 a year over a bachelor’s degree, but the salary increase you could see may be much less — or much more. Factors that can affect your salary include:
Whether you stay with your current employer or seek a job with a new employer.
The amount of relevant experience you have for the job you are seeking.
The reputation of the graduate school you attended.
The type of job you are seeking — and the level of supply/demand for workers.
The industries where you are seeking a job.
The location of the jobs you are seeking.
But don’t forget to factor in the costs as well, with the average cost of graduate study leading to an MBA at about $30,000. Tuition is about $50,000 at Wake Forest University, one of the premier MBA programs, while closer to id=”mce_marker”2,000 at Stetson University.
In Vietnam, an international MBA delivered by prestigious professors costs much lower, for example, id=”mce_marker”2000 for a course at Maastricht, $9000 at South Columbia University, CHF 11000 at Northwestern University (MBA-MCI). Attending an international MBA also gives you opportunities to go on a study trip (up to a few months) at the foreign school.
What an MBA Can Do for Your Career
If you want to get higher, an MBA may be just the ticket you need. According to a study by Accountemps, a global temporary staffing service for accounting and finance professionals, 80 percent of executives responding to the survey said that a graduate degree in business is still important to reach senior management ranks within most companies.
In the booming economy and business, the need for MBA talent is more urging than ever. And there is growing evidence that having an MBA not only gives you more leverage in dictating new job titles and salary, but also helps you achieve a better balance between work and life outside work (fewer hours working, faster problem solving…).
So, once you have made the firm decision to attend a graduate business program, there’s no reason to hold back. However, here’s the final advice we’d like to offer: Whatever you do, don’t follow the trend and jump into an MBA program without doing all the necessary research and introspection. As you’ve gathered all the necessary information, you don’t have to worry about failing anymore!
(Reference: Quintessential Career Sources)
