Anybody who has worked in business management or administration will be familiar with the MBA, a coveted and highly sought-after business degree qualification that more and more employers are actively seeking out when hiring professionals. Typically, having an MBA on your CV can be one of the best ways to stand out from the crowd when applying for new business roles, since it demonstrates that you have a solid understanding of the main pillars of business and have developed a range of skills that are highly desirable to employers today.
But is the MBA always worth it? As the workplace evolves and more alternatives become available, the MBA may not always be viewed as the holy grail of business education that it once was. While there is no way to deny that getting an MBA can still seriously improve your business career prospects or make you a better business owner, it’s worth weighing up the pros and cons to determine if making such a large investment in your education is worth it, or if there are alternatives on offer that you can use to get very similar results. Whether or not to get an MBA is a personal decision, and there’s no right or wrong answer – it’s all down to you and your goals for the future. If you’re on the fence about getting an MBA, here are some of the main things to consider before deciding if it’s the right choice for you.
Your Career Goals
Firstly, you’ll need to think about where you want your MBA qualification to take your career, and if it’s the only option for getting there. In some cases, people who get an MBA find that they might have been able to get into the exact same career path that they chose with an industry certification that would have been cheaper and faster to complete. If you have a certain career goal in mind, be sure to conduct extensive research to make sure that the MBA is the best way to get there.
Your Life Situation
It’s important to ask yourself if you’re in a good position to get an MBA right now. This business degree programme is very advanced and very intense, and if you’re currently pressed for spare time due to how much you’re juggling at once, adding an MBA into the mix might only lead to you becoming more burned out. However, that being said, if you do have some spare time that you could dedicate to studying, an online MBA like this MBA online from Aston University might be an ideal option for you to consider. Getting your MBA online provides you with a more flexible option that you can tailor around your current schedule, which can make it easier to get while working full-time, raising a family, or both.
What Your Employer Thinks
Many people decide to get an MBA because they feel that they have hit a wall in their career and need to boost their CV to be in with a hope of any further promotions at work. If you keep getting turned down for promotions in favour of your colleagues who have gained an MBA or a similar advanced business degree, this decision will be one that makes sense. But if this isn’t the case, it’s worth having an honest conversation with your employer about your career goals to see if getting an MBA is actually something that they are looking for, or if they’d prefer you to achieve something else. The last thing that you want is to invest a huge amount of time and effort into getting your MBA only to continue being passed over for promotions.
Your Financial Situation
Getting an MBA can be an expensive endeavour. While the investment that you make can certainly provide lucrative returns when it comes to the job roles and promotions that you might be eligible for in the future, it’s worth considering whether or not getting an MBA is affordable to you right now. The good news is that you don’t always have to pay out of pocket, and even in situations where you do need to cover the cost yourself, most good universities offer flexible payment options or personal loan options that you can use to spread the cost instead of paying upfront. It is worth exploring what you might be eligible for in terms of student loans, grants and scholarships. If your employer is on board with your getting an MBA, they might also be able to help with paying towards some or all of the tuition cost.
Choosing a University
The universities that are available to you is also important when deciding whether or not getting an MBA is worth it. Along with location restrictions if you are going to study for your MBA in a traditional campus setting, it’s also important to look at the entry requirements to make sure that you are a good candidate. Most of the time, you will be expected to have gained a bachelor’s degree in a business-related subject and have extensive business experience to get an MBA. However, some programmes will skip over the undergraduate degree requirement if you have equivalent experience, such as running your own business or working in a management position for several years.
MBA Concentration
Finally, it’s worth finding out if there is an MBA concentration available that’s a good fit for where you want your career to eventually end up. Most of the time, the general MBA degree programme will be a good fit for the majority of students looking to take their business career further. However, if you have a specific career goal in mind, it’s a good idea to explore whether getting an MBA that focuses more on a certain area of business, such as finance or marketing, is a better option for you.
While the MBA is still a very sought-after qualification in the business world, the growth of alternative qualifications means that it might not be the best fit for everyone. Keep the above factors in mind to help you decide if getting an MBA is the right career step for you.
