Is an MBA Necessary: Have You Passed The Point of Getting Your MBA?

Whether to pursue an MBA or not is a big decision. Why do you want to go to a business school now? Why are you willing to give up two years of income and spend around $80,000 to get this degree? If you can’t explain that, your judgment would be called into question. While some decisions are easy to take and are clear enough, some other decisions seem complex. High-ranked executives decide to get it, while triumphant entrepreneurs say they don’t require it. Reasons to pursue an MBA cover the full extent. It is possible for you to be in the middle of weighing the pros and cons of the degree, but you need to take a much rational decision. 

Usually people evaluate their career in the four-to-six-year mark—after finishing undergrad and being on the job. You may not be looking to make any major changes, but you might be feeling stagnant. This might be one of the reasons for your desire to take on new responsibilities or to move up the ranks. An MBA degree can probably accelerate your plans, but at the same time you can also reach the same goals without it and without incurring the cost. Sit, and consider both your personal and financial goals. On your personal basis, it should involve a clear and thoughtful analysis of your career interests and ambitions including the job functions and work cultures that should be consistent with your interests, values, and passions essentially. Considering financial goals, pursuing an MBA degree should not be viewed as a credential that will yield immediate financial gain. Undoubtedly, post MBA salaries are very good; however, the return on investment will often take two to five years to achieve given business school costs. You need to spend ample time on assessing your career interests and satisfaction prior to accepting MBA admission.

An MBA degree is certainly a credential that will help develop the qualities for someone to be successful in their career, but the question that still lies unanswered is, whether to go for an MBA or not. The response to it depends on the individual and their competencies and how they think they can utilize the MBA program to progress in their career. An MBA degree can undoubtedly add striking value to an individual’s professional brand and provide an opportunity for greater consideration by companies selecting new employees as well as individuals for upper management tracks. But the ultimate perplexity—MBA credential or not—is based on an individual’s past success.

There is definitely nobody who has been held back or has a barrier placed in their career because they didn’t have an MBA. People are still successful despite of not holding an MBA degree. And an MBA only really comes into play if you’re in an organization that requires one to take a step forward. Success will come anyway, MBA only contributes to faster promotions, higher salary packages and wider recognition. An MBA degree can be handy for those wanting to expand their knowledge at a faster pace. The belief is that a person entering an MBA program is looking to progress in their career and progression is often most closely linked with managing people, and managing companies, and managing processes, and wanting to succeed and progress in their career. So the whole notion of the curriculum in most business schools is around that concept of helping people manage and improve their capabilities in those areas. So, if someone is looking to fast track his/her career and looking to progress in their career, an MBA would definitely be a good choice.

Even as a successful entrepreneur, some people find an MBA program that fits to their needs and their schedule. An MBA degree is not necessarily a ticket to career advancement or progression. An individual’s competencies, skills, ability to manage, leadership styles, urge to achieve sustainable results for a company and promote themselves—those are the key components of career success and advancement. An MBA program only helps to reach these goals at a higher pace. The MBA program enhances an individual’s skills to structure his future goals and motivates the individual to gain more perfection in his skills and areas of interest. An MBA program teaches managing resources and managing people, ultimately leading to benefit the organization. So, your decision whether to pursue the MBA program or not solely depends on how you analyze your skills and how you correlate your past accomplishments with your future career goals. You need to think over how you would benefit yourself and improve your skills. However, the MBA program does not bring success to you; it only helps sharpen your skills to succeed in a little while.