Fully Assessing the Business School Experience

Paul Davis

I was at a trivia night at a local establishment recently when I was stopped by another young professional who had just entered the evening MBA program I had completed. The conversation initially focused on the classes, professors and academic expectations, but he then asked a very simple question: "On a scale of 1 to 10 … was it worth all the stress and upheaval to earn the MBA?"

Admittedly, I was taken aback and provided a short answer, giving my experience a relatively high mark. I expressed a belief that I was better positioned now from a long-term career perspective, which made up for the turmoil and sacrifice of the previous years. In hindsight, I may have slighted him with an overly simplistic response.

In totality, one should split the scoring up. Half of the theoretical 10 points, I assert, are in the hands of the school. The professors they hire, the way the curriculum is set up, the activities that are available … all of those things really make up a portion of the experience and deliver half of the ultimate reward and accomplishment.

The remaining fulfillment is really up to the individual MBA candidate. You alone are responsible for choosing electives, joining clubs/organizations, reading your text and scrutinizing cases, etc. You can choose to fully immerse yourself in the experience, or take the easy way and do just enough to pass the classes and get the degree.

With that in mind, I must acknowledge that there were some shortcomings and frustration, but in the end I felt as though I had gleaned immeasurable knowledge and perspective from the program. As for reflection, perhaps I could have taken on more, believe it or not. Sure, there were opportunities missed, networking that was overlooked and books that were never fully read and completely absorbed. But looking back, I had numerous experience outside the classroom that will benefit me for years.

Knowing this now will help each of you as you prepare to get all you can from your program.

Paul Davis (MBA Class of '11)