By PAUL DAVIS (Wake Forest University, MBA ’11)I was at my weekly trivia night at a local bar when I was stopped by another young professional who is set to enter an evening MBA program that I just completed. Conversation initially focused on 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 gave a short answer, rating my experience a seven or eight. I gave some lip service to the fact that I was better positioned now from a career perspective, which made up for the turmoil and sacrifice of the past two years. But I really slightly him with my response.
In totality, one should split the scoring up. Five of the 10 points, I believe, 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 half of the experience and deliver half of the ultimate reward and accomplishment. The remaining five points are really up to the MBA candidate. You alone are responsible for choosing electives, joining clubs/organizations, reading the books and 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.
So, what I should have told him was that I rated the school at a four. There were some shortcomings, but in the end I felt as thought I had gleaned immeasurable knowledge from the program. I rate myself a four … knowing that there were opportunities missed, networking that was overlooked and books that were never fully read and absorbed. Knowing this now will help each of you as you prepare to get all you can from your program.
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