ZT form BW Forum

"Getting an MBA is a complete waste of time and might just be the most expensive mistake you'll ever make."

At least, that was the advice passed to me at an office happy hour earlier this fall. "Keep working and you'll learn everything you need to know about business," this co-worker suggested, "I mean, Bill Gates didn't need an MBA!"

Hordes of business-school naysayers will tell you the same thing and recently, experts have begun to agree. In May, 2005, the Harvard Business Review suggested that MBA programs were on the brink of becoming irrelevant. According to the authors, business schools are often more concerned with the volume of research emerging from their faculty than with the quality of students emerging from their classrooms. Increasingly, this article suggests, classes are taught by professors with strong publishing credentials and scant (if any) real-world experience. As a result, the quality and value of the education has suffered. While several schools have recently revamped their curriculums and added more business practitioners to their faculty, there's simply no way to know how well these measures have worked until graduates start making their way into the business world.

Flat Learning Curve

When I started my journey toward business school, however, none of this was on my mind. In fact, when I picked up my first GMAT guide last year, it was more about opening options and keeping my brain sharp than it was about checking a box on a B-school application. As strange as it sounds, my original impulse for taking the test came not from a desire to get an MBA but out of a lull in my project responsibilities as an operations and IT consultant.

While two-and-a-half years of consulting had been rewarding, my learning curve was beginning to level off and, not coincidentally, my zeal for the work had begun to wane. Taking the GMAT seemed like a way to combat both. Not only would I open up the possibility of going to business school if I did well, but I would give my brain a stellar workout in the process.

Fueled by this strange soup of possibility (and what my friends called test-induced masochism) I studied intensely for three months. Students at top schools usually score about 700 on the GMAT, so I made that my goal. After plowing through three study guides, countless practice problems, and half a dozen practice exams, I outpaced my target by 20 points. Not long after my score flashed across my test center's computer screen, an understandable thought came to me: I should apply to business school!

Not a Traditional Applicant

Fortunately, an afternoon in the career section of my local bookstore helped me realize two very important facts. First, I had spent a lot more time thinking about the GMAT than I had about business school. Second, there seemed to be as many reasons not to go to business school as there were to go. I would need a pretty good reason—preferably many—if I was actually going to apply.

Sure enough, a few months after my test, reasons began to appear.

First, a mentor suggested that I might enjoy strategy consulting and offered to share my résumé with a recruiter. I was certainly not a traditional applicant. Having graduated in 2003, I was older than the typical entry-level associate and would need an MBA to apply as a consultant. But I was keen to explore a different career option, and I jumped at the chance when the firm invited me to interview.

The MBA Was the Common Denominator

While I didn't get an offer, I loved the experience. I particularly enjoyed studying for the case interviews and I immediately wanted to master that way of thinking, that clean method of attacking a real problem. "Hey," I thought, "isn't that what business school teaches you?" Happily, I also discovered that strategy consulting is my kind of brain candy and that a top-tier MBA would make me a much more competitive candidate at the best strategy firms.

Making a cool career change seemed like an outstanding reason to get a business degree, and so did my love of strategic thinking. But the people I'd met during my interview were fascinating in their own right. They were consultants, sure, but they had also been entrepreneurs, world travelers, and leaders. The common denominator among them was an MBA, and I immediately recognized the value inherent in a business-school network.

Once I started to list these reasons, I naturally added a few more. To start, a top MBA would supplement my BA in English and Economics by strengthening my formal business education. It would also put a well-known name on my academic résumé. While that might sound shallow, I've come to respect the power of name recognition. I had a stellar undergraduate experience at Trinity University, but Trinity simply isn't a household name.

Huge Price Tag

Doing well at any of the best B-schools would give me academic muscle and a globally recognized alma mater.

So, now that I've established why I want to get an MBA, does the huge price tag and doubts about the degree's value still make me think twice? Absolutely. But my reasons make sense, and I'm confident that the journey will be well worth the cost. Thousands of people must feel the same way. Despite tough criticism, MBA programs have seen application numbers surge in recent years. Indeed, as this application season gets under way, business schools are reporting the strongest applications level in years. That tells me sharp business minds are still flocking to the top schools. As long as that's true, the worth of the degree will remain.

Then again, my decision reaches beyond the cultural and economic trends facing MBA programs. Ultimately, I want to adjust the trajectory of my career and strengthen the experiences and knowledge I've gained so far. Business school looks like a great way to accomplish those goals.