MBA versus work?

[JanusthePhoenix]

I think I need a second (or third or fourth...) set of eyes on this. I am faced with the decision of keeping on with school next fall and doing my MBA at the brick and mortar state university, or just going to work after getting my degree in December/January (if all goes well). For the sake of argument, the degree will only cost me time and the opportunity cost of not working, since I have the GI Bill.

My concern is that all this constant book-learning won't be as effective as getting some more first-hand work experience first before going back to school. The obvious concern on the other hand is the job market as it is sucks right now, and staying in school instead of swimming upstream in the job river makes a lot of sense.

The experience value, skill-building, and real-world education is my main concern at the moment. I have considered the possibility of internship while in school, but I don't know how difficult it would be to be doing school full-time plus that. Thoughts?

[alleycat]

I would get may MBA and do the intership. It is way harder to go to school and work fulltime. The intership could only be 1 or 2 semesters long. They do not generally expect someone there 40 hrs a week. Also it could help you find a job. In this economy I would get as much education done while it is down, so when it picks up you are ready to roll.

Have you located an MBA program yet? How long is it if you have? The one that I have looked into says can be done in 1 yrs time. That is 2 classes a semester and they 5 semesters. Manageable.

Good Luck

[skyfall123]

One of the big advantages of a B&M MBA is that you build a network of contacts that hopefully will last a lifetime...if the school is good then they should already have many companies lined up to offer jobs to MBA grads (in my neck of the woods this is the case)....your current MBA program should also teach relevant theory and discuss case studies that apply to today's economy...a lot has changed. So best case scenario is that you get the education and a job offer as you exit the program.

Otherwise....there are a lot of areas within the government (procurement/contracting especially) that are looking for applicants with business degrees/experience. Here is the Army link, but there are links for governemnt wide jobs. The problem in government procurement is that all the gray hairs are retiring, which has left a glut of procuerment job opportunities.
Army Contracting Command | Career Opportunities

Why not get your MBA then work for the federal govt or a company that works as a contractor for the govt.?

[cookderosa]

I think I need a second (or third or fourth...) set of eyes on this. I am faced with the decision of keeping on with school next fall and doing my MBA at the brick and mortar state university, or just going to work after getting my degree in December/January (if all goes well). For the sake of argument, the degree will only cost me time and the opportunity cost of not working, since I have the GI Bill.

My concern is that all this constant book-learning won't be as effective as getting some more first-hand work experience first before going back to school. The obvious concern on the other hand is the job market as it is sucks right now, and staying in school instead of swimming upstream in the job river makes a lot of sense.

The experience value, skill-building, and real-world education is my main concern at the moment. I have considered the possibility of internship while in school, but I don't know how difficult it would be to be doing school full-time plus that. Thoughts?

I think you're pros/cons look good. You have to look at what kind of work you can get- if you're talking about selling TVs at Best Buy, I'd vote for the MBA (no disrespect to the Best Buy worker
If you have the option, consider yourself fortunate. Many people have the desire but lack the ability to leave the work force (thus online learning and CLEP are so appealing!!) or their job is too demanding- family resources need to pay for things like diapers or groceries...
I'd just ask this- do you want the MBA? If so, go ahead and do it now. If life, family, and the "right" job are not in the way- it seems to me that this is a perfect time. If you don't get it now- then when? Later might mean a balancing act and part time study.
I don't know your age, so that might mean different answers. Let me say it this way, if you don't yet have a lot of work experience, a part time job while in school is a good plan for anyone. Use it as a way to work your way in for a "real job" when you graduate. It's networking now for later. Find a great company, and get your foot in the door. My grandfather's 35 years with John Deere started as a guard- even though that wasn't his training- but he got in and worked at creating a good reputation as a hard worker and eventually took the steps necessary to get promotions in to better departments, and was a forman for more than 20 of those years. I know that story may seem a little dated, but I'm just using it as an example of how you can use the years during school doing grunt work for the right people to land a great job at graduation.

[JanusthePhoenix]

@ Alleycat: Boise State University is a stone's throw away from me, so I figured I would go there. They only have two MBA offerings, general and accounting focus, and I was thinking general (studying accounting, to me, has roughly the same effect of shooting a tranquilizer dart directly into my brain). They say it can be done in as little as a year, if you show enough proficiency in the basics from the get go. Otherwise it is more like two years.

@ Geezer: Government work was actually the job alternative I was looking at, though not contracting so much. It is something I am interested in, and definitely want to get into no matter what I do as far as school goes. One of the reasons I was even considering skipping grad school for now is that I am impatient to get to it, just like I was when I joined the navy out of high school. :p

@ cookderosa: I'm 23...so yeah, I'm light on work experience. Yes, I do want it though, so you're right: I guess I had better go get it.

Thanks, everyone for your input. Geezer does make a good point about the case studies and up-to-date theory in the classroom. That would be a nice change, after working on 2 or 3 year old case studies about AIG and Ford for Business Policy.

[MISin08]

It's easy to develop commitments and things that tie you down, then before you know it you're on an online forum looking for a way to do your degree while working full time....If I were able to not work while doing school, I would jump on it so fast...dream degree, here I come...so that's the easy recommendation. On the other hand, if you could afford to something not-work and not-school, even short term, that might be good both for the soul and for the resume. Volunteer work, travel, something else you can talk about afterward when asked what you uniquely offer might be beneficial...just a thought.

Phillip