The MBA Experience: What I Wish I'd Known Then

Learning from other graduates' MBA experiences can be beneficial to having a smooth time of your own. The MBA degree, is now probably the world's most popular and widely recognised post-graduate qualification. But, with the benefit of hindsight, do MBA graduates really believe that it's been worth all the effort involved?

According to a recent poll by the QS World MBA Tour, there are almost no MBAs who regret having taken the qualification, but a significant proportion do wish that they had approached their studies in a different way. One of the most common regrets centres on a lack of planning for the programme and for the wider business school experience.

One respondent to the survey, who took his MBA at Henley Management School in the UK, expressed a view widely held when he said that, "I was too busy winding up my previous job to read around those subjects such as finance and accounting, which were going to be relatively new to me. If I'd found the time to do more preliminary work, I would have found the first few months a whole lot easier and consequently more productive. In my experience, the earlier you start thinking about and preparing for an MBA, the better."

Talk to alumni

This call for more preparation is strongly supported by Pauline Lee an MBA from Manchester Business School in the UK. "It's really essential to talk to people who have already gone through the programme you are looking at," she says. It saves any sort of gap in expectations developing. According to Ms Lee, this is particularly important when it comes to understanding the amount of work you will be expected to undertake. "It wasn't a problem for me because I had come from a very demanding job, but it can be a bit of a shock for some people to find themselves still working at 3 o'clock in the morning!"

Team working

Originally from mainland China, Lixun Gong travelled to the USA to take his MBA at the Tuck School and now works for Citigroup in Hong Kong. "I chose the US because it's still the leading country for business education and studying there would also give me first-hand experience of the most advanced economy in the world." For him, one of the biggest surprises about taking an MBA, was just how much emphasis is placed on the team, rather than on the individual. "Despite all the research I did beforehand, I don't think that I had really taken on board how important teamwork is on an MBA. Not only does it teach you how to work efficiently with different types of people, but it also helps you to build a network of friends and colleagues from around the world."

Looking back on their time at business school, many experienced MBAs maintain that they should have thought more about what they were going to do for a job once they had graduated. "An MBA is an excellent badge of quality, but, from a career point of view, it has to be used as part of an overall package of skills, experience and academic qualifications," says Mike Holmes of the MBA careers service. "There are still too many candidates who fail to gear their studies towards the sort of work they want to do when they graduate. Focusing on what the job market is likely to offer at the end of your programme is a very wise investment of time and effort."

The holistic picture

However, as Pauline Lee points out, researching the school, the programme and the likelihood of finding that dream job on graduating is just part of the picture. What talking to current students and alumni can also do for you is to prepare you for a completely life-changing experience. "Leaving work to study again, particularly if you are going to be doing it overseas, can take some adjusting to, so make sure that the school, your fellow students and the environment are exactly right for you. And whatever you do, don't forget to ask about the weather in the country where the school is based - it's amazing just how much it can affect you, when you're far from home.

Source: QS TopMBA.com Career Guide