My Career 2 Years After Getting My MBA Online
🎓 Why I Decided to Pursue an MBA
My career started in tech after getting an undergraduate degree in business marketing. Within 5-6 years, I had what I would consider a pretty successful run:
- Worked at one of the largest tech companies in the world
- Had roles in sales, merchandising, analytics, product management
- Got promoted often, with my income continuing to grow at a satisfactory rate
However, many of my colleagues held MBA degrees, some even from prestigious universities like Yale, Harvard, and MIT. Although not having an MBA hadn't been a barrier in my career so far, I couldn't be certain it wouldn't become one in the future, especially as I looked into management positions. In fact, an MBA was often listed as a preferred or required degree for some roles.
To me, having an MBA would hedge my bets and make me more competitive in the job market. It seemed like a wise investment to future-proof my career trajectory and open doors to higher-level opportunities down the line.
🎓 Choosing the Right MBA Program
After much introspection and research, I came to a few key conclusions about how I wanted to approach earning an MBA degree:
Affordability and ROI: Since my income was already nearing six figures and on an upward trajectory, the incremental salary benefit an MBA would bring would be relatively small. To make the investment worthwhile, I needed to find an affordable program. An inexpensive MBA would provide a better return on investment (ROI).
Flexibility to Continue Working: Losing two years of work experience early in my career seemed like a significant sacrifice. Work experience is generally more valuable than any degree. Therefore, the program needed to be flexible, allowing me to continue working full-time. An online MBA program emerged as the best option.
Program Reputation and Quality: While affordability and flexibility were priorities, I didn't want to compromise on the program's quality and reputation. I chose the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's online MBA program. The university itself was ranked in the top 100 globally and had strong brand recognition. It offered the same faculty, education, and rigor as their full-time program but in a convenient online format.
The University of Illinois' online MBA program ticked all the boxes. At the time, it was a newly launched program, but the cost was around $22,000 for the entire degree – a fraction of the cost of other reputable MBA programs. Even today, six years later, the affordability remains unmatched. Additionally, my employer offered tuition reimbursement, making the out-of-pocket cost even lower.
My Career Expectations with an MBA
Heading into my MBA program, my expectations were relatively modest. I didn't have plans to leverage the degree to change companies or industries. Nor did I anticipate needing the MBA for any near-term career moves – I felt I could continue progressing without it.
The main reasons I pursued an MBA were:
Hedge Against Potential Layoffs: Having an advanced degree could provide a competitive edge if I unexpectedly found myself job-hunting due to company downsizing or restructuring.
Long-Term Career Advantage: While not an absolute necessity, I figured an MBA from a reputable university could give me a slight edge later in my career, particularly when vying for senior leadership roles that sometimes listed an MBA as a preferred or required qualification.
Essentially, I viewed the MBA as a way to future-proof my career trajectory and bolster my marketability, but I had tempered expectations about any immediate impacts on my job prospects or salary.
🚀 The Surprising Reality After Earning My MBA
So those were my expectations; here's what actually happened:
If there was even a slight expectation of career advancement or salary increase, I would've expected it after earning the MBA. Not only did I get promoted to my first 6-figure job, it happened not long after starting my MBA. Granted, there were other factors that led to the promotion, but part of it was just the fact that I was pursing my MBA - it served as a signal to the hiring manager that I was motivated, ambitious, and had a desire to improve my skills. These are all extremely positive signs and gave me an advantage.
Second, just prior to me finishing the MBA, I was exploring management roles. After a number of interviews, I received an offer for a senior manager position of our ecommerce team. Getting to a senior manager role or above at a large tech company is incredibly challenging as there is just a ton of competition and higher expectations usually when it comes to years of experience. But the MBA degree ended up being one of the reasons cited for my selection.
Since then, I had received another promotion, so two promotions in the span of 2 years since earning my MBA, to add to the career advancement I had while pursing the MBA.
To be clear, it's not just the MBA that leads to promotions or career advancement. But again, I kept hearing my MBA degree come up as one of the reasons. I didn't expect that to be mentioned so often, but it made me consider the idea that different companies, organizations, and people perceive value differently. An MBA might not be that important to some organizations, but to another organization, that may be a huge benefit, which was the case here.
💡 Key Takeaways
Pursuing an MBA can yield surprising benefits beyond initial expectations, such as accelerated career advancement and promotions, even before completing the degree.
The perceived value of an MBA varies across organizations and individuals, so it's crucial to consider your unique circumstances, career goals, and the specific industry or company you're targeting.
While an MBA is not a guaranteed golden ticket, it can serve as a powerful signal of ambition, dedication, and a desire for continuous learning, potentially giving you a competitive edge in the job market.
Affordable online MBA programs from reputable universities can provide an excellent return on investment, especially when combined with employer tuition assistance or reimbursement.
Maintaining an open mind and managing expectations is essential, as the true impact of an MBA may exceed your initial projections in unexpected ways, paving the way for opportunities you hadn't considered.
