“A degree has value only if the degree is scarce, and the MBA is completely non scarce,” says Jeffrey Pfeffer, professor of organisational behaviour at Stanford Graduate School of Business.
“People don’t hear what they don’t want to hear,” he says, adding that he nonetheless believes that unless you go to an elite school – by which he means one ranked in the top 15 worldwide – an MBA is a complete waste of money.
For some the penny has dropped. Mariana Zanetti did an MBA about 10 years ago at IE Business School in Spain – a school that would qualify, using Prof Pfeffer’s definition, as an elite institution. However, she believes the MBA had no relevance to her subsequent career progress, which she attributes to her previous achievements and personal qualities.
She has self-published a book, The MBA Bubble , in which she condemns MBAs as ruinous investments and discusses the ethics of schools promising particular salaries to graduates as part of their marketing tactics.
'The MBA Bubble' asserts that an educational bubble has been built up around the MBA degree to convince people that it is a necessity. While MBA tuition has increased more than 60 percent since 2005, the added value of these programs is almost nonexistent. In a highly personable but straight-talking way, Zanetti explains why these programs are ruinous investments that do not train for today’s business world and condemns the deceitful marketing tactics used by the traditional business-education industry. Even when she met all the professional goals she set for herself by pursuing an MBA degree, the author argues that her degree was not the cause of her success, and considers her MBA a huge mistake. Business sense, she emphasizes, is what is necessary, as benefits like salary improvement and new skills are obtainable without piling on the debt often required to get the degree.
“The schools don’t help a lot in getting your next job,” declares Zanetti. She says when she found a position after completing her MBA, the only thing her new employer was interested in was the job she had before doing the course – the MBA itself made no difference. To add insult to injury, she earned no more than in her previous position, and took home fewer benefits.
“But I don’t think it’s the MBA that adds the value – it’s the selection process that makes the difference,” she says. She would even recommend getting a place at a top school and turning it down to prove you were of a high calibre without wasting money. “I get messages from people who have already graduated from business schools saying ‘thank you for writing this book’,” she says.
Research indicates more than 100,000 MBA degrees are awarded annually in the US alone. However, as Prof Pfeffer points out, no matter how many people do the degree, the number of jobs remains relatively constant. Logic dictates large numbers of people will be disappointed. He reiterates his view that an MBA is a waste of money unless it is from an elite school. But he does not think the attraction of the degree will ever wane. “I don’t think people are going to get the message,” he says. “I don’t see any change in behaviour whatsoever.”
Considering the average tuition fees reported by top 10 full-time MBA schools are almost $115,000, a free sample of a business school curriculum may be worth your while.
Source: http://www.ft.com
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ReplyDeleteKindly read the topic before giving any feedback, it is about the value of MBA degree that is declined in recent years.
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