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Ask people in your organization or better yet similar external organizations if that experience will be useful enough to justify the cost (time). Obviously if you ask the admissions department they are going to say it's a great deal. Ask people who already have your goal job for advice.
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May 28, 2014 21:47
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antiga posted:Ask people in your organization or better yet similar external organizations if that experience will be useful enough to justify the cost (time). Obviously if you ask the admissions department they are going to say it's a great deal. Ask people who already have your goal job for advice. This is a good idea, and if I had to guess, I'd say that most of the responses will be Thoguh posted:What does MSOL stand for?
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May 28, 2014 21:54
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Haha that's fair, I should have put that in my first post like I thought I did. I hadn't heard of it until fairly recently but from what I've read online it's not a somehow ridiculous degree on its face, or anything like that. Really, I have the time and the money already, that's not the issue. My main concern is potentially missing out of eligibility for loans and grants down the line if I decide on adding another degree which would definietly not be so affordable. I guess I'm looking at it from the perspective of what I have to lose, which is a smallish amount of money (relatively speaking) and a year I'm almost certainly going to be working here anyway. If it turns out that I stand to lose potential benefits down the line, that would be the kind of thing I'd want to consider before pulling the trigger on this. Not even a dealbreaker, really; I just want to be aware of all the potential consequences.
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May 28, 2014 22:06
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It seems like a re-branding of MHR/MSHR
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May 28, 2014 23:35
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menino posted:It seems like a re-branding of MHR/MSHR If this is the case what would that mean?
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May 29, 2014 00:11
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Chard posted:If this is the case what would that mean? Well it could be that it's treated differently by employers and you would have a shot at more rotational programs rather than just being inserted into a track where you're going to end up as a generalist at a manufacturing plant. I'm a dual MBA/MHR and have found that the MHR tends to get companies looking for plant generalists (which I'm avoiding if possible), whereas the MBA gets more strategic HR jobs offered, in addition to the non-HR rotational positions at larger companies. I guess the MSOL might be able to get you more looks for strategic HR or general management?
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May 29, 2014 00:18
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Ah, thanks for explaining. Since that seems to be the general direction my life is meandering in that sounds okay. To be totally honest this is primarily about expanding the types of jobs I'm baseline eligible for with an eye towards upping my income. I interview pretty well, I just need the foot in the door so to speak. I like the job I have now, a lot, but it doesn't pay well and that's not sustainable. Can anyone with financial aid experience weigh in on my earlier question about grants/loans? From undergrad I seem to remember that only a first degree is eligible for any type of aid but I can't recall if that was only if you took aid for the first degree or in general. I would like for my long-term plan to include at least the option of second master's and loving that up for this is what I want to avoid.
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May 29, 2014 00:38
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The loan limits for graduate school are very high but the interest rates are not very good (5.4-6.8). I don't think doing one masters would preclude you from doing another later. I have a hard time imagining doing two similar programs like that and not going crazy. I take it your school doesn't offer a regular MBA?
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May 29, 2014 03:25
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You can get aid, and a lot of it, but it's not cheap (6.8 and above in my case).
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May 29, 2014 03:37
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antiga posted:I take it your school doesn't offer a regular MBA? Nope  For the record I'm not like, enthusiastic, about taking our a bunch of loans in the future. One thing my mother hammered into my growing skull was 'keep your options open' which is why I always like to ask questions like this. Never been in debt and extremely averse to changing that, if I do end up doing another degree it will be (as much as possible) an up-front investment like this one. I think I'm just gonna do it. The downsides if any seem minimal and it's better than the degree I hold right now. Chard fucked around with this message at 06:19 on May 29, 2014 |
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May 29, 2014 06:16
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So I considered going back to get a MBA before and then put it on hold to get finances straightened out. I'm still not in a rush, but i now qualify for getting reimbursed about $7K a year from my company for education, so i am thinking i could start with a few classes a year and just get reimbursed the difference. I would have to go online, and I am looking for a decent balance between not crazy expensive but also not being a waste of time. Any current recommendations or schools with decent online programs?
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Jun 2, 2014 15:10
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Duckman2008 posted:So I considered going back to get a MBA before and then put it on hold to get finances straightened out. I'm still not in a rush, but i now qualify for getting reimbursed about $7K a year from my company for education, so i am thinking i could start with a few classes a year and just get reimbursed the difference. Here's a good list of good online programs:
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Jun 3, 2014 03:02
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Duckman2008 posted:So I considered going back to get a MBA before and then put it on hold to get finances straightened out. I'm still not in a rush, but i now qualify for getting reimbursed about $7K a year from my company for education, so i am thinking i could start with a few classes a year and just get reimbursed the difference. If you want to do something online do the CFA. Read books, front exam. Done. Hardest or one of the hardest finance qualifications you can get.
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Jun 3, 2014 06:04
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Hypation posted:If you want to do something online do the CFA. Read books, front exam. Done. Hardest or one of the hardest finance qualifications you can get. Did you misread that he's fixing his finances as "he works in finance" ??
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Jun 3, 2014 17:29
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menino posted:You can get aid, and a lot of it, but it's not cheap (6.8 and above in my case). This is what I'm dealing with right now. I still have undergraduate loans and refuse to take out any more for my MBA. I am busy as hell in the fall and winter (I work in a ski town doing accounting) and only made one application deadline to school in Denver. I've been admitted and offered 40K in awards and assitantship, but am still looking at another 50k to pay for my entire education. Any great ideas that I can still explore?
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Jun 3, 2014 20:40
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Vomik posted:Did you misread that he's fixing his finances as "he works in finance" ?? Yeah I was confused by that. How I see it is it's not bad reimbursement, I can start with a few classes a year, and even if it isn't as great as say physically attending classes (which would just not be worth it with a changing retail schedule) it would be extra experience, education, etc at a low cost.
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Jun 3, 2014 21:18
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The first year of my program is done and now I'm in summer session. Only 1.5 years to go! I wanted to point out that those going in a traditional program with interterm and summer sessions should be aware that they move rather quickly. I took statistics in the interterm and I didn't mind the pace. Where I'm having problems is in Operations, which I am currently taking. A normal 16-week semester would give you plenty of time to work on a semester-long group project. Unfortunately in summer we have to do all of this in six weeks. Be mindful of the classes you take in these rushed sessions. This is where your accounting and/or finance (math-classes) come in handy!
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Jun 6, 2014 07:47
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What is the opinion on online or distance learning MBA programmes? Here in the UK the Open University MBA is tripple accredited whereas my bricks and mortar university isn't. Which one would be seen as better?
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Jun 6, 2014 12:29
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Is there an easy place to see undergrad gpa/gmat/undergrad school(if that matters) for like the top 8 b schools? Also, what is the relative weight of work experience v stats? Im curious how hard it would be to get in. Also: are there programd with a little more intellectual content? From looking at syllabi it doesnt really seem like the class portion of an mba matters as much as the networking does, but ideally there would be something helpful in the former.
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Jun 7, 2014 20:48
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In my experience and based on everything I've read, bschool admissions take a much more holistic approach to evaluating candidates than do other professional schools like law school and med school. You can make up for weaknesses in one area by compensating in other areas, even areas that wouldn't even be considered in law/med school apps. Lots of kick rear end experience? Can get by with pretty lovely test scores. Some question marks in your background, or coming from an unorthodox background? Great scores and strong essays can make up the difference. The correlation between GPA/GMAT and admissions isn't anywhere close to what it is with law school and med school, where there are even online communities that break down the stats from year to year and can pretty much tell you where you will or will not get admitted. e- To answer your second question, MBAs are always what you make of them. Some people need and benefit from the skills they learn in class (financial analysis, etc.). Other people who've been doing that poo poo 100 hours a week for several years will probably have flashbacks and find themselves drying their armpits with paper towels in the bathroom if they happen to sit in on a class. The diversity of background and diversity of post-MBA goals is such that the programs have to be flexible. That said, networking is definitely one of the draws of an MBA that sets it apart from other professional programs. Smeef fucked around with this message at 21:58 on Jun 7, 2014 |
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Jun 7, 2014 21:54
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Smeef posted:In my experience and based on everything I've read, bschool admissions take a much more holistic approach to evaluating candidates than do other professional schools like law school and med school. You can make up for weaknesses in one area by compensating in other areas, even areas that wouldn't even be considered in law/med school apps. Lots of kick rear end experience? Can get by with pretty lovely test scores. Some question marks in your background, or coming from an unorthodox background? Great scores and strong essays can make up the difference. The correlation between GPA/GMAT and admissions isn't anywhere close to what it is with law school and med school, where there are even online communities that break down the stats from year to year and can pretty much tell you where you will or will not get admitted. Thats helpful, i guess im just curious what counts as lovely. My work experience is going to be solid, as is my gmat, but my gpa is more in the 3.5-3.6 range thanks to way too much time spent on start ups. Is this way out of line with "typical" at b schools? Does being from a top 3 uni undergrad matter in this regard? It just all seems really unclear.
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Jun 8, 2014 02:33
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Another way of thinking about it is to understand that adcoms at tier 1 MBAs have a student body in mind when deciding on admits i.e., --% from finance, --% from consulting, --% from tech, --% from NPOs etc. When you apply, you're judged against applicants from your industry. For international MBA programs such as INSEAD and LBS, add nationality to the pot. The curse of coming from finance or consulting is that it's tougher for you to stand out from your peer group even if you come from pedigree (ivy + BB/MBB) especially if you're applying for Harvard/Stanford. A decorated army S2 who's served in Afghanistan or a Grameen Bank staffer is more likely to get in, all things equal, than a Columbia undergrad who went on to work at McKinsey for a couple years and has nothing interesting on his CV. GMAT and GPA are overrated as criteria. As long as you haven't hosed up big time (e.g., < 3.0 or < 680), I wouldn't sweat it.
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Jun 8, 2014 02:55
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shrike82 posted:Another way of thinking about it is to understand that adcoms at tier 1 MBAs have a student body in mind when deciding on admits i.e., --% from finance, --% from consulting, --% from tech, --% from NPOs etc. When you apply, you're judged against applicants from your industry. Interesting. My place of employment has solid mba admission stats but over a very small sample size. I wasnt really sure whether this was due to them jsut being good applicants generally (ie they all have good gmats and gpas) or because of the place itself, but from what youre saying it sounds like the workplace does get a decent amount of credit? Either way i guess i can stop worrying about my ugrad gpa, which i should probably do anyway.
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Jun 8, 2014 04:22
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semicolonsrock posted:but from what youre saying it sounds like the workplace does get a decent amount of credit? Yes, in fact I'd argue that work experience is the single most important factor.
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Jun 8, 2014 09:34
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shrike82 posted:Yes, in fact I'd argue that work experience is the single most important factor. Huh. I guess its hard for me to understand how you could compare peoples different eexperiences. I guess thats why you are compared vs your set. What sort of criteria are they looking for in terms of what you do during your work? Eg what seperates two mbb consultants work experience? (Also thank you for the advice)
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Jun 8, 2014 09:40
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Your work experience isn't just a single bullet point on your CV. It shines through (or not) in your recommendations and essays. On a semi-related note, a lot of applicants make the mistake of getting the most senior person (MD, partner etc.) willing to write a recommendation for them and end up getting skin-deep impersonal responses. Given the type of questions posed to recommenders, you're better off getting someone who's able to write at length about your abilities and character. The process of applying for an MBA isn't complicated:- 1) Decide whether an MBA is right for you. Given the caliber of potential candidates for tier 1 schools, it actually doesn't make sense for a lot of people to do an MBA given their opportunity costs and existing career trajectory. 2) Talk to your colleagues about their MBAs to get a better sense of which school you want to aim for. They'll also be your recommenders. 3) Gear your work experience so that you have something worthwhile to talk about beyond having a bullet point stating you worked at your firm for 2 years. 4) Write up an error-free application and craft well-written, interesting essays. 5) Spend the bare minimum of time on prepping the GMAT so you get at least 700. 6) Practice for the interviews.
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Jun 8, 2014 10:08
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Ephemeron posted:I did a part-time LLM a couple of years ago (and got far better grades) with the express purpose of having some tangible proof that I'm not as academically hopeless as my undergrad results would suggest. Sooooooo I just got an interview invite (final round). Any tips/tricks? I will never admit to playing World of Warcraft.
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Jun 8, 2014 13:41
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pizzaman5000 posted:Sooooooo I just got an interview invite (final round). Any tips/tricks? I will never admit to playing World of Warcraft. - If you're going to attend the interview in person, I recommend arriving at least one day in advance. The big day will be stressful enough without having to worry about train delays and traffic issues on top of it, and if you're flying in from another country, you want to be well rested. Besides, if the interviewer asks you whether you've had the chance to see the city yet, you'll be able to tell him or her that, yes, you did, and it was love at first sight.  - Re-read your essays, CV and application several times. (If you ghostwrote your recommendations, re-read them as well). - Rehearse your answers to the standard questions that everyone gets ("Why do you need an MBA? Why now? Why at this place?"). - Be prepared to talk about your current job and its related challenges/accomplishments. In my case, this part accounted for most of the interview time. - Be prepared to elaborate on your post-MBA career plans. If you have a fallback "plan B", it will be a strong point in your favor. - The most stumping question for me was "How would you describe your personal leadership style?"
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Jun 9, 2014 09:19
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I had a somewhat awkward lunch conversation today. One of the girls I work with was complaining about how she has spent $750 taking the GMAT (took it twice already, and paid for a third one) and $2,000 on classes and materials. She has literally gone through three Kaplan books of test questions. She's smart, but is having a really hard time getting the score she wants (targeting a 700). Another guy has taken the test at least once, and I don't think he's happy with his score either. Fortunately I was able to complain about how horrible the test was without being a dick. They never asked and I never brought up that I went into the test somewhat cold with only 3 days of studying right beforehand and got a 690. 
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Jun 9, 2014 22:44
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Ephemeron posted:Congratulations on making it this far! OTOH, I interviewed this past Friday for a great MBA program (top 10 in some national lists, top 20 in others), and I got to town at 1 am, slept maybe three hours the night before due to a combination of noise, heat & stress, could barely remember what was in my application essays, and never saw what was in my letters of recommendation. Somehow still got handed an acceptance letter within the hour. The point being that for all the stress I placed around preparing for the interview, just being myself and genuinely explaining my previous professional and extracurricular experiences, what I wanted from an MBA, and why I wanted it at that school, did way more for me than canned answers to hypothetical questions. I think that's why I tanked my other interviews but really nailed it on this one. Everyone has worked on a team before, so they can't really need you to explain with citations that you know how to play nicely with others, etc, right? Getting bogged down by eloquent answers to those type of job-interview-esque questions will waste valuable time you could spend to make it appear like you actually have a shot at achieving your goals - that you're a rocket booster on the way to the success space station that the school can harness to tow its rankings up to the stratosphere. The first question the interviewer asked me (after a short icebreak of "what's something about you that's not anywhere in your application"), only asked me to walk me through my resume, but I ended up talking until I'd finished describing what I wanted to do with an MBA, and she said I'd already answered all her questions. The rest of the interview was a back and forth about the school. If I have any direct advice having just gone through this and come out on the happy end, it's to be yourself, drat it. Speak fondly of your work experience, ambitiously and passionately about your goals, and excitedly about the school. Let your accomplishments speak for themselves. Use examples not anecdotes. Focus on the things that tell the story you want to tell. If you get asked a direct question, then yes give a direct answer, but make sure you naturally pivot to talk about whatever it is that you actually want to talk about. You don't want to end the interview with a laundry list of important things left unsaid. But if you really need a sweet, ready-made answer to the "leadership style" question, then here you go. Brand new, never used: quote:My leadership style is tough to describe. You know, right around when I was [managing direct reports for the first time / leading a demanding group project / other leadership experience] I came across an article from a business journal that described how different individuals will respond to different types of motivation. Some people are driven by reward, others by avoiding consequences, some by challenging themselves, and so on, with other types of motivation not really affecting them at all, and even being counterproductive in some cases. I've always thought that leadership is all about getting others to accomplish shared goals, and getting people to accomplish shared goals is all about motivating them in the right way, as individuals. So my leadership style has always been aimed at accomplishing that - sussing out what makes the people I work with tick, and figuring out what levers I can pull with them that will get us to where we need to be. That's worked for me so far, but I'm sure there's far more sophisticated ways of leading people, and eventually larger organizations, that I'll need to adapt to. That's part of the reason why I want an MBA at....
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Jun 9, 2014 22:52
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Do I look like a jerk if I apply for a school without meeting the minimum GPA requirement? Having a 2.5 when most schools ask for a 3.0 is an awful feeling. I would rather do an evening program, but they all ask for a 3.0. I didn't take undergrad as seriously as I should have and I seriously regret that now. My work experience paints a completely different picture of how I am, and I can get some great letters of recommendation from other managers (peers) and senior management in my company.
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Jun 9, 2014 23:20
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I hate yankees posted:Do I look like a jerk if I apply for a school without meeting the minimum GPA requirement? Having a 2.5 when most schools ask for a 3.0 is an awful feeling. I would rather do an evening program, but they all ask for a 3.0. I didn't take undergrad as seriously as I should have and I seriously regret that now. My work experience paints a completely different picture of how I am, and I can get some great letters of recommendation from other managers (peers) and senior management in my company. In my experience in higher education almost anything can be waived. Rather than blindly applying, I would set up a meeting with the school dean to explain your circumstances and demonstrate your interest. Since you are outside the desired applicant parameters you are going to have to put some work in yourself, but I bet you can overcome any hurdles. You may get something like provisional admission contingent upon earning a 3.5 or 3.75 during your first 6 hours or something along those lines.
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Jun 10, 2014 01:27
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Both my interviews were quite casual and with alumni. As far as I could tell they were just making sure I wasn't socially retarded and was a person they'd be happy to spend time studying/working with in a team.
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Jun 10, 2014 01:45
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I'm just looking for a reality check here. I'm in Canada, and I'd be looking to apply to Canadian schools, likely in Ontario / Montreal. After high school I didn't know what to do, and ended up taking and dropping out of culinary arts. I caught on with a services firm (inventory solutions stuff for retail / commercial) and ended up working there for 7 years, in progressively higher management positions. I ended up leaving @ 26 after my son was born because I wanted to spend more time with him. I was an area manager at the time. I did sales for 3 years after that because the money was great, but then I had an off year and decided I wanted a better career path (and to get back into management, which I love). I went back to school, but rather than go to university I took an applied bachelor of supply chain management. Still a 4 year degree, but at college. I took it because it offered significantly more practical experience, and was paired with mandatory co-op terms (8 academic terms, 3 co-op). I'm doing very well in the program - 4th in the class in marks, and consistent across both the hard and soft subjects. I'm now 31 and I have two years left to go. Given where I want to go career-wise, an MBA seems the right fit for me, and given my age I'd kind of like to get it done before heading off and joining a new company. To that end I'm studying to take the GMAT this summer. I want to really kill it, and taking it now would give me the opportunity to re-take it with time to spare if I don't manage to do that. I guess my question is - how will schools view my previous work experience - does it even count, given it's not post-grad? - and how will they view the degree I'm getting? It's not like this is a prestigious degree; Hell, when I mention I'm going to a college people say: "they offer degrees?!". It's great for getting a job working with SAP (a far more hands on experience than anything universities offer), but I find it's pretty weak on the academic side. Am I nuts for even thinking this is a viable route?
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Jun 10, 2014 18:35
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Having just been accepted, is there any reason to fund a 529 right this moment? Will the tax benefit be worthwhile?
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Jun 10, 2014 19:31
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bam thwok posted:Having just been accepted, is there any reason to fund a 529 right this moment? Will the tax benefit be worthwhile? If you fund it this year you can (probably) deduct the amount from your state income tax this year even if tuition isn't paid this year. Check for your state because rules about it being deductible vary.
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Jun 11, 2014 03:35
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antiga posted:If you fund it this year you can (probably) deduct the amount from your state income tax this year even if tuition isn't paid this year. Check for your state because rules about it being deductible vary. Live in DC now (will pay income taxes here this year), school is in NY. DC contributions to 529s are state-tax deductible, so I should contribute open and a contribute to a DC account now, then clear out the money next year to pay tuition, right? My net savings should be the amount of the tax deduction less fees associated with account maintenance and buying funds in the 529, right? bam thwok fucked around with this message at 16:03 on Jun 11, 2014 |
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Jun 11, 2014 15:44
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Had my Oxford interview 48 hours ago. Was sick as a dog, high as heck on meds and went back to sleep immediately after. Decision deadline is tomorrow and I'm worried.
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Jun 26, 2014 12:23
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Well I'm in so that's a thing
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Jun 27, 2014 21:30
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pizzaman5000 posted:Well I'm in so that's a thing Awesome of them to tell you on Friday so you can celebrate all weekend.
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Jun 27, 2014 22:34
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