Several friends asked me to blog my thoughts on the decision whether or not to go to business school. It’s actually a question people engage me on all the time, because I think I’m an outlier in my view that it was not an optimal use of time and money for me.

When I talk to those who have gone or are considering going to business school, the key arguments for an MBA that I hear are:

  • Value in building a network
  • Credential – certain employers require an MBA for certain jobs
  • Need a break from work
  • Career change

Notice that nowhere on the list is the actual value or necessity of the education itself. Undoubtedly there is learning at business school, but no one seems to argue that these things are vital for actual business or couldn’t be learned in more efficient ways (books, etc.).

The credential thing is true and sad. The fact that many jobs require an MBA is bizarre and unfortunate. This credential speaks nothing to a person’s skills and accomplishments.  Luckily, it is largely big companies with this bias.


Need a break from work: I would urge just changing your career on the spot or travel the world for a month at a fraction of the cost.

Career change: I think most people graduating business school find that the employers only want to hire people who previously worked in the field. They just slot you in at the level the MBA credential is a prerequisite for. (Yes in some cases people can use the MBA to make a radical career change, but I think this is the exception.)

I just checked my numbers – tuition alone for an MBA now runs $100,000 for two years. That $100,000 plus the absence of income.  You can partially offset that with grants, but most people will be stuck paying for most of it.  The government loan rates are very low, however.

I think an MBA is valuable if you are on a trajectory and field that requires it…if it’s something you have to do.  For me, knowing what I know now, I would have liked to have invest that money in trying to start a business.

Finally, I open to the counter argument that certain business schools are ideal places to start a business.  However, it seems that even this point is arguing for aspects of business school other than the “schooling.”

With that said: you will learn and meet great people.  I just think the duration is too long and the opportunity and cash costs overprice the asset for many people.

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