What makes an MBA worth it?
Is an MBA worth it all?
The Master of Business Administration or simply MBA degree is an internationally recognised degree. Depending on the field of career you choose to take, whether switching up careers or trying something different, you might want to consider whether you can ensure MBA worth it or not.
What does the MBA degree cover?
An MBA is especially intended for those seeking to better their skills within the business field, whether it is running your own business, management and additional technical skills.
MBA degree requirements in South Africa have been raised by The South African Council on Higher Learning. Applicants will need NQF 8 levels on one of several qualifications such the following:
• 4 Year Bachelor’s Degree (NQF 8) one of which includes 3 years full-time work experience
• Or Honour’s (NQF 8) including 3 years full-time work experience
• Or 3 Year Bachelor’s degree (NQF 7) and a post graduate diploma (NQF 8) and 3 years work experience.
• All work experience must be managerial level
According to an article in Forbes, it is reasonable that MBA strategies are not important. An interesting fact is that since it’s an internationally recognised degree, preference and the worth of an MBA also relies on which learning institute you received yours. Needless to say, those who earned theirs at highly acclaimed learning institutes may be given favour over those who didn’t.
Having an MBA degree doesn’t necessarily mean that you will earn more than your colleague without one. However, MBA owners are known to be better earners. Yet recent international statistics show that that MBA increases are not as high as before.
Pro’s of an MBA
- Become a master at managerial skills – An MBA is worth it for managerial skills because there aren’t that many degrees that focus on these skills set in the complexity and depth that an MBA does.
- Will help you acquire skills to begin your own business – The skills and information you learn when pursuing your MBA degree will help you be able to start up and manage your own business. However, some individuals choose to work themselves up the corporate ladder instead.
- Encourages competitiveness – Those with an MBA degree will automatically stand out within their industry over those who lack the said degree. Some companies may require the knowledge of individuals who possess an MBA as these benefits the business.
Con’s of an MBA
- They need to be acquired at a top ranking learning institute – Top-tier education institutes will take preference for job placements with an MBA.
- They are very expensive to obtain – MBA’s cost a lot of money especially if you want to obtain them from a top institute and studying full time will deprive you of being able to earn money to help pay your studies. Studying part-time in order to make up money will require a high level of commitment and having a job whilst studying for your MBA may have a negative effect on your overall performance.
- They are temporary – They seem to have an expiration date because the skills you learn by time you received yours will be different 15 to 20 years down the line. It’s also up to you to keep abreast with the latest and best practices within your field.
Instead of studying an MBA being a “no-brainer”, they have increasingly come under fire since the global financial crisis of 2008 and most are now changing their curriculum substantially to lose the excessive focus on finance subjects. Whether MBA worth it or not is up to the individual and the field they choose to pursue.