Is an MBA degree worth it? Top 5 reasons to pursue Masters in Business Administration

Let’s take a look at experiences shared by MBA graduates and management faculties from reputed b-schools to understand if pursuing an MBA can be a good investment for career growth.

To get an MBA degree or not? Graduates often stand on the crossroads of this question after completing their bachelor’s degree or in the middle of their professional journey. Launched in 1908 for the first time by Harvard Business School, Master of Business Administration (MBA) has now become the world’s most sought-after business management degree. The time, money, and effort invested by students in an MBA programme can be considerable. Let’s take a look at experiences shared by MBA graduates and management faculties from reputed b-schools to understand if pursuing an MBA can be a good investment for career growth.

Versatile Career Options

MBA opens multiple career options for graduates and provides a substantial amount of flexibility. From kick-starting a start-up to taking up a reputed managerial job role, the skills candidates learn while pursuing MBA programme are transferable across industries. “MBA helps candidates to make a career switch after their graduation as after gaining work ex for 1-2 years one may not want to continue with the stream chosen during graduation. The curriculum is meticulously shaped to provide sound business knowledge that aids people from diverse backgrounds to take up more challenging and impactful roles. It gives a unique opportunity to meet and interact with the brightest minds of the country hailing from diverse backgrounds,” said Anshul Yadav, PGP 2019-21 alumni, Indian Institute of Management, Indore.

“Through the various activities and course requirements, students get a chance to access and learn hard skills across domains as the subjects taught require an application of tools concordant with industry norms. The tier I b-schools offer a chance to be a part of a bejeweled alumi forum who is established in the corporate world. The network power if intelligently leveraged can provide a boost to students especially the entrepreneurs among them,” he added.

Personal and Professional Skill Development

Talking about the boost that MBA degree provided to his career, Anshul added, “I see MBA as a big breakthrough in my life. Prior to joining MBA, I was a little hesitant to initiate conversations but after these 2 years, I can easily network with people around. This is helping in my current job role as well where I constantly interact with multiple clients on a daily basis. Earlier, we used to jokingly say ‘Jack of all trades, master of none but then this is the most important aspect of doing an MBA. Instead of dabbling with just one skill, you gain expertise in a wider scope of activities. This helps you in continuously adapting to the ever-changing business environment.”

Giving insight on the potential that an MBA degree has in developing skills within candidates, Professor Karman Khanna, Assistant Professor, Goa Institute of Management said, “From ideation to execution to implementation to scalability, a business can faulter at any given stage. An MBA provides a simulation experience to students thereby preparing them for ever-changing topographies of the environment, the team they work with, and even themselves. With the resilient mindset that an MBA degree aims to provide, one can, not only realize their goal but also expand horizons of their potential.”

Strong Professional Network

To excel in the global economy, it has become mandatory for students to upskill and develop professional networks in the industry. An MBA degree does not only give global exposure to students but also make them capable of handling higher roles and responsibility in the hierarchy. “The MBA deepens the integrative thinking of the student which is a pre-requisite for solving business problems that come from a multitude of scenarios cutting across functions. Today, as a student joins corporate as a manager, in a junior or middle management position, he will already be interfacing across multiple functions including manufacturing or service, HR, technology, finance, marketing or R&D. Given the above, I tend to question as to how a manager without an MBA can navigate the complex business career that lies ahead of him. I, unfortunately, don’t see any other option; an MBA at the early stages of one’s business career seems inevitable,” said Dr Suresh Srinivasan, Program Director, Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai.

Talking about how an MBA degree prepares candidates for transformational leadership roles in the industry, Professor Prabin Panigrahi, Chair, EPGP, IIM Indore said, "The MBA programme is designed to enhance knowledge, skills, and business capabilities essential for managing and leading organizations. The programme prepares participants for transformational leadership roles in the industry. The International Immersion Module of an MBA programme provides an opportunity for the participants to get an in-depth understanding of the international economic scenario and enhances their ability to work in a cross-cultural environment. It helps in creating Managers, Leaders, and Entrepreneurs for tomorrow and drives the success of their organizations thereby contributing to the society at large."

Gives a Push to Stagnant Careers

Sharing how an MBA degree gave a push to her career, Puja Chakraborty, IIMA Alumni, Puja Chakraborty, Director, Product Marketing, Adidas, Germany (PGPX 2017-2018) said, "Stagnation is the right word to express where I stood after 10 years of professional experience and before joining PGPX IIMA. Be it in terms of my learning, new challenges or Organizational growth, all of it seemed stalled. That's when I decided to take a break, upskill myself and I pushed the reset button. IIMA has been my dream school and hence getting through it was an achievement I can't describe in words. One year of amazing learning experience from the professor/library content/peers made it all worth it. With my campus placement with Adidas, I could shift my industry from Telecom/Tech to Retail. Also, it opened new geography for me - Europe. After four years of working with Adidas, today I lead a team of 6 people, as Director, Product Marketing. While it's true that I can't put my finger on anything in particular and say this is what I learned during my MBA, there is a little bit of IIMA in everything I do day in and day out. That's where the beauty of transformation lies."

Higher Earning Potential

Another advantage that an MBA offers over a bachelor's degree is an increased salary package. Preeti Mallick, 2020 JIMS MBA graduate, shared that her package increased by almost 75 per cent after completing Masters in Business Administration. “Due to the fast-changing landscape of the external environment, old business models need upgrading. It is not a choice anymore. To execute it on the ground, businesses require a workforce that is adept at working with and managing the latest tools and techniques, and therefore better equipped to handle such changes. This has resulted in creating a compelling demand for a new set of MBAs. To meet this demand, MBA curriculums offered by different B-schools in India have drastically changed and are now benchmarked with global business settings. To validate this, many B-schools in India have gone for acquiring worldwide accreditations like AACSB, EQUIS & AMBA or are in the process of getting the same,” said Professor Rohit Kapoor, Chair, PGP, IIM Indore.

Talking about the role of an MBA degree in seamlessly increasing pay packages of graduates, Dr Suresh Srinivasan, Program Director, PGDM & Professor of Strategy & Accounting Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai, said, “Now, Corporate India is becoming hungry again with positive sentiments that are being well factored into the optimistic stock market capitalizations we are seeing today. Indian business needs to live up to such market expectations. However, lack of business and managerial skillsets are possibly the biggest constraints. Further, with more businesses moving to digital offerings, both internally as well as to customers, qualified business managers with digital capabilities are already becoming valuable.

The proof of the pudding lies in eating it; it is not only that an MBA provides knowledge, skills and the necessary behavioral traits for today’s manager; the placements offered to business school students and the salaries provided range from 2x to 3x of the investment made in an MBA, and sometimes beyond. This is testament for the fact that MBAs are highly valued by today’s businesses.”

Read More: