Deconstructing the MBA trail

High on caffeine and short on sleep, I found myself pondering the obvious a few days back. Why do sane, smart, sensible people risk all their hard earned fortunes on a post graduate degree called the MBA? I reckon the thought provoking moment had autobiographical tinges since the loan EMI was staring at me from a point blank range. Why not try the horses instead? Or Ladbrokes? Or better still, why not Vegas?

An excerpt of the answer as I painfully deconstructed is below:

Like they proclaimed in old times, there is no one road that leads to Rome. There are many. The same I reckon holds good for an MBA. There are many trails and my humble attempt is to describe a few.

The academic trail: Some people can’t seem to stop studying. The portals of an institution are where they find security, an identity and probably even more. So they graduate out of school, top that up with a Masters and in a quest for continuity choose business school education. Where they head after this, is anybody’s guess.

The corporate ladder trail: Have you ever been stuck in a bumper to bumper traffic jam? Climbing the corporate ladder would be a metaphorical equivalent. So when suddenly the prospect of becoming the boss to your boss lies in an MBA, you very often don’t think twice. Those Monster.com job adverts on television were always aspirational.

The career shift trail: Your job description begins and ends with drinking endless cups of coffee and writing 2000 lines of code, day in, day out. You yearn for a real job. How romantic it is to sell soaps and detergents to one half of a big country. Or sit in a leather panelled office room like Gordon Gecko and scream ‘Buy, buy, buy’ into the telephone. I need a career change. I need an MBA. Period.

Money trail: To some an MBA is the high road to riches. Man will be man. Any road that leads to gold will be taken; and if you don’t believe that ask the folks who headed to California in the 1850’s. Six figure salaries and other rosy stories have always lured the unsuspecting to the MBA.

The ‘Big experience’ trail: Years of corporate monotony, makes many a person, yearn for that big experience. To the beat generation of the sixties the answer would lie in a stash of white powder, but for the less hedonistic and the career minded, the MBA is as good as it gets. So little wonder that it happens.

So that ladies and gentlemen, was the tip of the iceberg; and believe me there are many other trails that you and I don’t know off. So go find yours. I can vouch it’s a good ride.

( Contributed by Preeth PM - ISB Class of 09)