Many students that are considering pursuing an MBA ask themselves this question prior to enrolling in graduate school: is the cost of an MBA worth the end-result? In part, the answer depends on how hard you work, what type of program you enroll in, and the state of the economy upon your graduation. However, many studies show that MBA graduates earn significantly more than their non-MBA holding business professionals. Consider this advice from Hobsons’ MBA Central:

At a time of global economic uncertainty, MBAs from the best schools are the most attractive to employers. During a boom, almost any MBA is employable.

As for earnings, most full-time MBAs who pay their own way and attend a good school can reasonably expect to recover their fees, subsistence and lost salary from their enhanced earnings in under four years on a one-year full-time MBA, and an average of five or six years on a two-year program.

Three years after earning an MBA from a top school, graduates can earn three times their pre-MBA salary. Even an ‘average’ MBA will earn an immediate 40% extra.

In a recent report by Forbes Magazine, business professionals who had graduated from some of the nation’s top universities reported that their salaries had nearly tripled within five years of graduating from their MBA program. With results like the, the answer to the question of whether or not an MBA is a good investment is a resounding yes.