It’s hard to work while you’re enrolled in a full-time MBA program. For this reason, many MBA students choose to live off of their financial aid while pursuing their MBA degree rather than getting a job in their field. However, studies have found that employers prefer to hire MBA graduates who have experience in their field. According to CareerJournal.com:

Hiring an M.B.A. graduate is an expensive proposition, and companies complain that too often they aren’t immediately getting their money’s worth from a green recruit. In The Wall Street Journal/Harris Interactive survey, recruiters frequently criticize M.B.A. students for lacking enough specialized, “relevant” experience. Most recruiters say they expect a minimum of four or five years’ experience, preferably in their industries. Some are even hoping for six or seven years.

Both quantity and quality of experience are crucial. Recruiters are looking for students who have learned to cope with ambiguity, adversity and conflict in the workplace. Some M.B.A.s believe “simply working two or three years entitles them to a leadership position immediately following graduation,” says Jeff Rynbrandt, who does recruiting for Guidant Corp., a marketer of cardiovascular products. “To me, students need to have demonstrated success in their past job with positions of increasing responsibility and be able to articulate how their actions specifically contributed to those successes.”

The desire of employers to hire MBAs with experience in their field may be another reason why a part-time MBA program is a good option. While many MBA students used to head right into their graduate program after getting their bachelor’s degree, many more now are taking time off to work between degrees, meaning that many MBA graduates have several years of experience under their belt. This means that it will be harder for younger students with no experience to find a decent job after they graduate.

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If you want to continue working while earning your MBA degree, you may be considering enrolling in a part-time MBA program. Part-time MBA programs are often the only option for students that need to work full-time or take care of family responsibilities while attending school. However, there are benefits and disadvantages to enrolling in a part-time MBA program. Here are some of the pros and cons of part-time MBA programs according to MBA-Business-Schools:
Scheduling
Part time MBA programs can provide the scheduling flexibility necessary for working professionals. It may be easier to achieve a balance between life, work, and your educational pursuits. On the other hand, part time MBA study may involve concentrated coursework that is completed faster than traditional study schedule. The shorter course duration can … | Read the rest of this entry »

While all graduate schools have hefty application fees, MBA programs often have the highest application fees of them all. An application fee to even a relatively unknown MBA school can run between $100 and $200. For this reason, it’s important to choose wisely when applying to MBA degree programs. On one hand, you’ll want to apply to your dream schools, but, on the other, you’ll want to make sure that you’ll be accepted somewhere. MBA in America offers these tips on choosing what MBA schools to apply to:
The best way to go about this is by placing schools in three categories:
1. Aspirational
2. Reach
3. Safety
Aspirational colleges are colleges that you would die to get into but are quite tough. Reach colleges are colleges that will fit … | Read the rest of this entry »

If you’ve been putting of getting your MBA because you just can’t fathom taking two years off of work to enroll in graduate school full-time, then you may want to consider enrolling in an accelerated MBA program. According to Stacy Blackman Consulting, Columbia University’s business school offers an accelerated MBA program that can be completed in as little as a year:
The Columbia Accelerated MBA takes four consecutive terms to complete. For the coming year, students would begin in Jan 2008 and complete the program in May 2009. The program is a good choice for students who do not need to complete a summer internship. This would include entrepreneurs, individuals returning to a family business, students sponsored by employers, and students who want to remain in … | Read the rest of this entry »

In an interview with Business Week, Kristine Mackey, associate dean for Evening and Weekend Programs at Chicago Graduate School of Business, offered some suggestions for students on how to decide whether to enroll in a part-time or full-time MBA program. Mackey offered these tips for students considering an MBA program:
If you’re in a job, even though the paycheck feels great but you don’t see how this is ever going to take you anywhere, or for whatever reason you find yourself in an environment that’s unhealthy, you find yourself in an industry that’s like topsy-turvy, going somewhere not positive — for a lot of those people to get off, full-time study is the right way to do it.
I also think full-time study is right for … | Read the rest of this entry »

The 2007 Net Impact Conference is set to be held at the Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management in Nashville, Tennessee. The conference will take place on November 2-3 and is expected to attract more than 2,000 MBA graduate students and young professionals. According to Exduco.net, the Net Impact Conference is:
the world’s largest annual gathering for MBA students and young professionals focused on corporate social responsibility, social entrepreneurship, international development and environmental management. Participants will explore the latest ideas, trends, tools and careers that use business to achieve social good.
Net Impact is an international nonprofit organization that is dedicated to networking young and aspiring business professionals that are interested in using business practices that consider social responsibility. It has more than 10,000 members from 80 … | Read the rest of this entry »

MBA students are finding that skills in communications and confidence are essential to their success in the business world.
Indeed, a growing number of employers agree that it is communication, leadership, teamwork, and other so-called soft skills that truly distinguish M.B.A. candidates today. According to a 2006 survey by the Graduate Management Admission Council, nearly two fifths of employers say these are extremely important in selection and hiring. “The globalization of business requires companies to operate across a wider degree of diversity when it comes to clients, shareholders, and employees,” says John Costas, chairman and CEO of Dillon Read Capital Management, a hedge fund in Stamford, Conn. “That’s where things like leadership, being a team player, empathy, and excellent communication come into play.” This is especially … | Read the rest of this entry »

Are you planning on going to business school? You will need to be highly organized and motivated to get your GMAT, applications and essay together in a timely fashion.
Here is a little guideline from MBA advice about when to get things done.
10 Weeks
Two to two and a half months before your first application is due is about the right time to start the process in earnest. There are several things that you should take care of in the next 4-5 weeks:
Schedule the GMAT and start spending an hour a day or so studying. Your target GMAT date should be about 4-5 weeks away (in other words, about halfway between now and your first application due date). Be sure that you take your GMAT in the … | Read the rest of this entry »