Mba At The Age Of 42....is It Worth It?

Discussion in 'Education & Personal Growth' started by somam16, Jan 9, 2019.

  1. somam16

    somam16 New IL'ite

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    Hi friends,

    I need some advice from you all. I am a high school teacher in US. I have a kid 10 year old. After coming to US I struggled really hard to do something here. I have my Masters in Physics from India and was looking for jobs. I qualified in GRE and TOEFL and wanted to go for higher studies. But the cost of education here held me back. Finally I did all the certification required for teaching and currently I am a Physics teacher. I thought of going for higher education here and my husband advised me to go for MBA. I enrolled myself and have completed one leveling course in the program but the cost and also the struggle to manage my family, household, job and study is becoming too difficult for me. I was very good in Math and wanted to go for finance and have scored A in the course that I have taken but again I am feeling disappointed when I think that it will take me almost another 2 years to complete it. I am not sure if this struggle will help me in securing a better job in the future.
    I am confused whether I should save my hard earned money for investing later after my daughter's education or should I try to pursue my dreams of studying here in US.....
    Thanks,
    Piyali
     
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  2. shvain34

    shvain34 Silver IL'ite

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    Hi Mam.
    I m completing my MBA this year from London and it's a one year in most European countries including here. In my class there were a lot of them from the U.S and they chose it for precisely the same reason too. To add to your other question if doing an MBA at this age is worth it? It totally depends on how you want to progress in your career. I had a classmate who was also of the same age. Single mother with two daughters from Huawei. She worked with the public works department and she took a year break to complete her MBA and moved to London. When Quizzed about it, she said having an MBA would help her add an edge to her career and so she chose to do it. So if u ask me, I would say it is totally worth it. Hope my answer helps.
     
  3. Gallant

    Gallant Silver IL'ite

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    Age doesn't matter...what matters is how you study and where you study. Unless you study in one of the top ranking schools, it's very difficult to get a good job. You can get a placement in the campus interview itself, if you study in any one of the top schools. Otherwise, mostly sales jobs are only available, that too on commission basis. Remember, switching careers means...starting from scratch...with low salary, because you lack experience.
    For getting into MBA school, you need GMAT. Some 'upma' schools waive GMAT.
     
    Last edited: Jan 9, 2019
  4. Amulet

    Amulet IL Hall of Fame

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    Your dream is not studying (here) in the USA.... it is to secure a higher paying job than the one you have now. Isn't it ?

    MBA students put out a certain amount of money as investment, get through the struggle, and then they need to recoup that money as fast as possible. After all, maximizing the return-on-invested-capital, is a key lesson of all that course work, cases, and class discussions.

    Physical attributes of the job-seeking candidate, personality of the candidate, communication in the right ("plum") accent, the school brand of the MBA, are some of the key variables in the return on the invested capital. Only you would know where you stand with respect to all these.

    I would not recommend an MBA in America, if your plan is to follow the traditional (younger person) route to a management career.
     
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  5. shvain34

    shvain34 Silver IL'ite

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    Precisely. A two year MBA at U.S is very very very expensive. Would cost about a crore and more Depending on the school. Honestly except for The Ivy League, all other schools can be avoided. Also u pay a huge fees even for these schools. Doing a 2 year MBA is not the best option at forties. People at that age with work experience will opt for a 1 year executive program in the U.S.

    Also ROI is an important factor. Do consider all this before u take a decision.
    Hope it helps.
    Thanks
     
  6. somam16

    somam16 New IL'ite

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    Thanks all of you for your responses. I am currently pursuing MBA from university of Houston. Its not a top ranking business school like Harvard or IVY League but they have a flexible schedule for the program.
     
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  7. shvain34

    shvain34 Silver IL'ite

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    That’s superb mam. I am Sure you will do great in it and also in ur career after that. And will continue to inspire everyone
    Best Wishes.
     
  8. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    You have some goals and dreams and are working towards them, that is great. A slightly clearer view of what is each goal and why, would help. And, which means more to you.

    Studying in the U.S. - yes, it is a dream to study anything in the U.S. Even the most basic course can be so intellectually satisfying. Do you want to study for the sake of studying? Based on what did your husband suggest MBA. Did he say anything about the job hunt after that. These questions need some thinking over.

    Secure a better paying job - chances are low that you will find a job better paying than your current. Factoring in the periods of no employment you might face after an MBA.

    The struggle to manage family, household, job will get even tougher as your daughter needs more attention in middle, high school. And, jobs after MBA will not be as relaxed or predictable as a high school teacher's job. I can imagine the challenge of dealing with a classroom filled with many disinterested teenagers, but still compared to an MBA job...

    The main thing you need to look into is:
    - what matters more to you: making more money or studying in the U.S.
    - would you be happy studying some course but not needing to use it in work.

    My suggestion would be - unless you are really driven, really keen, really ambitious to study and switch careers to a job based in MBA/finance etc., stick to your teaching job, and increase the money you can make. Many of my friends in their 40's with tech/finance etc jobs and teenager(s) kids, badly wish for a slower pace job like a school teacher or in a govt. office.

    If you teach in a public high school, you also have pension?

    My practical but not ambitious and dreamy advice would be - start tutoring regular Phy, AP Physics I, AP Physics II and if possible AP Physics C. If you can add Pre-Calc, Calc A/B and Calc B/C to the tutoring (after taking community college courses), you will be minting money if you live in an area with families that are a bit focused on academics. You can look for offices or other businesses in the area looking to share rented office space.
     
  9. Laks09

    Laks09 Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    I decided to not do the program in U of H because it wasn't good enough to give me a huge career leap that I was expecting. I was already in a job and the MBA wouldn't have added too much value there or elsewhere even if I switched jobs. I wanted to go to Rice but couldn't afford it at the time. Rice's program might have given me that boost but I just didn't want to risk taking a huge loan and not being able to repay. Hindsight, I should have bitten the bullet and gone to Rice. I had the scores and the referrals etc and that MBA would have made a difference. I was in my 20s though and just getting started with my career.

    Like @Rihana mentioned, Physics tutors charge $100/hr for AP Physics around here and you can make a decent amount of money with just tutoring Physics. My DD missed a few classes last year and I had to use a tutor to get her up to speed. He did one-one tutoring over the weekend and helped her catch up. All he taught was AP Chem and Physics and met students at a Starbucks over the weekends. He had a full schedule from 9-6 both days. I almost started tutoring myself looking at the demand he had. He is also a HS teacher. He couldn't tutor his students but could tutor students from other schools.
     
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  10. Rihana

    Rihana Moderator Staff Member IL Hall of Fame

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    My friend also looking for 1-1 tutoring for Physics for her DD who missed some Friday afternoon classes due to speech & debate. She wants a lady tutor as wants tutor to come home (mom works, girl doesn't drive yet). : )

    So funny, I am chatting with her in the other browser tab, and LOL at her reasons for lady tutor. : )

    Jokes aside, I believe, some tutors take cash only...... I have no comment either way on the practice, what with a President whose personal business finances are a mystery, but the existence of such "cash only" practice is worth noting. If I recall correctly, the tutor "encourages" cash payment, not requires.

    ======================================
    OP, I did not mean to discourage you. Just that I have seen and talked with many women who changed career or went back to work in late 30's, early 40's, and it takes a lot of drive and dissatisfaction with current life. The toll it can take on the woman, on the marriage, and on the parenting, should be worth it.

    One other option for you to do some study in the U.S. and start a new career, yet retain or build on your current one is becoming a college admissions counselor. I wrote about this in the last paragraph of this post: In Deep Dilemna Wat Options Do I Have Need Suggestions The links there give a good introduction to the idea.

    It costs less than MBA etc, is useful for you even in itself. One of the intended audience of the college admissions counselor certificate is parents of middle schoolers! Yes. Some parents take the certification just to get the knowledge for personal use. For your background -- high school teacher, it would be a good second/part-time job.
     
    Last edited: Jan 10, 2019
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