Is An MBA Degree Really Worth It?

An interesting article from The Age Online, reports market forces are beginning to affect Business Schools. Seems every university offers an MBA degree program, but the cost, faculty training, and benefit of the degree vary widely.

"The problem: too many schools, too many ways of getting an MBA, including on the internet, and not enough specialist teachers to maintain the standards demanded. The result: graduate business schools are now graded according to quality and price."

The article goes on to suggest that an MBA is not a fast track to the executive ranks. Few of Australia's CEOs or directors hold MBA degrees. There are few MBA degrees among the Rich 200 list. While a Financial Times of London report pegs the value of an MBA from one of the world's top 100 programs at salary increases of 86-227 percent, "Stanford University management professor Jeffrey Pfeffer found little evidence that an MBA delivers a higher salary, better career or stronger business" in a 40 year study.

Bottom line, an MBA may give you a more rounded perspective and a network of great contacts, but the degree by itself is no guarantee of business success. What really matters is what you do with what you learned during the program.