It’s that time of year when you can’t escape wrap-ups. Magazines, Web sites, and blogs are filled with “best of” lists, deconstructing the year in all its minutiae.
Me, I’m a total sucker for a list, any list. There’s just nothing like having information distilled down to a few numbered items. We won’t even mention how much time I’ve wasted reading Time’s 50 Top 10 Lists of 2007 in the past week or so. (Just finding the URL to the package cost me at least another 15 minutes as three more lists sucked me in.)
When I head back for semester #2 next month, many others will be starting their inaugural semester in MBA programs. My own school will be launching its Saturdays-only program, the sister program to the one I’m in.
So, in the spirit of making lists and helping out new MBA students in the process, here are three things I wish someone had told me before I started the MBA program.
1. Don’t stress over not having a business background.
I thought my liberal arts undergrad experience would be a detriment to business school, but I wasn’t the only one lacking the “right” background. About half the class is in the same boat; only about 50 percent of the students in the program have bachelor’s degrees in business.
Furthermore, the program has entailed so much reading and writing that my background’s actually helped, not hurt. My husband, he with the degree in finance, has had a much harder time adjusting to the word-heavy program.
2. Three hours of class time at the end of a workday isn’t as bad as it sounds.
OK, I admit that after our first night of class, I told my husband that it was going to be a very long two years. And there are definitely some nights that seem longer than others.
But overall, it surprised me how quickly time could pass when you’re actually interested in the topic at hand. There were even nights when I left school almost energized (a fact that’s even more amazing if you know me!).
Going to class from 6 to 9 P.M. two nights a week was a daunting concept. But looking back, I’m amazed at how much it flew by (oh, how hindsight is 20/20!) — and how much I crammed in to each week.
3. Earning an MBA means more than mastering the coursework.
Sure, you should know how to calculate a median and a mean, and understanding the precepts of economics is important. However, an MBA program goes far beyond this.
Often, some of the most important things you take away from school aren’t the specifics of a management theory or a statistics formula. It’s the learning how to work with a group of disparate personalities, and it’s the ability to speak comfortably in front of a group of your peers (something I still haven’t mastered).
So, if you’re struggling with a particular class (econ, anyone?), don’t let it get you down. Chances are, you’re learning more than you think.
What advice do you have for the next round of MBA students? What do you wish you would have known when you began your MBA studies?
