MBA: My Bachelor’s Ain’t…enough!
Management 521

MBA: My Bachelor’s Ain’t…enough! Pursuing an MBA is simply another way of saying, “My Bachelor’s degree just Ain’t enough!” Obtaining a Bachelor’s degree should be considered an amazing accomplishment. However, many have come to the realization that it is, in fact, inadequate. The status of the current economy is a leading indicator that something beyond a Bachelor’s degree is needed. A potential stepping stone beyond a Bachelor’s degree is an MBA, which opens up a great deal of opportunity compared to a Bachelor’s. Many reasons exist for an MBA to be sought out and why a bachelor’s just “Ain’t enough.” Some of the top reasons to pursue an MBA are that a Bachelor’s degree does not provide the potential to make enough money, give the education to be marketable enough, or give enough prestige to the degree holder. A study in the Journal of Marketing for Higher Education led by Lynn Dailey, MBA, PhD, marketing professor at Capital University, Columbus, OH, showed that career advancement, financial security, and elevated social status/prestige (see Table 1) are within the top 5 reasons to pursue an MBA (Dailey 148). Because of the current trend and these economical times, a Bachelor’s degree is just not enough. Pursuing and obtaining an MBA is an excellent way to make more money in the long run, to make one more marketable, and to give one more prestige than with a bachelor’s degree. One of the top reasons heard most for the pursuit of an MBA is for the potential to make more money, basically money in one way or another. The ability to leverage an increase in pay or to make a higher wage over time is a glamorous motive to pursue an MBA. Although the amount of pay usually correlates with the amount of work experience before obtaining the MBA, nonetheless; it still greatly influences the future potential. The weakened state of the economy has caused many companies to downsize, postpone wage increases, and even cut pay. One way to offset these changes to avoid being fired, being skipped over for a raise, or suffering a pay cut, is to pursue an MBA. Timothy Butler and James Waldroop, both psychologists and the directors of MBA career development programs at Harvard Business School in Boston, further explain this. “Many professionals streaming out of today's MBA programs, are so well educated and achievement oriented that they could succeed in virtually any job.” (Butler & Waldroop 145). Pursuing an MBA would show an employer seriousness toward the job and give an employer a reason to allow a pay increase. One of the reasons to give MBA degree holders more money is because they can bring more to the table. More job skills can be brought to the table along with management and leadership skills. The degree holder is more marketable and has more education, so along with the raise accompanies an advancement in career. Without an MBA there is not enough education to be marketable enough for career advancement and with this economy, it has become even more difficult to advance. The Bachelor’s degree provides a base of knowledge and education for a job but it is not enough for career advancement. The MBA supplies one with further knowledge of not only basic job skills but also with skills in leadership and management. Receiving further education in management would make one more marketable for career advancement especially in the management over others in the same field. With the struggles that companies are dealing with in the current economy, they need to have even more scrutiny in their hiring and promoting. A company can lessen the risk of a bad hire or promoting the wrong person for the position by seeking out those with MBA degrees. Granted, an MBA does not guarantee an employer a perfect hire but one with an MBA has more education in business and management, which will then be less of a risk. Along with higher education comes prestige, the MBA is a degree that has prominence inside and out of the business world. During these economic times, many have decided to go back to school for more education and in hopes of better future pay. From the job market is suffering, a larger amount of high school students are deciding to stay in school and obtain a Bachelor’s degree instead of joining the ranks of the workforce. The prestige of the Bachelor’s degree is becoming weaker because a larger amount of students are receiving their Bachelor’s degree or are in the pursuit of it. The current case is, “Everyone has a Bachelor’s degree.” Although this is an exaggeration, it still is similar to what some say, thus weakening the authority of what a bachelor’s is worth. An MBA has prestige over a bachelor’s because it is often associated with higher education, higher pay, and greater opportunity for advancement, to name a few. Those with an MBA are looked up to because they are leading the way during the rough times while most people are having a hard time getting ahead. Upper level management has prestige within a company and in most cases; the only way to get there is with an MBA. The pursuit of an MBA is not all glitz and glamour; it takes a great deal of time, dedication, and hard work. Knowing that an MBA takes hard work also adds to the prestige, the fact that one can make it through all the requirements of an MBA says a lot. The MBA does not necessarily do everything for the ambitious worker trying to get ahead. A lot also has to do with the personality type he or she possesses. C.G. Jung created a 16-type personality assessment to decipher distinct personality types. A person who scores an ESTJ which means, extroverted (over being introverted), sensing (over intuitive), thinking (over feeling), judging (over perceiving) would probably do well with an MBA degree, in an executive position. According to Jung, an ESTJ is, “Realistic, logical, analytical, decisive, and has a natural head for business or mechanics, likes to organize and run things. Possible career as a corporate executive…” (Jung). Possessing a personality type ESTJ would most likely help out, when paired with an MBA, to receive promotions and higher wages. An MBA is not for anyone that merely wants more money, education, and prestige. Sure, an MBA can help one to make a higher wage, get more education for career advancement, and prestige of the achievement but it takes an extreme amount of effort. Personality plays an important role in moving forward. One would also have to ask, “Is it worth it?’ based on his or her situation would have a great deal of influence on whether to pursue it or not. It would be important to know how much more one would actually make in the position, or how much further one could get ahead in his or her specific career. It would also be important to know if one would have enough in them to make the sacrifice, work hard, and dedication to finish. These are just some considerations to make in deciding whether or not to make more money, get more education for career advancement, or reach a higher level of prestige, or in other words, pursue an MBA.

References
Butler, T., & Waldroop, J. (1999). JOB SCULPTING. Harvard Business Review, 77(5), 144-152. Retrieved from Business Source Complete database.
Stephen P. Robbins. ©2007 Pearson Education, Inc. Pearson Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458. Retrieved from University of Phoenix student website: https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/secure/aapd/sas/robbins_sal3v3/sal3v3web.html
Dailey, L., Anderson, M., Ingenito, C., Duffy, D., Krimm, P., & Thomson, S. (2006). Understanding MBA Consumer Needs and the Development of Marketing Strategy. Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 16(1), 143-158. doi:10.1300/J050vl6n01_07.