<p>If you don't have any full-time work experience coming out of your undergraduate program, is it even worth it to consider going into an MBA program, taking into account that they might not even accept you because you have no full-time work experience? I know some college students, actually a lot depending on the major, don't have any work experience coming out of college...</p>
<p>I'll graduate with a degree in accounting and a.s. in business administration and want to go to graduate school. Heck, I really want to go to graduate school, not to prolong getting a real job, but to continue learning about business/accounting.</p>
<p>I would probably apply to the Kelley School of Business at IU; it's not top 5, but I think it's ranked Top 25 in the country - would it be worth it to go into graduate school without work experience, putting off getting a job another 2 years, since it's not a top 5 graduate school, or should a person go to school part-time and work full-time?</p>
<p>I've read that if it's not a top-tier grad school like Wharton, it's pretty pointless to go straight out of undergrad school.</p>
<p>Thoughts...? Discuss.</p>
<p>One of the main points of an MBA is to apply one's real-world professional experience to the classroom. It is very rare for any good MBA program (top 5 or top 25) to admit applicants straight out of college. It happens I am sure, but in general, most respected programs expect at least 3 years of full time experience. The average MBA student at top 25 programs has close to 5 years of work experience.</p>
<p>Look at it another way. I guarantee that you will get more out of your MBA program if you have a couple of years of full-time work experience first. This applies to even non-elite schools. I earned my MBA 20 years ago.</p>
<p>Good advice, good advice - would you then advise to go to grad school part-time and work or full-time and not work (after the 2-5 years work experience after your Bachelor)?</p>
<p>I wanted to edit this to add:</p>
<p>Wouldn't it be smart to get into grad school (MBA) as fast as possible if you desired to be a CPA? I would think that you'd want that license as soon as possible - what are your thoughts on that?</p>
<p>If it was just a general reason for getting your MBA - raises at your company, etc., I could see having the work experience to warrant a raise or promotion at your company, but if you're going to grad school so you can sit for the CPA exam, wouldn't it be smart to go straight out of undergrad school or as soon as you could so you could sit for the exam ASAP? Correct me if I'm wrong here, but if you pass the CPA exam, it doesn't matter how much work experience you have...you can do things other "accountants" can't do with just undergrad degrees?</p>
<p>If you can get into a top 15 or top 20 MBA program, go for it full time. Otherwise, I recommend a part time MBA. That's just me though. You really should do what works best for you.</p>
<p>Yeah, that's a good point...the better the program, the more you want to concentrate your energy into completing it efficiently.</p>
<p>Does anyone have any opinions on what I said about becoming a CPA? Wouldn't it be wise(r) to go to grad school right out of undergrad school so you can meet the 150 credit hour requirement as fast as possible so you can sit for the CPA exam, and also get your MBA in the process?</p>
<p>I have another question:</p>
<p>Assuming that one does go and get an MBA right after college (my school has an accelerated 5-year bachelor+MBA) would it be significantly harder to get a job at graduation for someone who would do that as opposed to someone with previous job experience? Thanks.</p>
<p>It depends... What do you want to do after you graduate? My advice would be different for someone who wants to be an accountant than for someone who wants to be a brand manager.</p>
<p>What's your advice for someone that wants to be an accountant (possibly CPA if I can pass the exam), Rick?</p>