MBA: An investment you can’t lose on

In today’s competitive job market, professionals constantly seek ways to stand out and advance their careers. One proven path to success is earning an MBA degree programme. Widely recognised as a solid investment in professional and personal growth, this degree offers numerous benefits that can propel your career to new heights. It opens up a world of enhanced career opportunities and also has a significant impact on your salary. While a new hire with an undergraduate degree averages US$65,000, an MBA graduate can make as much as US$115,000 as a starting salary. 

The comprehensive understanding of business principles, strategies, and practices gained through an MBA degree programme equips graduates with a versatile skill set highly sought after by employers. Whether you aspire to be a leader in finance, marketing, operations, or any other field, an MBA degree can help you secure those coveted leadership roles and accelerate your career progression. Most students walk away from their MBA with no regrets. A 2018 Alumni Perspectives Survey Report shows that 96% of MBAs regarded their degree as good, excellent, or outstanding value. An astounding 90% of alumni would still pursue a graduate management degree if they had to do it all over again.

While these figures are impressive, other factors also do play a part. For instance, where you do your MBA can also impact your success. Here are four prestigious schools to invest in an MBA that will change the trajectory of your career: 

University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business

University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business is committed to growing the good in business. It does this by shaping students into future business leaders who are dedicated to personal growth, social responsibility and a moral purpose that benefits society. At Notre Dame’s historic campus, virtuous individuals, with diverse interests and uncommon potential, can access several programmes to make them the best persons they can be. 

The Two-Year MBA offers countless opportunities to improve your business acumen and develop your own leadership style. This programmes allows students to pair one of five majors, three of which are STEM-designated, with more specific minors to tailor their education to their interests and future goals. It is so effective that 96% of the Class of 2022 accepted a full-time offer within three months. 

Classes are small, allowing for a more personal connection with classmates and one-on-one attention from career coaches and faculty (the latter carries on long after graduation). The University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business was also built on three fundamental commitments that shape its curriculum and differentiate its MBA degree programme. 

The first is integral leadership development, where future leaders are committed to personal and professional growth grounded in creating shared value. Experiential learning is key, as real-world applications give students a chance to evolve their skills and know how to grow a business well. The final commitment is to the community, nurturing a culture of success with shared priorities, recognition of a shared purpose and mutual advancement. To learn more about the college’s MBA Leadership Development and its community of mutual advancement, click here and here.

Warrington College of Business has flexible MBA options for those who want to work while studying. Source: Warrington College of Business

Warrington College of Business

The Warrington College of Business at the University of Florida is split into three schools: Heavener School of Business, which is the nation’s top-ranked undergraduate public business school; Fisher School of Accounting, one of the nation’s few free-standing accounting schools, provides a clear focus on the complex skill of accounting; and Hough Graduate School of Business, which offers highly specialised programs tailored to fit a student’s strengths and interests. 

The internationally renowned education at this college is marked by exemplary accolades, including coming in number two for Online MBA Programme among US schools according to Financial Times’ Online MBA 2022 Rankings and placing fifth for full-time MBA programme among publics by The Economist 2022 Which MBA? Rankings. 

Warrington College of Business has a selection of MBA programmes, including flexible programmes like the Online MBA and options for those who would like to juggle a job while studying, such as the Weekend Professional MBA and Executive MBA. Financial Times’ Top 100 Full-Time Global MBA Programs ranking marks the University of Florida’s MBA as the number one full-time program for career services and the number two program for value for money.

The LEAD Camp prepares students for the future of work with a wide range of seminars, workshops, lectures and activities. Source: Naveen Jindal School of Management

Naveen Jindal School of Management

Maximise your future potential with the Naveen Jindal School of Management at the University of Texas Dallas (UT Dallas). This business school is on a mission to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing, technology-driven, global society. Postgraduate programmes are always improving, as is its suite of management education courses.

To enrol in the UT Dallas MBA is to expand your business network by making valuable connections and relationships. The MBA programme also hosts a two-week boot camp for the incoming cohort called LEAD Camp (Leadership, Enhancement, Academic, Professional Development). It prepares students for the future of work with a wide range of seminars, workshops, lectures and activities.

Plan to manage or lead a high-tech firm or research institution? UT Dallas’s combined degree of MS/MBA engineering and management lets you earn a Master of Science Electrical Engineering (MSEE) degree in combination with an MBA or MS degree in management. This programme is administered by the Department of Electrical Engineering faculty members in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science and the School of Management.

The Haas School of Business hosts over 2,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students worldwide. Source: Haas School of Business

Haas School of Business

The Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, helps students build fluency in business fundamentals. The result? Graduates are empowered and confident to step into their future, armed with knowledge and skills to create change. 

The school hosts more than 2,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students worldwide to find success here. Programmes like the Full Time MBA, MBA for Executives, and Evening and Weekend MBA are designed to deep-dive into sectors like communication, innovation, global business and many more. You gain more knowledge as you learn collaboratively with top-notch peers.

Classes are kept small to foster intimacy critical to personal development. Students and faculty share a common culture and leadership principle, which means support is always available. If you are a student who enjoys learning as you do, you won’t regret picking this school. It prominently features hands-on experiential learning while customising your programme in an interdisciplinary environment. 

This is a place that continues to move knowledge forward, and this is seen through its PhD programme. As a PhD student, you will have access to some top-quality research centres and education opportunities in business and other industries.

*Some of the institutions featured in this article are commercial partners of Study International