7 common hesitations when considering an MBA
While you’re considering an MBA, you might have some concerns holding you back from committing to your program of choice. Never fear! UF MBA Senior Director of Admissions Andy Lord is here to ease some of the most common concerns he’s seen as people consider an MBA.
- Your wallet won’t be able to handle the cost
The cost of an MBA can seem overwhelming, but do your research. Professional, Executive and Online programs could run well into the six-figure range. The UF MBA is most likely half the cost if you are looking at other top 50 MBA programs. Clearly this means the payback period for a UF MBA will take much less time than our competitors. Additionally, it’s a long-term investment. You are positioning yourself to be qualified for higher paying jobs and will be able to contribute at a higher level with your strategic mindset.
- You won’t have the time to complete class requirements and live your life
We have over 900 students enrolled in the UF MBA program. They have full-time jobs, families and outside obligations, and still, over 92% of our Executive, Professional and Online students graduate. You will spend at least 15 hours a week working on your MBA. Yes, you might have to sacrifice some of your hobbies, but you will learn to manage your time more efficiently, a skill you can use to your advantage in your career. Something needs to give if you are ready to earn a top MBA.
- It’s been a while since you took a standardized test
This is the number one hesitation of applicants. No one is excited to prepare for and take a standardized test, especially reviewing material you originally learned years ago. But, chances are, if you are willing to put in the work to take the GMAT or GRE, you’ll likely be willing to make the time to complete your MBA coursework. It might seem nice that other programs will waive the standardized test requirement to lower their barriers for admission, but if they waived it for you, that means they also waived it for the other students in your class whom you will be working in groups with. Working with and learning from fellow intelligent people that are able to perform in an MBA program will motivate you to seek the best program option for yourself.
- Your undergraduate GPA wasn’t exactly a 4.0
You think you bombed undergrad because your GPA wasn’t so hot. You were 18 to 21 years old once. Those years probably are not reflective of your current maturity level and growth in your career. GPAs are as unique as the students that earn them and there is no preferred number. We consider many factors for admission including undergraduate program rigor, institution, and quality of your undergraduate degree. And once again, your 18-year-old mindset, changing majors, extenuating circumstances, undergraduate extracurricular activities and leadership roles served are all taken into account when you are applying to earn your MBA. We all have been there.
- You were a poetry (or astronomy, or theatre, or linguistics, or entomology, or whatever) major
Have no fear, we have seen every undergraduate major under the sun. We build you from the ground up. Our two-year Full-Time, Online, Executive and Professional programs have no business coursework prerequisite to enter the program. Did you know some of the world’s top CEO’s have a non-business undergraduate background and combined their education experience with a top 50 MBA?
- You won’t see a return in your MBA investment
You are worried you are not going to see a return of your investment or a return on your education. While nothing is guaranteed, you are absolutely in control of increasing your skillset, probability of a promotion, marketability, and becoming the strategic thinker with an MBA. Add these items up, transformation guaranteed. You are increasing the likelihood of getting the interview if you attend a top 50 MBA program. HR managers know the stronger programs out there and most likely want to interview those candidates first.
- All of the logistics are just something else to keep you up at night
You are worried about all of the outside details, but don’t be. We register you for classes, we tell you where to park, we provide course packets and materials, we have our own financial aid advisors, we share hotel recommendations for your weekend stay, and we help when things get tough at work or if you miss a class weekend due to a mandatory obligation. We can even help move you to another program option if you have to relocate across the country. We work with students to integrate them into a future program at a later date if you have an extenuating circumstance occur. You absolutely should find an MBA program that offers premier level student service to handle all of those distractions for you, and I challenge you to find one that does a better job than UF MBA.
Andy Lord is Senior Director of Admissions for UF MBA. He has been with UF MBA for over 15 years in an admissions related role, becoming the Director of Admissions for Executive, Professional and Online MBA programs in 2008. In 2012, he incorporated the Full-Time MBA program into his realm of responsibilities and now is the Senior Director of Admissions for all of UF MBA programs. He leads a very talented team that is responsible for recruiting and admitting students for the 10 start dates of Professional MBA programs and three intakes of Full-Time MBA programs. He earned his bachelor’s degree in marketing from Winthrop University and his M.Ed. from the University of Florida.
Have other concerns you’d like Andy to clear up? Schedule a call with him and the UF MBA team.
