Advantages and Disadvantages of being an MBA (from an Indian perspective)

Is the MBA bug hitting your recently and you are eager to enroll in this course for a good future. If you are then let me show you some clear insight of some of its advantages and disadvantages.

You must be thinking doing an MBA degree has all the benefit and power to land you a plum job in the corporate. If you think so then you need to change the whole perspective about this. Well let me tell you one thing, enrolling in an MBA course does not necessarily land you a good job and a better future. I have seen many MBA’s who are indeed successful in life and went on to become top notch executives in the corporate. However, there are also a large number of MBA degree holders who for their whole life have been clinching on the middle management level and also in some worst case scenario the lower management level.

One should always keep in mind the opportunity cost that is being involved in enrolling in such a degree. Today everyone in India view MBA as a higher professional degree, which can land him/her a plum job offer in a multinational company. This statement which most of us blindly follow is full of flaws. Yes, I mean it, and when I say this I am trying to convey the message that an MBA degree may not be for you.

Keep in mind one thing that although a degree like MBA has its own rewards do not blindly follow the wind. Many people in India just follow the trend that is currently hot in the industry. For example if a new software course is in demand and on completion of which guarantees a good offer. Many people just flock to enroll themselves into such courses even if they have no previous software knowledge or an engineering degree. Eventually what happens is that the candidate will have either partial or no knowledge about the subject and end up as a looser. Even if the candidate does manage to get a job he/she will not be able to become a successful person in that sector.

We can also involve another angle here, the society. Yes, the society also plays an important role sometimes in misguiding a person. By this remark I mean to say that in some societies this trend takes an ugly turn when parents forces their children’s to think and enroll for the course that are most lucrative in the market. It doesn’t matter if the person like the course or not, he/she has to pick up the career plan his/her parents chooses (remember 3 idiots).

If you are fully ready and made up your mind to enroll in an MBA course then you should ask yourself a few things.

1. Are you about to enroll in this course by your own choice and because of pressure from your parents and peers?
2. Are you willing to work hard for the next 2 years as it requires a lot of attention to better know the challenges of the practical world of management?
3. Are you prepared to shell out the money required for enrolling in an MBA programme. The fee structure of institute varies from one to another. However, most of them do have a large fee structure.
4. Always go for the top 20 institute in the country as its tag can help you get a plum offer.
5. Do not go for low-grade institutes as most of them are private and will provide you with a very low salaried job or no placement at all.
6. If you are unable to get into a top notch MBA institute don’t get disheartened and try again for the next time.

If you are really impatient or you think that the top notch institutes are not your cup of tea and you are going to make a compromise on this, then let me suggest you a few things.

1. Whenever you pick up an institute which has a lower ranking search for the credibility of the institute.
2. You can check the institute’s credibility by doing an online research on the past placements and the academics of the institute.
3. Get in touch with students that are currently enrolled in the institute and ask for their opinion about the education quality, faculty standards and also most importantly the placement part.
4. However, beware of some jealous students as they may try to mislead you because they themselves are in a mess and may try to lure you into the trap too.
5. You can get in touch with the institutes alumina and get all the necessary information regarding the institute. In-fact these people will be more honest than the currently enrolled one.
6. Last but not the least, I would like to mention is that if you want to go for an institute that is below the top 20 rank holders then at least do good in academics and try to be in the top slot as it will pave your way for a lucrative job and a good career. If you are an average performer the chances are that you will not be able to get a good offer. If you are a poor performer then the chances are grim that you will get a job from these institutes and have to search on your own.