"MBA: Major Business advantage"

Human Capital Issue 6.32008, pg. 50 & 52

The threshold question is: Why do an MBA at all? It may be to supplement an existing qualification or to give you an option to take your career in a new direction. If you are an engineer you may want to move into consulting If you are a medical practitioner you may wish to pursue a commerce vocation. The unique market position which an MBA holds is that it provides general management skills. Ideally, the MBA student will be exposed to up-to-date and rigorous thinking in finance, operations, marketing, strategy and subsets of these areas. It should also incorporate the often overlooked, but immensely important, softer skills.

1. When? The MBA is best done following a period in the work force. Typically this may occur in the late 20s or early 30s. By this time, the MBA student will have had real world experience and their mind should be receptive to the practical and theoretical benefits that an MBA brings. 
2. Where? Given the global nature of business education, you may undertake the MBA in Australia or overseas.. There are numerous local programs which offer very good reciprocal arrangements with international business schools. This is something which should be considered seriously, given the global nature of business. MBAs come in all shapes and sizes as well as price. A local option may be inexpensive, but you tend to get what you pay for. 
3. Faculty? This is the real strength of any business school. Not only the quality of the teaching but the quality of research and, importantly, connections with business. 
4. Employer support? The extent to which an employer supports the intention to undertake an MBA is often a determining factor in what form and where an MBA is undertaken 
5. In-house programs? These are often company-sponsored MBA courses or may be merely specialised vocational training relevant to the employer s industry. Source: 'The Business Graduate of Tomorrow: Business/Higher Education Round Table and the Australian Business Deans Council. Topic: 'The Challenging Future of the MBA: presented by Andrew Horsley, 2007

The MBA does still cut it but it depends on the quality of the MBA, the quality of the person and how they perform in what they do with the MBA”, says Andrew Horsley, director of executive search company Horsley & Company. You can’t just get an MBA and think you’re right for life. An MBA should condition and predispose you to continued learning.” Horsley notes that an MBA can be used by mid-level managers to stand out from the pack, but he warns it will not guarantee success for a role the way proven business success and fit for the job will. Employers do look favourably on the MBA but this is usually third order: first order is how the candidate has performed in other roles; secondly, are they right for the job; and thirdly qualifications.”