TheFranciscos.Net

I’m about halfway done with my courses to earn my MBA degree from Indiana University, currently taking up a MacroEconomics course (C561 – The US In a Global Economy, to be exact), and it dawned on me that I’ve never even mentioned that I’ve been working on my MBA on the blog. So I’ll jump right into explaining what led me to pursue it.

A little over a year and a half ago, I began to look at MBA programs that were being offered online. Why did I want to pursue an MBA? Many different reasons, but it basically boils down to improving myself and keeping competitive. Why an online degree? I’ve got a wife, a daughter, not to mention a job that requires me to be on the road around 60% of the week. If I wanted an MBA, either full-time or even part-time, that would have been a major disruption in my family’s lifestyle.

I started by taking the GMAT and TOEFL exams. I aced the TOEFL (I think Pinoys should be exempted from taking this since we generally speak good english), and did pretty good on my GMAT (I surprised even myself by getting a 700 on it with only 2 weeks of studying). I then started to look around at prospective B-schools. My selection process was pretty simple. I simply looked at the top schools on the Business Week list, checked to see if they offered an online version, and found out if the program was within my budget. I wanted to spend around $40,000 or so maximum, and because of this, some schools were out of my reach (Duke, Thunderbird, etc.). I eventually narrowed it down to 2 schools – Arizona State University (#31 on the BWeek list) and Indiana University (#20). They both had similar programs costing almost the same amount with the main difference being courses being offered sequentially (ASU) versus parallel (IU). I eventually chose IU mainly by default since I just missed the ASU application deadline by about 2 days by the time I got my recommendations together. I submitted my application in mid-July last year, got approved 2 weeks later, and flew to the IU campus in mid-August to start the first introductory course (other courses were done online).

Anyway, school has been pretty much what I expect it to be. I believe I’ve been getting as much knowledge as I would have gotten from a regular brick and mortar university, plus I have the added bonus of being able to study at my own pace. I’m halfway done now, and I’ve throttled down the number of courses I’m taking from 2 to 1 per quarter. Taking 2 courses at a time was just so hectic at times so I decided to take it easy. I’ll finish the course in 3 years instead of the regular 2 that it takes, but I think it will make things easier for me in my personal life.

At any rate though, I’d definitely recommend online learning to anybody who is thinking about getting an MBA (or any advanced degree).