I’m also a veteran who was able to earn my undergraduate degree without debt.

Afterwards I interned in the Project Management Office at a Fortune 100 company. Everyone had an MBA and I loved the work we were doing.

I just completed my first semester at a top 30 B-School in the U.S. where I earned 2 As, a C, and an F. I learned about interpreting financial statements, running supply chain models, and did a lot of networking.

They dismissed me because of the F. The program certainly required mountains more effort than a Bachelor’s degree.

I’m still a little bummed, but I can always pursue a PMP (Project Management Professional) certification. It carries less weight than an MBA, but it may allow me to travel in the same circles I’ve become accustomed to. I feel the material is more relevant for my work as a PM as well.

I don’t know what to say. It’s not for everyone. I do know that I won’t need to interpret financial statements or enhance any supply chain models anytime soon in my current role. Is $18k a lot to pay for a stacked linkedin account?

#mbadropouts
#mbashrug

http://blogs.hbr.org/schwartz/2012/06/the-art-of-letting-go.html

@ Jenni It’s a tough call. I really felt like I was giving up when I dropped out. 10 years later I can definitely say it was the best decision.

After that first test, I could stomach the thought of another multiple choice exam where I crammed the evening before to memorize a bunch of stuff only to forget it immediately after the exam.

I finally did go back several years later and get an MBA, but in hindsight, it wasn’t worth it. I’m glad I did it, but unless you are entering a job that requires it (investment banking) as a ticket in the door, then the skills you learn are close to worthless.

Not a single one of my teachers had ever owned a business. Few of them had ever had a job outside of a college. Almost everything covered in the classes were theories from a text book that don’t work in the real world. As you know, it is marketing, sales, and satisfying customers that matters in a small business. A SWOT analysis just doesn’t cut it and neither does using advanced calculus to draw supply and demand curves.

What it really comes down to in the end, in my opinion, is ego. It seems cool having three letters after your name before you have them. But after you earn them you realize those three letters don’t mean a whole lot in the real world where you live and die by the bottom line. You still have go out and learn the things that really matter–which are totally different than those required to get a degree.

Anyone ever haunted by not completing formal education, I highly recommend the book The Education of Millionaires. I’ve been on both sides of it now, and Michael nails it in that book.

You’re welcome, Tammy. I’m glad you enjoyed it.