Should i do an MBA?

[Pregnantabroad]

Not sure if this is the right place to post this so please forgive me if wrong..
My questions are mainly:
Is it worth it?
Can I possibly manage it given my home life?
How do I convince my employer to pay for 2/3 of it AND give me paid time off to study?

Some more details:
I've just won a third of the cash towards a 24 month MBA (at Manchester Met). I have a 5 year old, a 3 year old and 7 month old twins. My husband works 4 days per week. I'm 10 years into my career in the supermarket/food manufacturing industry (minus approx 3 years out so far on mat leave/career break). I currently work 4 days a week and am due to return in December.
Firstly, in order to do this, my employer would have to fund the rest and agree to let me have the time off to attend seminars and have study time. How do I convince them? And what should I ask for? If anyone has any info specifically about the 24 month Manchester Met MBA in terms of study requirements per week that would be great..I can't find any info about that all.
Thank you!!!

I am cringing at the fact that I didn't include a capital 'I' in the title. Sorry!

Does your employer have a policy of part-funding qualifications AND giving paid study leave? (I'm assuming you want paid rather than unpaid study leave). Sounds very generous!

I work in Financial Services and I don't think any of my employers would fund an MBA. For more professionally-related qualifications/courses they will contribute, but everyone I know who has done a MBA has self-funded.

What benefit is your employer going to get out of this?

I did the Cranfield Executive MBA 2 years ago, sponsored by my employer. At the start of the course my children were 1 and 3. It was incredibly hard work, but I would do it again in a heartbeat!

Manchester Met may have materials that help you build the case for your employer, and I would ask them about the study requirements

My employer will pay for MBA but not study time if you are doing PT. it is pretty selective who gets funded due to the high cost. You have to stay a certain number of years after otherwise you are on the hook for the fees.

Many people doing an MBA are looking to career change, what would be your rationale?

Is the cash for this specific mba or is this how you would like to use it?

Thank you for the input...
To answer your questions, my employer has no policies for part-funding further study although they are quite a large company. Yes I would want them to let me use (for example) one day a week so I can study. I would probably have to commit to working for them for a certain length of time and my dissertation would be based on the business. Plus a lot of he work along the way would be an examination of, and suggestions for improvements to, our current business practices.

The scholarship cash is for this specific MBA. I would be doing it because I have reached a senior manager level within my career but I can't progress further (in my current business) without a wider business knowledge. Also, longer term I'd to join/(run?!) a start up.

Rifrafia
What kind of business do you work for? Did you have to commit to working for them for a certain length of time? And did they give you paid study time?

Is it an Executive MBA program? If not, they will probably expect you to show up every day for classes and work on group projects the rest of the time. You might not be able to work at all.

I did a part time MBA funded entirely by my employer, and I did get quite a lot of paid time off to study too. Not as much as one day a week, though - I'd have never got the day job done! I'm not tied in to work for them now I've finished.

I'd say that most of the people on my course were funded by their employer at least in part. Quite a few got paid study time as well. The ones who had no support at all from their employers tended to be in more junior positions.

I did mine over 3 years, alongside a very demanding FT job and 1 primary school age dc at home. It was bloody hard work if I'm honest, and I found it very difficult. I was the only woman on my course with kids. Most of the men had SAH wives or wives who worked PT and picked up most of the slack at home. Sometimes I felt like I was going to have a nervous breakdown, there was so much to try and juggle.

A few of my classmates finished in 3 years like me. Most took four or even longer. I don't know anyone who finished in two, though in theory it was possible.

Do what you want. Why would anyone care?

That's an odd response, Ask. Lots of people ask for opinions and advice on all sorts of questions. Why shouldn't the OP ask about this?

Thank you for your advice and responses. I'm going to build a case for my employer and take it from there. If I manage it, I'll be that person encouraging other Mums to do it!

Good luck if you go for it, OP. For all the stress that it caused, I'm glad now that I did it!

Yes. DH did one about 15 years ago and his career rocketed since then. It takes you to the leader level

Broken, where did you do yours?
I haven't found one that sounds like you could spread it out like that, would be interesting

OP, don't really want to say on here as I might out myself, but I have PM'd you.

Hi all,

Just a quick update. I've just started the MBA! I got no funding from my employer but they have given me 1 paid day a week study time plus time off for lectures. My friends think I'm a bit crazy :)

I don't go back to work from maternity leave until the end of Jan so until then have to fit in my assignments/reading etc between naps (like now...should be writing my first assignment!) and in the evenings. I'm already feeling quite intimidated by the level of work but also feel hugely enthused and excited. I'm already realising that I need to cut down on socialising and saying yes to things (eg PTA volunteering) but hey, it's only for 2 years,.

Brokenbiscuit...I never did get that PM. Maybe you know who i am now?! Perhaps we're on the course together?! PM me now if you like :)

Sorry - just re-read your message brokenbiscuit and see that you've finished yours. Well, if you fancy selling me some of your text books I'd be more than willing. I've got a list as long as my arm to buy and they cost a fortune!