Stories · Growth

Quit for a full-time MBA

You're 29, a marketing manager at a mid-sized company earning $95k a year. You're considering quitting for a two-year full-time MBA, about $200k with living costs, aiming to switch into management consulting. You've arranged a coffee with Kevin, a recent graduate of the program.

Who you're talking to

Kevin, recent graduate of the program.

(sits down with a coffee) Hey, nice to meet you! Want to hear about the program? Ask away, I'll tell you everything.

Questions to start with

• “Where did your classmates end up?”
• “How many people did consulting firms hire this year?”
• “Would you do full-time again?”

Kevin won't volunteer everything. Some of what matters only comes out if you ask the right follow-up questions.

Questioning habits this story trains

• Get the story behind a number. For example: “From what to what? Compared with what?”
• Ask about the downside they skipped. For example: “What's the worst that could happen?”
• Ask where the evidence comes from. For example: “How many cases like that? Who says so?”
• Find the unspoken premise. For example: “For that to hold, what else has to be true?”

The decision

When you've heard enough, you give Kevin your answer face to face. The choices include:

• Quit and do the full-time MBA
• Do the part-time MBA and push for a strategy role at your company
• Get admitted, use other schools' admits to negotiate a scholarship, then decide
• Skip the MBA and try moving into a research or marketing role at a consulting firm

Then you read what happened a year later, see how sound your decision was, and get notes on the key moments of your conversation with a better way to say each.

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