Eight reasons to get an MBA

Here are eight reasons why you may want to consider getting an MBA

"Do I really need an MBA?" is a question asked by many in the business world. As you weigh the pros and cons, you can probably think of a lot of reasons why not to get a graduate business degree – maybe you’re still paying off your college student loan, the cost and time commitment involved, the loss of personal time, and most importantly, whether it will really be worth the time and investment.

However, if you want to advance into management, many companies now consider a Master's in Business Administration (MBA) a necessary credential to accelerate your career and open the doors to more management and leadership opportunities.

Here are eight reasons why you may want to consider getting an MBA:

1. You will be among an elite group of high achievers who are in high demand

The market demand for individuals with an MBA is at an all-time high. In 2018, 85% of U.S. companies intended to hire MBA graduates, according to a 2018 survey by the Graduate Management Admission Council, a nonprofit that administers the GMAT admissions exam.

While getting accepted into an MBA program can be difficult, don’t let that deter you. Let that be the impetus to help you work harder to get into a respected program. Take advantage of the fact that you will be among high achievers like yourself and these people will become your friends and peers for years to come.

If you live in the Midwest, you don’t have to travel far to find a reputable MBA program. Creighton University’s MBA program is more than 50 years old and is among two percent of schools worldwide to be accredited by the AACSB in business and accounting. It has also been ranked among the top 50 best online MBA programs in the country by US News & World Report. (AACSB is a nonprofit association that provides quality assurance business education intelligence and professional development services to more than 1,600 member organizations and over 800 accredited business schools worldwide.)

2. You will develop commanding communication skills to lead with impact

The master of business administration program at Creighton University Heider College of Business will give you the communication skills you need to excel in a business environment in all types of industries. Powerful leaders require critical thinking and powerful communication skills that will give them the ability to inspire and motivate people. These are tools that can be crucial when taking on challenging business projects that require strong and credible leadership, collaboration and teamwork. A graduate business degree at Creighton University will help you sharpen your skills in communication, negotiation, strategic and critical thinking, problem solving and team management. You will perfect your proficiency in writing effective business proposals, developing innovative marketing strategies and making presentations in front of large groups with poise, confidence and credibility.

3. You will acquire new information, skills and knowledge

You probably took some business classes in undergraduate school so you may feel like you already have the business skills you need. But Creighton’s MBA program goes much deeper. The breadth and depth of the MBA program will provide you with the critical business skills, professional know-how, field experience and big picture understanding of business you need to be a leader.

Coursework will focus on how to apply important business models and concepts that will allow you to excel as a business executive – things like strategic planning, project management, operations, problem-solving, risk management, budgeting and time management.

Creighton’s respect and reputation in the community will enable you to participate in fieldwork at some of the leading businesses in the community that will be invaluable in terms of real-life experiences, applying new practices to your current job and developing new networking relationships. At the completion of Creighton’s MBA program, you will have the skills and confidence you need to be an effective, efficient and strategic business leader.

4. You will have access to more job opportunities and leadership positions

An MBA is considered the gold standard among many business executives and prospective employers. If the question of how to get promoted has crossed your mind more than once and you have aspirations for management or a C-suite position, Creighton’s MBA program can be an invaluable stepping stone to elevate your career to the next level. You’ll have more job opportunities, a faster track to promotions and leadership positions and a higher salary potential. In fact, completion of a MBA is on the resumes of many Fortune 500 executives.

MBA graduates from Creighton University have pursued careers in a variety of organizations and industries, including numerous Fortune 500 companies such as Union Pacific, ConAgra Foods, Mutual of Omaha, TD Ameritrade and others. Job titles have included operations manager, CEO, president, finance manager, vice president, project manager and marketing manager.

5. You will increase your salary and earnings potential

If you are pondering the cost of completing an MBA program and whether it will actually pay off in the long run, according to research by Payscale, MBA degree holders experience a faster increase in salary than those with an undergraduate degree and have been found to earn the highest salary of all degree levels for the duration of their career.

Salaries differ depending on your field, area of concentration and which part of the country you live in. According to PayScale’s survey of thousands of MBA graduates, those with one to four years of experience had an average salary of nearly $61,000, while those with 10 to 19 years of experience earned more than $100,000. A master of business administration salary for those who specialize typically commands a higher salary and will give you a competitive edge when you are ready to pursue your dream job.

Graduates of the Creighton University Heider College of Business MBA program within the past 15 years report an average annual salary that is 20 percent higher than the median annual salary for MBA graduates across the nation.

6. You will develop a powerful network of business contacts

During your MBA studies at Creighton University, you will have the opportunity to work with a variety of seasoned professors, alumni, business leaders and classmates, who, like yourself, want to expand their business network, explore new job opportunities and become successful leaders. Like you, these are highly motivated individuals who come with experience in a variety of industries and from different parts of the country. You will interact with professors who may become your mentors. You will get to hear presentations from top executives from across the country about their successes, failures and road to success. Many MBA graduates say that one of the greatest benefits of getting an MBA are the relationships they forged while completing their degree. These relationships will be invaluable in helping you get promoted and will serve as an important peer group and sounding board long after completion of your degree.

7. You will have a chance to refocus and reset your goals

Successful people focus in their careers. If you have been out in the business world for at least three years or more and are still trying to determine your long-term career goals, now is the time to determine your focus. An MBA program gives you the opportunity to sit back and see the big picture and to reassess your career goals. You’ll find that job opportunities for a master of business administration degree to be more plentiful and will help you advance more quickly in your current career.

8. You will be able to select a program focus and format that fits your needs

If you’re concerned about fitting an MBA into an already busy schedule, you will be happy to know that Creighton offers flexible format options to fit your lifestyle.

Creighton’s program is designed for the working professional and offers part-time, online, on campus evening classes or a hybrid of both. You can customize a schedule to fit your needs and time restraints, which allows most graduates to complete their degree in just a little over two years.

If you already have a business degree, you may want to consider focusing on a specific area of business to give yourself a competitive edge over your peers. Creighton’s program offers numerous options for MBA concentrations, graduate certificates or dual degrees including business intelligence and analytics, negotiation and conflict resolution, organizational leadership, business analytics, law, healthcare management as well as more traditional fields such as finance and accounting.

Creighton also offers an Executive Master of Business Administration in Healthcare Management program that provides a flexible and credible graduate degree option for clinicians or mid-career healthcare executives who want to advance their understanding of how to effectively manage a healthcare organization and boost their administrative leadership potential.