Applying for an MBA without a clear career path

[muzza79]

Hi Stacy,

I am considering sitting the GMAT in the next 6-9 months to apply for an MBA back in Australia (home) or possibly in Europe.

I'm 32, and have about 8 or so combined years of experience working in Sports Management and related industries (events, project management, broadcasting). I studied a full time European Masters in Sports Management (www.cies.ch/cies/fifa-master) graduating in 2005 and six years later I've become largely disillusioned with the sports industry and I'm seriously considering a change of career path, hopefully triggered by an MBA.

My greatest concern at the moment though is not having a clear idea of what direction I want to potentially head after completing an MBA. My research so far suggests that a number of MBA programs allow students to keep a deliberately broad focus, but I am worried that not being able to exhibit a clear intended career path post graduation could hinder my applications.

From your experience, how would you envisage the average Graduate School viewing this? Can you give me any advice on how to address this problem in my MBA applications?

Additionally, if you are aware of any good articles, resources etc which can help narrow down a graduate's post MBA career path I would kindly appreciate if you could share them.

Thank you,
Ryan

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear Ryan,

MBA programs expect that you have an idea of what you want to do post-MBA as it is the basis for your rationale for pursuing the degree. Likewise, an MBA program is only 1-2 years long which is not enough time to explore and figure out your next move--you need to have some general idea when you start. There are resources out there that could be helpful to you as you try to determine where you want your next career move to be. One tool is an MBA-specific assessment that will identify potential career paths where you might be happiest (and thus perform well) based on what you seek in terms of tasks and rewards. It is called CareerLeader and can be done online. There are also a few websites out there that have some useful information as you explore careers. I recommend www.mba.com, www.vault.com and www.wetfeet.com.

Best of luck,
Lisa