Late Night Ponderings: Going for a MSc or MBA, is it worth it?

[Asher]

Originally posted by rah
If you weren't in a technical field I'd highly recommend a MBA. While I doubt that an MBA wouldn't do some good, I don't think it would be worth the investment. In all my years I've never seen not having one being a limiting factor in the computer technical industry. Technical people that have management skills are rare enough that they don't need anything to distinguish themselves from the masses, unlike other fields. They rise to the top automatically.

Now those skills could be useful if you were running a startup company, but then you'd be trying to impress investors and not bosses.

Hmm...startup company. If I had some capital and a good enough idea that'd be pretty ideal.

I'm leaning towards trying to find a good job in Calgary, but still apply for either the MBA or MSc (probably MBA right now). If I don't find a suitable job, and I will be picky...then I'll try the school thing and ride out the economic slump.

[Jon Miller]

I would only recommend getting a MSc or PhD if you think you could do them very quickly, or if you want specific doors opened, or if you really want one.

JM

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by Kidicious
Please get an MBA so that you will atleast know something about business.

An MBA opens a lot of doors. You might even check with your personnel department to see what degrees have the best chance of advancing your career. Some companies will even help pay for their people to get advanced degrees which are connected to their jobs.

[Patroklos]

Where are you looking to get either of these at? Do you plan on going full time student? I'd imagine an MBA would be much eaiser to pick up than a MSc if not.

[snoopy369]

PHB is where the real money (and power) is; MSc is where the enjoyment is, at least for people like me. Whether you prefer the money/power or the more 'interesting' work, is up to you to decide.

When asked if I'd rather make plenty of money and program all day, or make double or triple plenty of money and shift papers around and make budgets and such, I know (at least for now) what my answer is ...

Some decent schools (Depaul, for example, locally) have MIS programs attached to their MBA programs. That might be something to look into as well (as it sort of crosses the line between the two).

[Kidlicious]

Originally posted by Zkribbler


An MBA opens a lot of doors. You might even check with your personnel department to see what degrees have the best chance of advancing your career. Some companies will even help pay for their people to get advanced degrees which are connected to their jobs.

I should get a CPA, but right now I can't travel anyway, so it wouldn't help me that much. When my son is grown, or I'm able to travel, I will.

[Asher]

Originally posted by snoopy369
PHB is where the real money (and power) is; MSc is where the enjoyment is, at least for people like me. Whether you prefer the money/power or the more 'interesting' work, is up to you to decide.

When asked if I'd rather make plenty of money and program all day, or make double or triple plenty of money and shift papers around and make budgets and such, I know (at least for now) what my answer is ...

I dunno, there are guys at work who are purely technical and earn well into the six figures at about 28-30 years old. I'm not sure it's true that the real money is always in management, it's just easier to get money in management. If you're actually very good at what you do, the money is very good in the tech side as well too.

Some decent schools (Depaul, for example, locally) have MIS programs attached to their MBA programs. That might be something to look into as well (as it sort of crosses the line between the two).

I wouldn't touch MIS with a ten-foot pole. It's far closer to IT work than real compsci work, and it's not really management either. Danger, danger, danger.

[Asher]

Originally posted by Patroklos
Where are you looking to get either of these at? Do you plan on going full time student? I'd imagine an MBA would be much eaiser to pick up than a MSc if not.

I'd be going to the University of Calgary just because that's where I'll be living, and I've got personal commitments in the city. They've got a pretty good business school and the CS grad school there is pretty good as well.

It'd be full-time, if I do it.

[snoopy369]

There's (almost) always more money in management for an equal quality of work - if you're that ****ing good that you earn 150k+ as a tech, an equivalently good person on the management side would be CIO of a mid-size company and on the way to seven figures.

That said, my point was that as a programmer you can make plenty of money - it's just you have to have an acceptable range of 'plenty of money'. To me, $150k/year in 2007 dollars is plenty of money for life - if I never make more than that I'll be perfectly happy, and heck, $90k is probably plenty for me ultimately; I'm not a big 'money' person. (Also, my GF will probably outearn me over the long haul, so our family income is even higher...) But that's a personal question, of course - everyone has different tastes and different needs.

With MIS - I was thinking that 'real IT work' plus management might be more palatable to some than 100% management. Definitely would be for me, anyway.

[Kidlicious]

Companies don't like to advance IT people because they are too hard to replace.

[Jon Miller]

Yeah, I personally am not after 'real' money. I figure that I will be happy with >40k, and that I will have. I mean, all other things being equal more is better than less, but it isn't the crucial part of my decision making.

JM

[Asher]

snoopy369

I'm somewhat disconcerted by your casual equation to programmer to other tech-stuff I'm more interested in like software architecture.

There's lots of very big bucks in being a very good software architect. There's usually not a lot of money in programming itself, it probably tops out at 100,000 or so. It's very, very different work than being a programmer...so just know that when I speak about staying on the tech side, I don't mean as a programmer.

I mean from a bigger picture -- tech strategy and planning, overall software architecture design, software development procedures and methodologies, etc.

[Japher]

My brother-in-law has a MS in CS. In a typical tech geek fashion he told me I was an idiot when I decided to get my MBA, told me that I should get a masters degree in engineering or technical discipline instead. I told him that if I wanted to advance in a technical discipline I could do so with the degree I have. However, if I want to hop the fence to manage and lead technical people I would need an MBA. He scoffed at me.

Last time I saw him he told me he wished he got a MBA instead, and was thinking about going back to school again. My sister won't let him though, so he's screwed.

Anyway, rah makes a good point, and by the same token if you haven't received the opportunity to move into management by now than you need the schooling for the chance. Sometimes you have to make your own doors. I don't think the MS will teach you anything you don't know or can't lear on your own. Business will be a whole new world for you, as it is for me, and it's always nice to have a tour guide to start.

[Asher]

I was a team lead of ~6 people for a year and it was well-received. Problem was the project went under with Lehman.

I've had experiences with both so far (management & tech) and think I could go either way. Still thinking though...

[Pekka]

Well, if you've got that M.Sc., you still lack the MBA. If you've got MBA, M.Sc. doesn't matter. That's the way I see it anyway, of course it depends what people want to do.

I don't know, maybe it will spark your creative side but it's still a risk. The courses might suck. There might be boring projects going on. Or they could be awesome. I think you should go with your gut feeling. But I think you will learn more getting that MBA.