Executive MBA from Wharton - as prestigious as full-time?

I know a guy with a really big head(literally) that went to Wharton. He’s also a partner at a $2 billion hedge fund at the age of 32. He’s pretty cool so you should do it
 
If I could go back in time, I’d do a part-time or executive MBA, rather than the fulltime MBA that I actually did.
People focus on the $90,000 tuition of a full-time MBA, but the really expensive part is the lost wages over the 20 months that you take off from work.
In fact, if I could go back in time, I might just do the CFA and skip the MBA. In terms of financial investment, the return on the CFA is about 100x better than the return on an MBA.
On the other hand, if you can get in to somewhere really fancy and prestigious like Wharton (most people can’t), you should go regardless of the economic payoff.
 
Most eMBA programs result in the same degree as full-time or part-time. Whether it’s prestigious or not depends on the perception of that who reads your resume - some people won’t question whether it’s full-time or executive MBA, some will ask and perceive eMBA as less prestigious, and yet others will think it’s better because you bring both exceptional experience and academic background.
Since you’re already in a highly sought after job, your experience will probably speaks more loudly than an MBA. But if your company pays for the education and you can gain the Wharton network, then why not?
 
I think this really depends on what profession you are in. If you want to move up in say, IB or consulting, an MBA can be pretty important. If you’re working in product development at Apple, it’s probably less important.
 
sleepybird Wrote:
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> The Economist thinks you shoulnd’t do MBA
> altogether.
> http://www.economist.com/whichmba/think-twice
Not sure the article dissuades an EMBA from Wharton with company sponsorship. It’s focusing on taking two years out of the work force and not having a great ROI.
 
Well, I think from a more practical standpoint, the other thing you need to think about is who really cares about your MBA. For the most part, your professional life will be defined by your work experience rather than business school. My friends that graduated from top schools that have been out in the workforce for 2+ years all say that while their network is valuable, most of their reputation is built on work and nobody cares where you went to school…somewhat discouraging to people like myself at top tier business school programs but what can you really do. I’ve loved my experience at business school and it’s given me access to some pretty cool internship opportunities so far, but mostly I just like being around my peers, some of whom I think are lightyears ahead of me in terms of business wisdom/experience and whom I can learn a lot from.
Most important thing is to look at the quality of the network you’ll be in and how much that’s worth to you. Potential investors / employers aren’t going to fork over extra bucks because you went to Wharton EMBA (or even full-time for that matter) – say for example if you’re in investment management, people are going to want to look at your track record and understand how you think about investing, so the incremental value of the EMBA brand is debatable. From a personal standpoint, you have to ask yourself how much you value the EMBA network…but take the full-time Wharton network out of the equation because those students are not really interested in connecting with EMBA’s. EMBA is a totally distinct program with very little overlap, especially in networking which is what matters most. But if you like the EMBA network, then why not?
Sorry if this message was rambling, been sleep deprived working on recruiting stuff
 
Is there a precedent at your firm? I’ve seen people do EMBA and benefit, particularly if you are planning on moving into a more general management or global role. Prestige is largely derived from difficulty of being accepted (although the two are certainly a feedback loop), so from that point of view it is not as prestigious. Then again, you are competing with a different, more experienced pool of candidates. I say go for it, provided it will not overly interfere with your job.
 
“Asset management clients do like to see top schools on the bios of the professionals that are taking care of their money.;
I work in AM and certainly agree with this. I go Stern part-time and we are allowed to participate in the recruitment. Depending on where you are in your career, however, the positions may not be attractive to you.
 
Here’s a compare and contrast:
http://www.wharton.upenn.edu/mbaexecutive/admissions/compare-wharton-pro...
There are some odd things about the EMBA. You have to live in “program-related housing”, whatever that is:
“2010 tuition for two-year program – $163,200 for Philadelphia, $172,200 for San Francisco. Includes tuition and fees, books, and program-related housing and meals. Transportation, airfare for required international trip, and parking not included.
Program-related housing and meals are included in the tuition and fees. The residential component is an integral aspect of the total program experience and required on program nights.”
Do they tuck you in at night too?
 
I’m not sure why you’re surprised they’re including housing/meals in the program cost. If accepted then I would be flying in to San Francisco every two weeks. Two nights of hotels every other week would be costly and a headache to organize. Plus, it’s likely a good opportunity to build the network with fellow EMBA students.
 
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