Adding additional skills and qualifications later in our working life can be beneficial for personal growth & positive for you’re career prospects.
I actually enrolled in a business management course at university part time later in life and MBA students in the class varied from late 20s to over 50 years old who were all working for large organizations full time.
Each individual person has different intentions, and has a sense of worth what an MBA degree qualification offers vs money & time spent studying.
Combining work experience & MBA at 50 can be beneficial for personal & career development goals or starting a business later in life, although waste of time & money if you don’t have the right personal profile employers are look for.
An MBA worth getting at 50 years old
Depending on you’re goals a 50 year old gaining an MBA is only beneficial if you wish professional business development to learn academic theory, knowledge & have the tools to successfully implement them with practical industry experience.
A person studying an MBA requires thinking about return on investment in time & money at 50 years old as the qualification provides less opportunity to reap increased salary rewards before retirement than graduates 25-40 years old group.
Each person can look at what they want to achieve by obtaining the qualification, and see if it’s a realistic possibility for them or not.
Choosing the right type of course is important, such as an EMBA for experienced business executives or a specialist MBA to better understand a specific job role. Both MBA courses for average intelligence students are not difficult to complete successfully.
An MBA also opens doors to new opportunities at work and understanding of business subject areas including:
- Corporate strategy.
- Marketing.
- Finance.
- Operations management.
Career progression & promotion
Qualifications such as MBA are useful if you’re intentions include professional goals to achieve promotion in an existing company to climb the corporate career ladder or become a more valuable employee or provide MBA benefits to the company.
Prospective executives & senior managers gaining a business qualification such as an MBA can a improve confidence, leadership skills & knowledge if they require up to date business operational skills.
Stepping up from manager to executive level in an organization an employer may expect an applicant to have an MBA qualification complementing many years of successful industry work experience
As well as a promotion in an existing organization an employee could be given more important business tasks later in there working life with a newly acquired MBA degree that comes with analytical & decision making skills.
The more capable you are in an existing job role after obtaining an MBA leads to giving you additional scope to increase further the capabilities you have to offer you’re current employer including:
| Analytical skills |
| Write and deliver presentations |
| React & respond to everyday legal issues |
| Able to read & comprehend a set of business accounts |
| Apply skills in general management of an organization. |
| Give more confident & compelling company presentations |
| Contribute to logistical efficiency of deliveries or supply chains |
| Better trouble shoot problems in a business with an increased understanding how an organization functions |
An MBA degree does not help with quick career growth at 50 years old, although will contribute to leadership skills enhancement over a period of time, and possible salary increase.
You obtain personal growth to become a more accomplished & efficient manager or leader in you’re current job position, or if you change to take a different career direction.
Staring a business after completing an MBA
A MBA can provide a person with little or no understanding of business a good grounding in business fundamentals, and how to effectively apply them.
Working in the same industry sector as you’re previous working career you can apply & combine the MBA knowledge & skills of general business management with industry experience built up over a previous working career.
Starting you’re own business or become a much better entrepreneur an MBA adds to existing practical skills & knowledge to help you achieve you’re business goals, and work more smartly saving time & money.
At 50 an MBA graduate can transcend into a new career direction of working for themselves in the small business they start from scratch.
Specialist MBA v general MBA degree course
Choosing the right type of MBA is important to achieve you’re desired learning & career goals. A general business MBA provides you with an array of knowledge in the business environment while a specialist MBA focuses on a specific industry or job title, such as MBA health management.
A specialist MBA adds business academic learning, skills & knowledge to you’re existing industry specialization work experience making you a better leader or manager.
You’ll be able to run a department or company more efficiently and contribute to significant organizational change.
Run a company or department with specific job industry skills
In the postgraduate business classes with MBA students I attended were students that had years of specialist skills & knowledge in they’re industry, but no management or business skills.
They were sent by they’re respective companies to learn & acquire knowledge in how to understand & operate a business.
Working for a company in a specialist field such as IT, finance, logistics or medical you could eventually run the company with specialized industry skills complemented by newly acquired knowledge.
MBA’s focus on different departmental functions in an organization or company & teaches you how they work together so you can coordinate them for a smoothly run profitable business.
Changing career at 50 years old
Making a career change or looking for a promotion at work aged 50+ being an MBA graduate is worth while if you have the personal profile, right skills & experience matching employers requirements expected as a manager or senior executive.
Job offers in USA or UK will be limited as a 50 year old with an MBA, as many employers look to employ 23-35 year old workers with many years of working life ahead of them.
When combining years of practical work experience & skills to academic theory it will make you a better manager working more efficiently or a leader that’s able to enact change.