The Benefits Of Going Back To School For An MBA

Head back to school with Idealist! Over the next few weeks we're talking about graduate school as we go around the country with our graduate school fairs.

This summer, we introduced you to Connie Lewin, Director of Marketing and Strategic Partnerships at Sustainable Health Enterprises (S.H.E). We chronicled her story of making the switch to the social impact sector and landing her dream job at a socially responsible organization that rectifies problems by creating sustainable solutions.

Connie shared with us that after working at a nonprofit early in her career, she became dissatisfied with “the business of charity” that she was witnessing at her job. Knowing that business skills could be used for “good” rather than maintaining the status quo, she sought an MBA. Through her studies, she developed business acumen to use her skills and passion towards changing the way things were done, so much so that she would essentially be working herself out of a job because the problems were being solved. She talks about her graduate school journey here:

What were the benefits of getting an MBA for Connie? She credits two positive outcomes that helped shape her new career:

Learn and master hard skills

Connie shares that her MBA education gave her the opportunity to learn and master the hard skills needed for her marketing job at SHE. The technical skills she learned provided a strong base for her to do her job effectively and develop a framework that could be used by her counterparts at SHE in Rwanda.

Develop relationships with people of completely different backgrounds

In addition to those hands-on competencies, Connie was quick to acknowledge that her grad program also afforded her the chance to develop relationships with people who were completely different from her. Connie’s program was highly diverse and fellow students came from all over the world. Interacting with her fellow classmates gave her new perspectives and ideas for solving problems at organizations that focused on international development.

If you’ve been considering a return to the classroom for an MBA (or other graduate degree), check out these great resources. Contrary to what you may have thought, rather than propelling you to a for-profit career, an MBA can give you the skills needed to contribute to a nonprofit running its operations successfully.

• How to know if an MBA is the right next step for you
• Can an MBA boost your impact and your career?
• Commongood Careers In-Demand Nonprofit Skillset: MBAs
• The case for MBAs in the nonprofit sector
• Nonprofits are hiring and MBAs should work for them
• 4 Myths about MBAs in the nonprofit sector
• Can graduate school help you land a job in international development? 
• 3 Things to consider when researching graduate school

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By Victoria Crispo