Should I study/apply MS or MBA in US after B.Tech/ B.Com ? MBA vs MS fees, degree focus, funding ? Which is better ? – Part 2

Fees  MBA vs MS ? Which is cheap ? State University Vs Private Schools

This article is continuation of Should I study/apply for MS or MBA in US after B.Tech/ B.Com ? MBA vs MS fees, degree focus, and funding issues explained – Part 1, please read the previous article  before you read part 2.

MS fee is typically much cheaper than MBA fees. You might ask, why is it ? Simple answer, because MBA is typically done by people who are working and for significant number of them their companies pay for the fee. Why do companies pay for education ? Well, they want their employees to grow and become elite managers to sustain the growth and boost  their organization. Also, people can get paid lot more after MBA because their designation changes if they are good ! With recession it is tough these days…. Will everyone make high salary ? Nope, it depends on your talent and University you go to…economy too L   . Again, it depends on every University. State schools fee is always cheaper than Private Schools. For instance, MBA at private school like University of Chicago will cost you ONLY the tuition for NINE MONTHS is $49,000 and MBA at state school like University of Wisconsin will cost you $13,348 for a SEMESTER or around $26,800 for two semesters.  For masters it is same typically in terms of state or private schools, it is cheaper to study in state schools. For instance, fees at University of Houston Masters program is around $600 per credit, that comes to $5400 per semester if you take 9 credits.  Again, in state schools fees for MBA and MS might be pretty much very close or same with exception of special fee they charge for MBA. But private schools it is much different.

Funding for MBA and MS ?

Funding is a big thing for students and most common types of funding as I explained are in form of TA, RA and GA. Check the post about what are TA, GA and RA for more info if you do not know with funding info.    Let’s think logically first, MS is more technical and research oriented, logically speaking if the University has more research funding then, there is more funding for MS. On the other hand, MBA, it is not tied very much to research, where do funds come from ?  Only source for MBA funding is Fellowships, scholarships or TAs for Undergrad Business students.  If you notice, for MBA, research part is almost not there unless you are in PhD. Guess what, if you are MBA and applying for funding in Business school,  MS people of Marketing or Finance are competition to you for that too.  So, your option is to work in other departments or no funding at all. But for MS, you have many options like working as RA, TA or GA in your department or other department based on your background.  Not only logically, in reality too, there is less funding for MBA than MS due to the research focus and other related aspects. You may get in-state tuition in state universities if you stay long enough like year or so and pay taxes in that states, but in private schools forget about funding…

Confused??  Here is my piece of advice….

I know most of you want to be managers and entrepreneurs in future by jumping into MBA right after B.Tech, B.A or B.Com… Let me tell you the truth folks, You will learn very little if you go to MBA without two to three years of work experience. You have to work in an organization setting to fully comprehend and appreciate the full potential of MBA.  For this reason, most of the business schools have requirement of 3 to 5 years of work experience as a major factor.  Think about this, “if you were never a team member, how will you understand the team member’s problems and their perspective if you  were never a team member and directly have become a manager”. So, start at the base and then climb up ! My recommendation is if you are starting your career, then do not go for MBA, work and then go. Check this article for more info on this. As of MS is concerned, as I said in previous posts there are many types of students who would like to come to US for education and some for Job only.

• If you coming to US, just for job sake and make money, just go for MS.
• If you want to do PhD some day and be professor, then MS and PhD integrated program.
• If you worked for two years, and have Money to support your MBA financially, then MBA
• If you are not sure what you want to do, then MS. You can always do MBA like me after MS.

To be clear, these are just my personal suggestions. It is your decision, plan well and shoot the bulls eye… I am not trying to discourage anyone to do MBA right after B.Tech, but just telling you the facts I have learnt. If you have any questions, post a comment under this, I will respond !

Good Luck ! Make a Wise Decision….It is your future !

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