trade ventures to being invited to weddings and anniversaries. As you get older, the value of former classmates increases– especially because the chances are some of your classmates will be more successful than you, no matter how well you’ve done in your career.


3. Lastly, a piece of practical advice on hedging your bets. If you spend two years doing a master’s degree at one institution, you get one name on your CV. If you spend 1.5 years at the same institution and a semester at another, you get two names on your CV. It is never a bad idea to diversify – just in case the person interviewing you for your next job happens to be an alum of your study-abroad school.


Where to study? 1. The European and American education systems are traditionally a strong choice (together with Canada, Australia and New Zealand). However, nowadays one increasingly needs Emerging Market exposure, whether you are in business, engineering or the arts. Try to spend at least a semester in China, Brazil or India. Or why not Hong Kong, Singapore or Chile – all of which have world class universities and prestigious MBA programmes. No matter how many times you need to abridge your CV in the future, the one


line from an emerging market will always stay on your CV.


2. Do not be deterred by the local language. Most good schools in emerging markets nowadays offer high-quality English-language programmes which attract the best people from around the world.


When to do an MBA? The MBA is a professional degree quite different from post-graduate law and engineering programmes. Do not rush to do an MBA straight after your bachelor’s degree. Doing an MBA without having gained work experience can actually damage your future career in three significant ways:


1. The schools that are likely to admit you will be of inferior status and quality. (The Association of MBAs does not accredit schools that admit MBA students with less than 3 years of post-bachelor work experience.)


2. If you somehow sneak into a mixed class of experienced and inexperienced MBA students, you will set your expectations based on the salaries of your experienced classmates, especially if you are academically stronger than some of them. On the other hand, employers would never offer you the same position and salary: job offers depend on past experience just as much


as on the quality of your MBA. As a result, your unreasonable expectations will derail your efforts and hurt your career prospects.


3. Just like diamonds are forever, the MBA is for a lifetime. You are unlikely to do a second MBA later on in life – most schools will look down on such an applicant as signalling a fractured career. So better start preparing for your ideal MBA early on (talk to alumni, do GMAT problems, visit the school) but do not apply before you have gained 3-5 years of work experience.


Find out more information at: www.mbaworld.com


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