Why I'm Choosing an MBA

Deciding to go back to school is a big decision for anyone. Grad school is not only a time investment but also a huge financial investment. Not to mention going to school full-time means I will be kissing my salary goodbye. There will be no more trips ( I love to travel), no more shopping and no more impulse buys on cool techie gadgets.

My undergraduate degree is in Electrical Engineering so the big question is why switch from engineering to an MBA(w/ HR concentrations)? While working, I had the chance to partner with HR on a few projects. Out of all my projects the HR ones were my favorite. Last September I began reaching out to different contacts in HR to have informational interviews. Every single of the those informational interviews made me want to pack up and move to HR right away. From compensation, to recruiting to just general leadership opportunities, it was hard for me to narrow down which path I wanted to take. In the mist of my decision process, I found out about a Human Resource Leadership Program ( HRLP)  within my company. HRLP's are rotational programs that allow you to rotate through different roles in HR. A lot of the major companies have their own HRLPs which can last anywhere from 1.5 years to 3 years. More than half of these programs require a Masters in Human Resource Management or an MBA.

I personally think an MBA will give me more flexibility down the road than a Masters in HR will. Also an MBA will provided me with a chance to learn the business side of things. If I plan on being an executive in HR, I will need to know HR as well as how to run a business. My Electrical Engineering degree has taught me a lot, but it has not taught me how to run a business.

Now that I know my end goal, I'm picking the MBA path to get there!

- Ms.HR