Anyone get an MBA after law school (not JD/MBA) and find it worth it? Either substantively or just from a networking/origination perspective? At the senior associate stage, I would think that the network can be potential for significant book (i.e., being the go to lawyer connect for the PE folks) and/or useful for going in-house since you have the business knowledge as well. Would appreciate any thoughts, thanks!

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I did the JD/MBA joint degree and think it was probably worthwhile, but see you’re not asking about that. The risks I see with a post-JD MBA is when you’ll have time to do the program and who else is in it. If your MBA cohort is connected, it could be a big opportunity but if it’s accepting part-time students, like you might be interested in if you plan to work while getting the MBA, it can be tough to connect with others who are also trying to do jobs, families, etc. while getting the MBA. For the in-house role, it seems like it would be useful but how useful - what’s the cost of the MBA vs. your pay scale in-house / what’s the ROI on the extra degree?

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Thanks so much for your response, really appreciate it. This all make sense to me. I would be considering part-time to the extent I can make that work (obviously will still be very difficult with big law demands). In contrast to JD/MBA, I figured it might be slightly different in that I’m more senior now with a strong understanding of what I do, and so networking would be a bit more “targeted”. Really primarily focused on partner track advantages, but figured it wouldn’t hurt for in house either.

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Ehhh. I have my MBA. I work in house now. It looks good on paper and I can speak “business” instead of legal. I don’t do much with it as an attorney but I get praised for my business acumen. As a business owner, it comes in handy. Also, I do nothing with corporate law. I’m a regulatory attorney. 😅. Worth it in a different way for me.

likehelpful

Thank you!! Yeah I presumed that the same business acumen trait would be a desired one as someone trying to build a book.

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I got my MBA prior to law school (law is my 2nd career) because my then-employer looked favorably on people with an MBA, particularly if you (like me) were in the Accounting department.

That was.....a while ago. And in all that time, I don't think it's really ever come up, nor has it really impacted any job search - more of a "oh, you have an MBA. That's nice."

If you want to get one to improve your business acumen....OK. But you could probably take some classes and do the same thing without going all-in on another degree. I just don't see a lot of people in the legal field asking about an MBA (LLM, yes. MBA, no).

TL;DR: I don't think it's worth it.

Caveat: It might be, if you ever go in-house.

likehelpful

You might consider doing an executive mba when you’re a bit more senior. It’ll likely be easier on your schedule and you’ll have more of an opportunity to network with business executives and owners who are possible sources of business in the future, which improves the ROI calculation imo.

smarthelpful

If you're in Big Law you're likely giving up around a million dollars between the tuition and lost earnings (including the delay in raises, etc.). Time value of money is a real thing. Seems unlikely you will get the network that will increase your comp enough to justify the decision, especially when accounting for time value of money and inflation, appreciation, etc. MAYBE if you went to HYS and think you could charm the pants off everyone you meet, but if you're that good just do it informally (without the MBA).

All in all, seems like an obvious bad move.

@A4 you're right re:Wharton over Yale

You can get the business acumen elsewhere. The only real value is the network and name of the school. Not needed for IHC roles.

JD/MBA here. My experience is that the people getting an MBA are too junior to be ones and/or are not the ones deciding who to hire as counsel and they won’t remember you then anyway. The ROI on that is going to be low if that is your purpose.

If you get an MBA at a school/program that feeds the business side of your potential and actual inhouse clients and you are a pro at making genuine connections and staying in touch, it could be worth it. But, as someone who did an MBA prior to law school, I haven’t found the network to be of much use because my program wasn’t PE focused.

Bro do not pay for any more school

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