MBA is a professional degree. Shared wisdom dictates that you should only attend career school once you have a few years of experience under your belt. The main focus of a professional degree is to help you build upon real-world experiences. Hence, a business school aspirant should ideally have some work experience in a relevant field before attending school.

However, this is not to say that you cannot enroll in an MBA right after graduation. Some students go down the route of a direct MBA and depending on a particular school’s policies; you can apply for an MBA without work experience.

The question remains: is it worth it to pursue a graduate business degree without work experience? Let’s look at the pros and cons of both before I give you a definitive answer.

MBA Without Work Experience

Pro 1: Early Start Towards a Career Path

Doing an MBA degree right after college will set you on an early course towards a professional career. It can be argued that doing an MBA right after graduation can save you trouble down the line as you wouldn’t have to take time off work. Moreover, as a young business school student, you would contact myriad different cultural, academic, and professional point-of-views.

This can enable you to understand better how the business world operates, which will help your career later.

Pro 2: Networking at an Early Age

A Career in the business circles depends on multiple factors. Academic knowledge is only part of the overall recipe, which also includes knowing the right people. This is true for many other professions in life but plays a significant role in business circles. Once you close the books, you will find that the relationships you have made along the way will help you in seeking employment. We all know of that one friend who got an excellent job through someone they know. We often think that they got lucky, but the truth is networking plays a profound role in your career prospects. Knowing the right person at the right time can often lead to more significant opportunities. You can start building rapport with the right people at an early age if you choose to do an MBA right after college.

Con 1: Work-Study Gap

MBA is a professional degree, and much of the course work would revolve around practical applications of various business theories and practices. If you don’t have any work experience, this will put you in an awkward position not to relate your course work to real-life work.

You will often be confused and would need extra help from your peers and teachers. On the other hand, your classmates who have work experience will have the edge over you and breeze through presentations and assignments.

Since you will only know the theory, you will lack substance in your argumentation and presentations. You will lack your colleagues’ strength who wouldn’t have to work hard to grasp and implement the various concepts.

This work-study gap can prove to be quite detrimental in scoring well on your courses, and to make up for it; you will have to seek extra guidance and work way harder.

Con 2: Compromised Job-Prospects Post MBA

While a direct MBA would give you an early start, you may run into problems down the line. The business job market is highly competitive, and reputable firms will turn a blind eye if you don’t have anything to show for your abilities.

While an MBA in itself looks good on your resume, what looks even better to employers is the combination of prior work experience and an MBA. Unless you get fortunate, you will probably have fewer choices after graduation and would be forced to take whatever entry-level job comes your way.

Con 3: Financial Insecurity

Most professional MBA students work and study at the same time. This gives them a considerable advantage when it comes to paying tuition. The peace of mind that that comes with that can amount to better academic performance. On the other hand, if you are not employed or have money saved up, you will need to take out loans which will put you in a compromised position for the rest of your life.

Student loans can be a cause for stress during and after your education. Moreover, since you’d have to pay that debt off, you wouldn’t be able to nitpick the job you want and instead would have to accept whatever position is offered to you.

Even if someone with multiple years of work experience doesn’t work and study simultaneously, they would likely have savings to pay for a massive chunk of the tuition. Hence, avoiding large student loan debt after graduation.

MBA with Work Experience

Pro 1: Upper Hand in Team Exercises

Students who have prior work experience would be able to perform better in peer-group sessions and exercises. Their practical knowledge will help them gain better insights and place them ahead of those who lack work experience.

Moreover, they will generally find their coursework easier and be able to present better. There are no parallels to being able to put the various theories and concepts in a practical light. Real-world scenarios will always be advantageous for those who have work experience because they can relate their studies to authentic experiences.

Pro 2: Increased Confidence

Business School places an immense emphasis on your ability to present your ideas, argue your point of view, and discuss theories. If you worked in the field before business school, you would likely have pitched ideas in meetings, carried out presentations in front of stakeholders, and participated in discussions with your peers and clients throughout your employment.

This sort of prior experience will play a large part in your confidence in the classroom. You will be better at addressing a room full of students. You will be skillful at expressing your thoughts and relaying them to the professor, and most of all, you will be confident when doing so.

All these things will positively contribute to your business school experience. You will score better on assignments and presentations and win the approval of your professors, who will see you in a professional light.

Pro 3: Freedom of Employment

When you graduate from business school, you will better understand what you want to do with your life. Due to your prior experiences working in the field, you will know how the industry works and what interests you. This clarity can save you from a lot of bad decisions that would typically plague a non-experienced graduate.

Moreover, you will be in a better financial state over-all since you wouldn’t have taken out burdening loans. This will give you greater freedom in choosing your career, and if you worked and studied simultaneously, you will be a step ahead of everyone else already.

Pro 4: Summer Internship Placement

MBA summer internship programs are highly competitive, and they allow you to cement your theoretical understanding by implementing it in the real world. This opportunity can be a turning point for many to prove their abilities and make relationships that may result in career prospects down the line. Having prior work experience can make you a suitable candidate for such a program and whereas someone who lacks experience may be passed over.

Con 1: Discipline and Work Ethic

Business School is by no means an easy endeavor. You will submit papers, assignments, make presentations, take exams, participate in team exercises, and do many other things throughout your degree. This will pose a problem for someone inexperienced in stressful work employment.

Your prior work experience would have already prepared you for the task ahead, and you won’t feel the same pressure as those who lack experience. You will be no stranger to meeting deadlines and organizing your day around a myriad of tasks.

Con 2: Work-Study Conflict

The most obvious con of attending business school as a working professional is juggling study and work. This will mostly depend on the person but doing both at the same time is no easy feat. You will have to forego your social life and most of your time. Your studies and work will continuously conflict with each other, which will pose problems for you in both respects.

Even if you opt for evening school, which most professionals do, you will still be inundated with work. A full-time student will have all the freedom to only concentrate on their studies which you won’t do.

If you drop your job, you will run into the financial problems I discussed above, which is not ideal.

Is it Worth it to Study MBA Without Work Experience?

No. Considering everything I laid out above, I think doing an MBA without work experience is not a worthwhile endeavor. There are too many downsides to it which makes it difficult to justify it. You will lack the business acumen to grasp the contents of your course work. You will lack the team-building skills required to excel in team exercises; you will lack the work ethic and discipline that comes with a professional life; you will have to go into debt to support your education, and the list can go on.

Sure, if you choose to study and work simultaneously, it won’t be easy. However, even if you don’t, you will still reap all the benefits of having work experience, and you may not have to take out as big a loan due to savings.

I think you should build up your professional portfolio for at least a couple of years, if not more, and then consider business school. The benefits outweigh the cons. Here is some guidance on how you can pay for your MBA.