September 19, 2003
A: FROM MENTOR KAREN PALLETIER IN MA
Dear CHRISTINE, Deciding what is the best undergraduate degree seems like an ominous task when it is upon you as a Junior in High School. Choosing is not easy since there are so many degrees, colleges, and opportunities. The best way to decide is to identify what is best for you and narrow down your options. You might want to work through a Problem Solving Process. Below I have outlined a problem solving process and provided you with an example. The steps include:
1) Define the problem: a. Identify what I am trying to figure out
2) Generate Alternative Solutions: a. Brain Storm b. Survey others
3) Analyze your solutions a. A good technique is to group your information into buckets and give them an overall category
4) Go for it
5) Reassess your solution
a. If it is working continue to move forward
b. If it is not working define your current problem and work through the steps again.
6) For example:
a. How do I become a business owner?
b. To be a business owner I need to i. Understand what type of business I would like to manage ii. Obtain an understanding of how a business works iii. Obtain an understand of how that particular industry works iv. Go to college to obtain an understanding and theory of how a business works v. Work in a family business to learn the trade vi. Work in a similar business to learn the mechanics vii. Open my own business
c. I currently do not have enough knowledge or capital to open my own business so I must first obtain this knowledge. To do this I will go to school and take business courses while working in the local car repair shop because I want to open my own car repair shop.
d. Go for it by working at a Jiffy Lube and taking business courses at the university
e. In a year you decide you want to own your own Dunkin Donuts franchise.
f. You state your problem and realize what you have learned along the way will assist you in this more specific goal. ii. You go to school full time obtaining an undergraduate degree and then move to an MBA where you learn to develop marketing plans and write a business plan. The business plan allows you to obtain capital from your local bank to open your own franchise. The point of my story is that growing up and obtaining an enjoyable profession can develop over a lifetime and is not defined with one moment, College. I know this from experience. I am currently a project manager for a defense company running a software development program of seven staff members. I started out with an undergraduate degree in Recreation and Parks Education, which is a Bachelors of Science Degree. I wanted to run a town recreation department. As I pursued this career I realized I would need to further my understanding of business, so I obtained a Masters of Business Administration (MBA). While working as a Recreation Director for a company, I was able to be on the forefront of using personal computers for word-processing and creating budgets in spreadsheets. Because of these skills I moved into a technical support area as a pathway to my current position as a project manager. This degree has served me well as a project manager requires knowledge in accounting, finance, human resources, and operational management. I would like to obtain a career as a technical educator so I have recently received an MEd. Masters in education. There are ways to combine business skills and technical type skills with a Masters in Information Systems. The MIS might assist you more in a technical field. As you can see from my experience, over time, you adapt your career and educational needs as you narrow what you would like to do with your life. I wish you the best of luck in your life long pursuits.
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A: FROM MENTOR JOAN LUSK IN RI
The "M" in "MBA" stands for "MASTERS" degree - it's not the first
(bachelors) degree you'd get. While it's possible to major in
business at the bachelor's degree level, I'm a great believer in
liberal education. Follow what you love, learn about it, and you
will end up with a more satisfying career than if you only learn how
to run a business without loving it. If you are interested in and
have talent for graphic design or photography, you can pursue that
interest in college and, when you have become proficient, you'll be
ready to figure out the business side. It's less likely that you'll
be able to do these two pursuits in the reverse order.

MBA programs usually prefer or even require applicants to have a
couple of years of experience in business after college. Real-world
experience makes the students much better able to comprehend the
issues and problems. So I say, follow your interests now, get some
experience applying those interests in the real world, and then go
for an MBA if it seems like the best way to get where you really want
to be.
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A: FROM MENTOR KRISTIN TAGHON IN IL
Hi, Christine,

An MBA is a masters in Business. You have to get a bachelor degree first. So,
you can get a bachelors in business, or you can get a bachelor degree in
something you may want to do business in. If you are very interested in art,
you could get a degree that emphasizes art, and then get a masters in business
. I believe some art schools actually have arts and business degrees for those
who want to have administrative or business roles in art. Or, you could major
in a science or technology field (or Political Science - anything!) and then get
your MBA that will help you have a managerial position in that field. Just
remember that an MBA requires alot of business courses as prerequisites. So,
during your pursuit of your bachelor degree, make sure you get these
prerequisites under your belt. For example, you will probably need Statistics
to get into an MBA program. So, as one of your classes during your undergraduate
studies, take Statistics. If you're sure you want an MBA, look into the
prerequisites and be sure and take those during your bachelor degree. That way,
you won't have to take extra classes when it comes time to get into the MBA
program.

Good luck!
Kristin
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A: FROM MENTOR LESLIE WAITE IN CA
Hi Christine!
Ah, Junior year. Time to decide what you will do for the rest of
your life! At least, that was the impression I got when I was a
junior. The good news is that you don't have to panic quite yet. Read
on and I will tell you why.

I think that there are two big questions you need to ask yourself
in order to know the answers to the questions that you posted.
First, why do you want an MBA? Do you have a specific job in mind,
and you know it requires this level of training? Do you feel it is
the best way to get a good job that will pay well? If the first is
true, then plunge forth! If it is the second reason, you may not need
to go all the way through an MBA program to get what you want.
If you still really feel that an MBA is right for you, I would get
a Bachelor's degree before getting your MBA. In fact, it is required.
MBA stands for "Masters in Business Administration", and is a degree
that you get after you have a bachelor's or at least an associate's
degree. While you might be able to find some MBA programs at
technical colleges or online that don't "officially" require a
bachelor's degree, these will still require that you have taken a
number of business and finance courses or have extensive real-life
business experience to be accepted into the program. You might as
well get a bachelor's anyway, since you will already be taking the
prep classes. The other good reason for getting a bachelor's degree
first is that while there are a lot of places to get an MBA out
there, all MBAs are not created equal. If you want your MBA to really
work for you, you need to go to a school that has a good MBA program.
These schools will definitely require that you have a Bachelor's
degree for acceptance, so getting your bachelor's first will open up
a lot more options for you later.

Okay, so now you have to decide on a Bachelor's degree. This brings
up the second question you need to ask yourself. What sort of job do
you want? This is a much tougher question. To answer it, you need to
know what you enjoy, what fulfills you, and what you want out of
life. It can seem so overwhelming sometimes to think about this, and
often people say "I just want a good job! is that so hard?" It is
really important to think about what a "good job" is for you. Do you
enjoy working with numbers or analyzing probabilities? Then you might
want to try Accounting or Actuarial Science as a major. Do you enjoy
interacting with people? Then you might want to major in Business
Management or in Marketing.
Is there a specific type of business that you would want to work in?
Sometimes you can tailor your major to fit that business, then
complement your bachelors' with your MBA. Here is where you might
choose Graphic Arts, or Computer Design for example.

As I mentioned above, you may not need an MBA if what you really want
is a good job that allows you to support yourself. A good web site
that tells you what you can expect to earn with different Bachelor's
degrees in business is on the University of Wisconsin web page, and
can be found here:
http://www.bus.wisc.edu/career/salarystatistics/U_Offers.htm
Other information can be found on their Business Career Center page:
http://www.bus.wisc.edu/career/default2.asp

Finally, consider applying to business school (if that is where you
want your major to be) as a general admissions student. This means
that you don't declare a major right away. You take courses for a few
years and learn more about what is out there, then decide. Other good
news is that you aren't locked in to a major if you decide to choose
one from the start. So if you start out as a major in Finance, but
later realize that Actuarial Science is the place for you, you can
change your major.