The Daily Stat: You Get the Biggest Bang from an MBA if You've Never Held a Job

Are you having trouble viewing this email? If so, click here to see it in a web browser. HOME   |   BLOGS   |   THE MAGAZINE   |   BOOKS   |   AUTHORS   |   STORE RSS   |   Mobile AUGUST 15, 2012 You Get the Biggest Bang from an MBA if You've Never Held a Job For people who go to business school with zero work experience, the average return on an MBA program is about 20%. But that drops for people who have held jobs before getting their MBAs, sinking to as low as 2.2% for people who have 19 years' prior experience, according to a study of thousands of students by Andrew Hussey of the University of Memphis. That's because the MBA is primarily a "signaling" device that is most effective when a candidate has a skimpy CV. Hussey estimates that 89.6% of the return to the average MBA program comes from the message it sends to prospective employers, rather than from knowledge gains that would make students more productive. Source: Human capital augmentation versus the signaling value of MBA education Share Today's Stat: FEATURED PRODUCT Yes to the Mess: Surprising Leadership Lessons from Jazz HBR Press Book What can Duke Ellington and Miles Davis teach us about leadership? Learn how the improvisational "jazz mind-set" and the skills that go along with it are essential for effective leadership today. With fascinating stories of the insights and innovations from the jazz world, author Frank Barrett introduces a new model for leading and collaborating in organizations that can help anyone who leads teams or works with them. ADVERTISEMENT Follow the Stat: BEST SELLERS HBR's 10 Must Reads: The Essentials HBR's Must Reads Library Set Guide to Persuasive Presentations Guide to Better Business Writing Guide to Getting the Right Work Done PREVIOUS STATS Women's Competitiveness Drops When Fertility Is Low Disgust Makes People More Receptive to the New The Product in the Center of the Shelf Is the Winner Are Americans Ready to Cut the Cord on Cable TV? Improve Your Golf Game By Thinking Powerful Thoughts Invest in Karma to Get a Job? Why Not? Why a Female Scientist in a Pink Dress Is No Hero to Girls Congested Spaces Give Rise to Most Incidents of Rudeness U.S. Teens Suffer from Influx of Immigrant Laborers Decline of Unions Increases Burglaries and Theft Introducing HBR's Morning Advantage The Harvard Business Review Morning Advantage delivers the latest business ideas from beyond HBR.org directly to your inbox every morning — and it is free! Sign up today >> UNSUBSCRIBE   |   UPDATE YOUR PROFILE   |   MORE EMAIL NEWSLETTERS   |   PRIVACY POLICY Was this email forwarded to you? If so, sign up to start receiving your own copy. ABOUT THIS MAILING LIST You have received this message because you subscribed to the "The Daily Stat" email newsletter from Harvard Business Review. If at any point you wish to remove yourself from this list, change your email address, or sign up for other email newsletters and alerts, please visit the Harvard Business Review Email Newsletter Preference Center. OPT OUT If you do not wish to receive any email messages from Harvard Business Review, click here. ADVERTISE WITH HBR This enewsletter is read by thousands of decision makers every day. Learn more about connecting your brand with this audience. Copyright © 2012 Harvard Business School Publishing, an affiliate of Harvard Business School. All rights reserved. Harvard Business Publishing | 60 Harvard Way | Boston, MA 02163 Customer Service: 800-545-7685 (+1-617-783-7600 outside the U.S. and Canada)