As SOM Dean, Edward ‘Ted’ Snyder has hosted many leading business figures in public interviews. Here he is with former GE Chairman Jack Welch, Suzy Welch and Noel Tichy, a University of Michigan professor

Reasons To Get an MBA

If you’re still deciding whether or not to pursue an MBA, you might want to consider these situations.

Suzy Welch, the co-founder of the Jack Welch Management Institute and a noted business journalist, TV commentator and public speaker, recently shared with CNBC the only reasons to get an MBA right now.

Changing Industries

Welch says having an MBA makes changing industries possible.

And that’s certainly a popular reason among MBA students.

“When the MBAs are here, the strongest interest is around pivoting or switching,” Maeve Richard, assistant dean and director of the Career Management Center at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, tells P&Q.

According to TransparentMBA data, 69% of MBAs are switching both industries and functions.

“That kind of change is often only possible with a new credential,” Welch says, “like an MBA.”

A Professional Requirement

MBAs aren’t as much of pre-requisite as before, but they certainly still carry heavy weight—especially in industries like consulting and investment banking.

According to TransparentCareer data published by P&Q, consultants with an MBA reported earning $55,000 more a year in salary compared to their counterparts without an MBA.

For investment bankers, MBAs earn $100k more than those without the degree.

If you’re looking to get promoted or get a pay bump in these industries, it might be wise to invest in an MBA.

Foundation in Business

If you want to expand your skillset, Welch argues that it’s time to consider an MBA.

“This situation also applies to people who are functional experts in marketing, or R&D or HR,” she tells CNBC.

Without an MBA to expand their knowledge and skillset, Welch argues, these types of people will stay as “functional experts.”

Sources: CNBC, Poets & Quants, Poets & Quants