Advice for Self-Starter Son Graduating Early with Great Ambitions

Parents Forum
1

<p>We have been trying to help our son think through his options upon graduating early from undergrad school of management (BU). He will finish one semester early in December, but will be delaying his graduation date to May to join his friends.</p>

<p>Wife and I both have advanced degrees, plus we’ve got a daughter also starting as a freshman next week at Wellesley with ambitions of becoming a veterinarian. Education is important to us – however the dollar signs are swirling around us when we’d like to start thinking about plucking palm trees on some island in 5-10 years!</p>

<p>Here is son’s situation:</p>

<p>He wants to work in the world of real estate development and construction. Since high school graduation his summer jobs have consisted of very well-paid assistant supervisor positions for a good-sized regional construction firm. The principals of the firm really like him and have nurtured his training and increased his responsibilities, however, son is not convinced he wants to continue working there post-undergrad in order to broaden his experience. </p>

<p>He also wants to start his own company long term and has been very driven in his efforts in this industry since graduating from high school. He has done everything from operating all of the heavy equipment to supervising subcontractors and actually laying out the ground work on multimillion dollar construction sites. He is 20 years old and is self-taught in these skills. </p>

<p>We’ve discussed his alternatives as: </p>

<p>1) Going immediately to grad school for a 1-year accelerated program in entrepreneurship (most likely Babson College as it gives significant credit for undergrad in mgmt school – plus I’m an alum of the same program and mentor there). Concern is the huge cost of grad school coupled with the opportunity cost of not working during the same time period. Or,</p>

<p>2) Seeking a paid internship program abroad that would provide some international finance/construction experience, or</p>

<p>3) Seeking a job with a developer or other employer immediately to begin getting paid, health insurance, etc. and having employer pick up grad school cost. This is being considered as the most cost-effective way to start building a kitty to start his own company – conventional as it is. Son has mixed feelings about conventional.</p>

<p>We realize our limitations at providing unbiased advice as his parents and not having the experience in his chosen fields of interest. We would like to see a pros & cons discussion of the different alternatives listed above, and some perspective about other alternatives not mentioned.</p>

<p>Many thanks in advance for your input.</p>

<p>Sailorguy</p>

2

<p>According to Babson’s website, the one year Masters requires 2 years of business experience:</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>So it looks like Option 1, at least at Babson, is out.</p>

<p>In fact, a master’s in entrepreneurship will be much more worthwhile if there has been full-time work for several years.</p>

<p>I’d suggest option 3, even if it’s “more conventional”.</p>

3

<p>As an architect who has spent thirty years working with both types of businesses, I find the developer business the more fascinating–and the more lucrative–by a lot. Owning a construction firm would be a hellish way to make money, in my opinion. The margins can be dicey and the babysitting factor (huge numbers of employees) is enormous–especially given the hard physical toil and the substance abuse among craftsmen.</p>

<p>If he were my son, I’d suggest finding an internship with a up and coming developer in a hot, hot market–or a white glove commercial real estate firm that serves a broad range of developer clients. In either business, he wants to get very very close to the intricacies of the financing. It’s not rocket science finance, but there are creative variations. </p>

<p>He should also learn to sweet talk potential investors and bankers. And he should find a savvy architectural firm who might take some gambles with him. (We do it for our clients).</p>

<p>Then, if your son thinks he has the talent and the ■■■■■■■, I suggest he try getting out on his own before the age of thirty. With the right apprenticeship, he won’t need grad school.</p>

<p>Dad, you ought to consider giving him the $100 k you would spend on grad school as a down payment on his first investment. He could make you a very wealthy man.</p>

<p>I have invested in my younger son’s entrepreneurial efforts and I plan to continue doing so once he gets out of college. He’s got that drive and I don’t see why VCs should take that profit.</p>

4

<p>Don’t rule out “conventional” on principle - the crowd
is often right. There’s no way your son is going to be
conventional in the long run. He’s got way too much drive
and initiative to ever run with the pack for long.</p>

5

<p>I think Babson would give your son quite a bit of credit (that is, in terms of his application) for his work experience to date.</p>

<p>So I wouldn’t rule out option 1.</p>

6

<p>I am told that employers do not value MBA’s without experience; indeed, in some cases they actually look askance at them, fearing that the person holding the degree will think too highly of himself. So the question for me is how employers will evaluate your son’s summer experience for this purpose.</p>

7

<p>How about searching for jobs where the employer would pay for the MBA? H of a friend of mine did just that and got his MBA from Babson tuition-free. There may be some commitment to remain with the company afterwards.</p>

8

<p>Mostly good comments here, folks, thank you. Cheers you did hit the nail on the head, though. S has already asked once for contribution on an investment R.E. purchase he was considering. Nice try, but I helped him realize that one of the partners proved too sketchy. I’ve already hinted that I might participate in the right venture. Grad school would be on his dime.</p>

<p>As to those mentioning the lack of job experience, I must say you’re off-base. Since age 18 son has had more responsibilities than the majority of his classmates in business school. By convincing his employer to create an assistant supervisor position for him (at 18), he’s earned more than any internship program his classmates are participating in – including those working at investment banks and lenders. And ‘fendrock’ is also correct, Babson would be absolutely pleased to have son as a grad student direct from undergrad…they already accepted him once for undergrad though he declined, and remember, too, that I mentor there, and am an MBA grad from the same entrepreneurship program he’s interested in. Just not convinced that it’s a necessary route to go as Cheers mentions. Lotsa bucks!!</p>

<p>Little Mom, he is thinking about the alternative you describe, which is exactly how I had my Babson MBA paid for. I’ve already put him in touch with a national developer for this purpose, and he’s going to revisit the company sometime this year. He looks at it as a way to get more mgmt-side experience, get school pd for and save some $$ up for his own venture some day. Frankly this is the route I’d prefer he take…but, it’s also his road to make and I’m trying hard to be an advisor – not a director. Thanks all.</p>