kellog jd/mba and other stuff

sakky
Wed, 24 Jan 2007 15:28:40 +0000

even if it’s only 3 years? the kellogg program is particularly attractive since it allows you to get two degrees from a top school, and gives you two summers so that one can experience each field.



Yeah, even if it’s only 3 years. Like I said, the truth of the matter is, employers don’t really care if you have multiple degrees. If you know you’re going for Ibanking, having a law degree (in addition to your MBA) is not going to help you much. You’re going to be judged on the same scale as your competitors who will have just the MBA. In fact, you might actually be worse off, because your MBA competitors will have had more time to be doing recruiting and practicing for interviews, while you had to cram in law school requirements. I’ve seen plenty of people with dual degrees lose out on the job they wanted to others who had just the single degree. Honestly, what’s so good about getting multiple degrees if you don’t get the job you want?

The advantage (such as it is) is something you alluded to, as it allows you to hedge your bets. With a JD/MBA, you have the flexibility to work as a lawyer or as a general businessman right out of school. So that is an advantage. But I think it is a rather small advantage. Nowadays, lawyers can get business jobs anyway, even if they don’t have a law degree. My friend’s brother graduated from Michigan Law (but no MBA), clerked for a few years, and then jumped to investment banking with JP Morgan. Former Secretary of the Treasury Robert Rubin worked as a lawyer for a couple of years after Yale Law, and then jumped to Goldman Sachs. Jeff Kindler, CEO of Pfizer (largest pharmaceutical company in the world) has a Harvard law degree, but no MBA. None of these guys seemed to be hurt much by not having the MBA. Like I said, having a dual-degree doesn’t seem to give you that much advantage over having just the single degree. Plenty of people do just fine with just the single degree.