Hi,

I was curious which career paths, post MBA, would allow the most flexibility to work remotely or in various countries. My goal in life is to be able to eventually work from different countries, and to learn different languages/cultures in my spare time. This is a true passion of mine.

If you get an MBA from a top 5 school, in a very broad concentration, such as Finance, would it be fairly easy to market yourself to American/International companies abroad?

I'd appreciate any insight. I am having a bit of a soul searching moment. I'd hate to end up two years post graduation, sadly locked away in some gray cubicle.

If what you're dreading is the physical stasis of being stuck on a desk all day, then you probably want a job that allows you to be physically active.

Sales generally fits this mold - you're constantly meeting potential customers at their offices. However, most sales jobs as far as I know are divided by region/territory. Having said that, bankers and consultants also travel a lot, especially when you are responsible for generating client business (usually at the VP level and above - which is around 3-4 years post-MBA) - at that level, it's no longer a "desk job" but a sales job where you're always traveling from one client site to the next trying to generate more business from them.

Or maybe working in certain jobs at a non-profit or aid organization where you'll be splitting time between the "office" and the "field".

Or working in media as a journalist, writer, TV host/correspondent. In fact, wouldn't that be a dream job for you? Say, working at the Travel Channel as a host or producer where you get to travel the world on assignment with Andrew Zimmern, Anthony Bourdain, or Samantha Brown... or maybe a "business" version of it on CNBC, I don't know.

Alex Chu

Thanks for the reply Alex. I think the physical nature of most desk jobs does indeed affect my mood. At my office, people hardly get up from their workspace, and I have always been perceived as the oddball since I always look for any reason to get up. After a day of not getting up from my desk, and having my eyes glued to the screen, I begin to feel unhealthy and lethargic (and old!). I then start to daydream about competing in a triathlon!

I guess I've never been "normal" in this sense, but then again, what's normal in this day and age?

I know exactly where you're coming from.

I have this theory -- the cumulative effect of sitting for close to 8 hours a day (sometimes more) over 10-30 years cannot be healthy. Especially when so much of that time is spent staring at a computer screen. No amount of exercise or healthy diet in my view can counteract such a sedentary existence especially if it's over a lifetime.

It's either that, or evolution will take its course and we'll become like the blobs in Wall-E.

Alex Chu

Guys (top tier PE/VC alums, still employed, business/finance backgrounds)-

What's our real rationale for B School? Don't tell me its education or network, those are too easy to develop without the MBA.

FYI, I'm a PE/VC HSW admit struggling with staying with my firm in a post-MBA position or with spending the next 2 years in B school. Risks are that I have no mobility without the degree or that I waste 2 years in B school. Seems like people take the MBA route more out of habit and hegemony than anything inherently valuable in the degree - what am I missing?

I'm in a similar position. I'm working as a business analyst at a Fortune 100 company, 3 promotions in 3 years, with the next being a post-MBA role, typically filled with H or W grads

The reason for going back? Career change (VC), development of technical skills, personal achievement, and promise of more 'open doors' with the degree.

Having worked with a number of PE folks in the past, it seems to be more than just to further their careers or even for the education.

Most of you folks in PE started out in banking. As you know, banking is a f'n grind. In the office all day and night, no life whatsoever.

Then after 2-3 years you move into a PE fund. Each fund varies, but by and large while the hours are better, you're still pulling in some long hours.

So one of the reasons is just getting a break from it. The ones I've worked with in the past all seem burnt out or at least very worn.

The other thing seems to be personal. The desire to be around people your own age. To help remind yourself that you're still young. B-school is really the last time to be "a kid" - to focus purely on you. As pre-MBA PE folks, many of you are much younger than many of the people you deal with everyday - whether it's the partners in the firm, the LPs, or at the portfolio companies. You can certainly act and play the part of the "grown up adult" but you really don't have as much of a personal connection with a bunch of people who are 10-30 years older than you and who are in a completely different stage in their lives (in fact, some aren't much younger than your parents). It's like taking your youth back.

None of this is what anyone I've worked with have said, but it's what I've sensed when I interact with them over time (and you get essay drafts, emails and sometimes even phone calls on Friday or Saturday evenings). The job may be interesting, but it takes a toll on the personal life.

There is a huge personal value in reconnecting with people your own age and having an "MBA" on your resume won't cause anyone to question your true motives (which have more to do with personal things than career development) - it may not be something people will necessarily admit or articulate (and of course it won't be in an essay), but I sense it's there. And also, some (or many?) of you are single and becoming a student at least gives you the time to meet new people.

Alex Chu

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10,000 new job cuts were announced this morning, adding on to an estimated 100,000+ reported since Monday. According to CNNMoney.com, Rochester-based Kodak plans on eliminating another 2,000 - 3,000 positions in 2009. Kodak declared a loss of $133,000,000 for fourth quarter, and subsequently their stock decreased by over 20%.

It's weird to think about how much has changed over this past year. It's even weirder realizing the degree to which I myself have undergone a transformation. The combination of a post-college life and a slipping economy has stripped me of my former naivety and carefree nature, exposing an obscured web of attitudes and emotions. I'd like to say I am simply in the process of maturing, but truthfully this "coming of age" sometimes feels more to me like a quarter life crisis.

Along with a few extra wrinkles on my forehead, I have detected an internal age-accelerating agent - anxiety. It makes its presence known by releasing itself through different forms and various outlets. Not only do I worry about my personal life and future, but I also find myself overly concerned with other peoples' matters. For example, I have teared up during every episode of American Idol this season. When one young boy was asked about his reason for trying out, he told the host that his family was struggling and his success on the show could mean a fresh start for them. As the camera focused on the boy and his little brothers, standing in the background was their father attempting to hide his shameful tears from the public.

I have been reading a Wall Street Journal blog titled, "Laid Off and Looking," which follows recently laid-off M.B.A.s and their quest for employment. One article posted by a woman who lost her job with Bank of America in 2008 particularly interested me.

http://blogs.wsj.com/laidoff/2009/01/26/nowadays-an-mba-doesnt-equal-job-security/.

Be sure to check out the reader comments too. Everyone is so negative about everything lately, and the depressing domino effect is beginning to take its toll on me as well. What cheers me is the thought of being in business school rather than in the workforce at this particularly stressful time, and I look forward to using my business degree and become a part our economic recovery. From now on I promise to try to write in a more optimistic tone.