Don't Pay for Your MBA: The Faster, Cheaper, Better Way to Get the Business Education You Need - Paperback

by Laurie Pickard (Author)

Discover the secrets and tips to get the business education you need, the faster and cheaper way.

The average debt load for graduates of the top business schools has now exceeded $100,000. For most young professionals, this means spending the first half of their career in the red and feeling pressure to take the first position offered to them so that they can start paying off their debt. However, it doesn't have to be that way.

Author and businesswoman Laurie Pickard discovered a way to get the business education she needed to land her dream job while avoiding the massive school loans that plague so many. In Don't Pay for Your MBA, she shares all that she learned so that others can benefit as well. Pickard discovered that the same prestigious business schools that offer the MBAs so many covet also offer MOOCs (massive online open courses) for low or even no cost.

Within these pages, you will learn how to:

• Define your goals and tailor a curriculum that is geared toward your dream job
• Master the language of business
• Build a strong network
• Choose a concentration and deepen your expertise
• Showcase your nontraditional education in a way that attracts companies

Don't fall for the lies that pressure countless graduates every year into MBA programs and insurmountable debt. Self-directed online learning can fill gaps in your training, position you for promotions, and open new opportunities--at a fraction of the cost!

Back Jacket

While an MBA can accelerate your career, the cost is formidable: for traditional business schools, two years of lost salary and $100,000 in tuition. Few people can shoulder that load. Fortunately, no one needs to anymore--not when schools such as Wharton, MIT, and Stanford offer courses online for 1/100 of the cost. Don't Pay for Your MBA shows you how to get a world-class business education by tapping into these no-cost and low-cost MOOCs, or massive open online courses.

Author Laurie Pickard is a pioneer in online education. Her quest to piece together a business education while working abroad has been featured in national media--and inspired enthusiasm among people seeking MBA-level schooling, but without the six-figure price tag. In this helpful, insightful guide, Pickard delivers hard-won lessons for successfully navigating the vast array of offerings, selecting the best options, and filling gaps in your nontraditional education. Packed with stories of self-directed learners in every field, the book reveals how to: Define your goals and chart a career course - Build fluency in the language of business - Develop a core curriculum, with a focus on skills - Choose a concentration and deepen your expertise - Create a strong in-person and online network - Showcase your education to attract job offers - And much more. An MBA degree is notoriously expensive, with very few free rides. Whether you want to prepare for your next career move or tackle a complete MBA curriculum from scratch, Don't Pay for Your MBA opens up valuable online alternatives--at a fraction of the cost. Laurie Pickard founded the No-Pay MBA website, which has been featured in Fortune, Entrepreneur, The Wall Street Journal, CNNMoney, Financial Times, and Bloomberg Business. She also works as a business and entrepreneurship development consultant, most recently at the U.S. Agency for International Development in Rwanda.

Author Biography

LAURIE PICKARD founded the No-Pay MBA web site, which has been featured in Fortune, Entrepreneur, The Wall Street Journal, CNN Money, Financial Times, and Bloomberg Business. She also works as a business and entrepreneurship development consultant, most recently at the U.S. Agency for International Development in Rwanda.