Hello,
I am 29 years old and from a non-traditional background based in the UK looking at pursuing an MBA. I have a law degree and have practised as a lawyer in London in a relatively niche area for four years (with two years prior to that being a trainee, so six years' experience in total) with increased seniority / responsibility.
I got to a stage about a year ago where I realised how pigeon holed I have been (it happens in this sector) and also how unhappy I am professionally. Also, after spending time on a client secondment, I yearned to move into a more commercial / strategic role and to be very frank, I have truly hated the practise of law since I got into the profession and concluded that I need to move out of the industry before it is too late. I worked with a coach to identify my skills sets and what I wanted to achieve and what skills and experience I felt I wanted to build.
Where I landed was that I think I see myself working in consulting or general management in particular sectors in the future, but I want to learn fundamentals of business and management, finance, leadership and organisational change in order to make that transition. I felt doing a business related masters or MBA would be the best option to allow me to:
- Pick up broader skills in finance, marketing, strategy
- Take on a more strategic / bigger picture role in a business
- Have more options in terms of mobility / flexibility in terms of work location (I am very stuck at the moment because of the jurisdiction specific nature of the work)
- generally have more options career wise.
Unfortunately, at the stage I am at, no programmes which are reputable in London would consider me for a MiM as I have too much on paper experience, even though my experience is legal rather than directly business related. Clearly my age would cause issues with their course to job stats post-graduation. It's frustrating as there are top schools like LSE / Imperial I could theoretically have gotten into had I applied directly after my undergraduate degree eight years ago.
Anyway, I have looked into Warwick's Executive MBA programme in London and it appeals to me in the sense that I think Warwick is a good brand, it is more affordable than London Business School (there's no way I can take almost two years off at those fees) and I can try to fit it around my day job IF I can get my employer on board with giving me some flexibility in my work schedule which I am going to try to negotiate. I sent some provisional emails to them through their CV-check function to see if I'd be able to apply, and they suggested I should which has given me some hope.
However, I wanted to understand:
- Are my goals realistic given I am from a non-traditional background?
- Would business schools accept someone with my background?
- What is the reputation of Warwick's EMBA London MBA? Could this course, upon completion, help me transition out of the law into something a bit broader and more commercial such as consulting?
Thanks,
PH
I am 29 years old and from a non-traditional background based in the UK looking at pursuing an MBA. I have a law degree and have practised as a lawyer in London in a relatively niche area for four years (with two years prior to that being a trainee, so six years' experience in total) with increased seniority / responsibility.
I got to a stage about a year ago where I realised how pigeon holed I have been (it happens in this sector) and also how unhappy I am professionally. Also, after spending time on a client secondment, I yearned to move into a more commercial / strategic role and to be very frank, I have truly hated the practise of law since I got into the profession and concluded that I need to move out of the industry before it is too late. I worked with a coach to identify my skills sets and what I wanted to achieve and what skills and experience I felt I wanted to build.
Where I landed was that I think I see myself working in consulting or general management in particular sectors in the future, but I want to learn fundamentals of business and management, finance, leadership and organisational change in order to make that transition. I felt doing a business related masters or MBA would be the best option to allow me to:
- Pick up broader skills in finance, marketing, strategy
- Take on a more strategic / bigger picture role in a business
- Have more options in terms of mobility / flexibility in terms of work location (I am very stuck at the moment because of the jurisdiction specific nature of the work)
- generally have more options career wise.
Unfortunately, at the stage I am at, no programmes which are reputable in London would consider me for a MiM as I have too much on paper experience, even though my experience is legal rather than directly business related. Clearly my age would cause issues with their course to job stats post-graduation. It's frustrating as there are top schools like LSE / Imperial I could theoretically have gotten into had I applied directly after my undergraduate degree eight years ago.
Anyway, I have looked into Warwick's Executive MBA programme in London and it appeals to me in the sense that I think Warwick is a good brand, it is more affordable than London Business School (there's no way I can take almost two years off at those fees) and I can try to fit it around my day job IF I can get my employer on board with giving me some flexibility in my work schedule which I am going to try to negotiate. I sent some provisional emails to them through their CV-check function to see if I'd be able to apply, and they suggested I should which has given me some hope.
However, I wanted to understand:
- Are my goals realistic given I am from a non-traditional background?
- Would business schools accept someone with my background?
- What is the reputation of Warwick's EMBA London MBA? Could this course, upon completion, help me transition out of the law into something a bit broader and more commercial such as consulting?
Thanks,
PH
