As someone who has recently completed an MBA, all of these answers could be correct. It really comes down to who you are and what you try to get out of it. I

As someone who has recently completed an MBA, all of these answers could be correct. It really comes down to who you are and what you try to get out of it. I have classmates that did the MBA to get a job at an investment bank or consulting firm; generally they're getting those jobs. An MBA is essentially a required degree for those kind of jobs, and about 25-75% of grads go to those jobs, depending on the school. I have classmates that did the MBA to switch careers. One classmate was a doctor (orthopedic surgeon to be exact) that didn't want to be doing hip replacements his entire life. This was my case... I fell into consulting after I left the Navy and hated it; the MBA got me out of consulting. I also have classmates that did the MBA to up-skill themselves. This was also a big reason for me; I had a lot to learn on the finance/accounting side of things, and picked up a number of skills across a bunch of business topics. Sometimes this is to break through in a career ladder; I had a friend that had been CFO of a small subsidiary of a large corporate who is now the CFO of a small but rapidly growing VC-funded startup. The MBA was a big "tick in the box" for them when hiring, since he has the skills to stay CFO for a long time. Coming out of the MBA, my job opportunities included a startup, doing some work for a VC, and working for a well-known web-tech BigCo. However, I also came out of the MBA with student loans, which affect those options. Fundamentally, you make your MBA what you want it to be. If you want to do a startup while studying for an MBA, there will be a ton of people to support you and there will be opportunities to work on your company for class. (A number of my classmates have done exactly that.) I focused on startups and entrepreneurship and I came out with opportunities in those areas. Sure you can read and study your way to up-skilling yourself, but an MBA does it quickly and combines it with proof (the degree, a signaling device) and opportunities. An MBA is a) a set of skills, b) a network of people, c) a concentrated set of opportunities for development, and d) a big cost (real and opportunity). Does the OP have the "fire in the belly" to do a startup, and a startup with a big enough long-term future? If not, then the MBA might be a good option. (And the fact that he's asking around instead of starting a company seems to indicate that this might be the case.) I realize now this is a little long... I hope it's useful.