An MBA does not guarantee higher wages

Master of Business Administration (MBA) programmes do not guarantee a higher wages for employees; on the contrary, such a diploma can have a negative impact on employers. “There is the idea that MBA graduates’ expectations are too high and companies tend not to trust the competence of these candidates based strictly on this diploma. The lack of trust by Romanian employers is due to the fact that the market is only starting to become familiar with this management profile,” says Rodica Radulescu, manager of the Business School programme within Codecs, one of the companies operating on the management training market. Another argument contradicting the usefulness of MBA programmes is the fact that this diploma is not necessarily a confirmation of business skills. “Usually, MBA graduates have high expectations, but they are not justified, because the diploma is not synonymous with experience. When hiring a manager, it is the candidate’s experience in that specific field that counts the most. An MBA helps, but does not help set apart candidates,” says Anca Podoleanu, human resources manager of Vodafone Romania, the second largest mobile telephone operator on the market.