Why you can't afford not to start your MBA

From promotions to salary increases and more sustainable career options, MBA graduates are seeing a strong return on investment.

Like any good business deal, you want to make sure you get out what you put in – and then some. For MBA graduates, further study is paying off in quantifiable areas like higher salaries, plus invaluable ways like finding a higher sense of purpose at work.

It pays to study

The numbers don’t lie when it comes to postgraduate earning potential. Recent Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data shows that the highest median weekly earners were employees with a postgraduate degree ($1,750 per week). The 2022 Graduate Outcomes Survey also confirmed that those with a postgraduate degree typically enjoyed a salary of approximately $23,000 more per annum than their undergraduate counterparts.

MBA students didn’t always need to graduate before their study started paying dividends. Many reported being promoted into higher roles with higher levels of responsibility within their current organisations (while remaining enrolled and completing their studies around their workplace commitments).

Serve a purpose

Griffith MBA graduates were also awarded roles that aligned more closely with their values, thanks to the course’s focus on sustainable outcomes. Taking out first place overall in Corporate Knights’ Better World MBA ranking for the third consecutive year in 2022, the Griffith MBA was recognised for its pioneering efforts in purpose-led thinking.

We recognise the Griffith MBA program as one of the best in the world instilling holistic purpose in leaders, ensuring they have the skills, tools and values to build a more inclusive, healthier economy that’s beneficial to society and in harmony with the natural world, Corporate Knights CEO Toby Heaps said.

Make an impact

Griffith Alumni Cara Turnley is testament to this, directly applying the course learnings to her role as Process Improvement Specialist at Super Retail Group. “This program has helped me position myself in my organisation into a role where I can really work and live in alignment with my values, really helping to focus on the fact that we’re not separate from our environment,” Cara shared. “We have to always think about, is this ethical? Is it sustainable? And what can we do better? And I’m able to meaningfully make change and have an impact in the way that my company does business.”

Future-proof your value proposition

…future corporate leaders will be tasked with integrating social, environmental and economic factors into daily business decisions

The opportunity cost of not updating your skill set should also be factored in. As Corporate Knights further reiterated in its decision to award Griffith the top MBA ranking: “Today’s top MBA programs understand that future corporate leaders will be tasked with integrating social, environmental and economic factors into daily business decisions… these programs are equipping students to deal with new realities and challenges already shaping the global business community.”

These shifting business demands mean leaders must think responsibly and think more long-term to drive profit through purpose. Put simply, if you don’t keep up, you won’t be invited to step up to the leadership challenge.