• Wow Ted, this is a question I've been asking for years. I've know IT people that got masters in both business and/or technology and what I've discovered is that they're no smarter because they obtained a masters. The same applies to folks attending "elite" schools vs good old State U. After all, an education isn't what you get by attending college, instead it's what you earn by doing the work. Examine the motivation behind the degree and not the brand of the degree.

    I live in Dallas Texans and have a coworker that want's to get and MBA from the Cox School at SMU because they have a higher "brand recognition" than The University of Texas at Dallas. I'm not knocking SMU or UTD as they are both fine institutions offering a top notch education. UTD is simply a much lower cost option especially when you throw in the employer match. My point isn't the value of the school but he motivation of the student. This person is a lazy person and a sloppy programmer (and no longer works at this company). I assume this person will put the same level of effort into the MBA program as they did with their code.

    My advise would be to pursue a graduate degree based on personal motivation. If that's because of bigger bucks then fine, if it's because you want to learn even better. There are bigger bucks at the end of it but it's a long payback period. Going so you can learn has value from the beginning of your first class. Both turned out to be true in my situation. Next stop PhD -- because I want it.

    Remember, this opinion is just an opinion and doesn't pretend to be a fact.

    --Paul Hunter