Stanford MBA vs Berkeley Financial Engineering

Quote from jackbyrd:

And who in the world are Hummingbird Capital Partners?
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Jackbyrd,

HCP is my own. That link, which was the only related one I could find about me, wasn't a full bio by any means. I could have posted one that showed my MBA year and the fact that I was VP of the local chapter of my alumni group but it had my school email address and I don't need more spam.

If it helps I used to be a partner in a firm called Falcon International Communications which did international media and telecoms investing back in the'90s. It had investors like Hellman & Friedman, Boston Ventures, Govt. of Singapore, etc... If you don't know those names you can google them successfully. We coinvested in companies with Disney/ABC, Hearst Corporation, Chase Manhatten, GM (for the latin american DirecTV franchise) etc.. I've got plenty of stories I could tell that relate to real world practice when it comes to international valation, investing, negotiation, etc... but I digress.

We put that fund into netral around 2000 when we sold our stakes in all but one company -- TVA 2nd largest cable operator in Brazil.

Since then I have been semi-retired and involved in trading. HCP is my own firm and does a variety of things but mostly serves as a legal entity for trading OPM.

Just to re-emphasize a really important point someone else made that took me years to really understand, it's quality of life that matters in the end and not where you went to school, what firm you worked for, how famous you are, etc...

Regards,

Sam
 
Quote from ssternlight:


Just to re-emphasize a really important point someone else made that took me years to really understand, it's quality of life that matters in the end and not where you went to school, what firm you worked for, how famous you are, etc...

Regards,

Sam [/B]
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Sam, I really like your comment here. To be honest, I just completed an MBA and have found that the lure of prestige appealing but empty. Quality of life, relationships and ability to pursue what is important make up life. Great post.
 
Quote from ssternlight:

Just to re-emphasize a really important point someone else made that took me years to really understand, it's quality of life that matters in the end and not where you went to school, what firm you worked for, how famous you are, etc...

Regards,

Sam
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Great post!
:)
 
Quote from ssternlight:

....
Finally, I think we should remember that the topic we were here to discuss was the merits of the MBA at Stanford vs the MFE at Berkeley and not expanding generalizations about MBA's, private equity investing, other people's credentials, etc, etc...
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All I was pointing out is that if you have a good career then leaving it to pursue an MBA which in cost will be more than 300K would be a very unwise decision - although many many people will try to sell you otherwise.

The only arrogance I perceive is your insistance that the mere possession of an MBA somehow instantly validates you as some type of wizard.

It just isn't so. Management is something that is learned by doing: running companies, managing people, running forecasts and valuation analysis, risk modeling etc etc etc.

You can get an MBA and NEVER have actually done any of this, yet somehow, the degree is worth putting your career in jepardy over ? Nonsense.

Its great you reveal who you are : You run OPM and by definition are in sales.
I work with a list of venture capital firms in excess of your list ... I dont need to reveal it and would not anyway.

To the poster my advice stands: If your career is not dead and you are considering footing the bill for Stanford or Haas or anywhere else then dont. Move to another company or simply work at getting a different gig in your existing company and obtain on the job training. When someone says - we will pay for your MBA or Executive MBA then consider the option that does not put all the risk on your head - again unless money and time are of no consequence to you ....
 
Quote from prt_systems:

All I was pointing out is that if you have a good career then leaving it to pursue an MBA which in cost will be more than 300K would be a very unwise decision - although many many people will try to sell you otherwise.

The only arrogance I perceive is your insistance that the mere possession of an MBA somehow instantly validates you as some type of wizard.

It just isn't so. Management is something that is learned by doing: running companies, managing people, running forecasts and valuation analysis, risk modeling etc etc etc.

You can get an MBA and NEVER have actually done any of this, yet somehow, the degree is worth putting your career in jepardy over ? Nonsense.

Its great you reveal who you are : You run OPM and by definition are in sales.
I work with a list of venture capital firms in excess of your list ... I dont need to reveal it and would not anyway.

To the poster my advice stands: If your career is not dead and you are considering footing the bill for Stanford or Haas or anywhere else then dont. Move to another company or simply work at getting a different gig in your existing company and obtain on the job training. When someone says - we will pay for your MBA or Executive MBA then consider the option that does not put all the risk on your head - again unless money and time are of no consequence to you ....
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Ah... Let's see:

Not being satisfied with blindly and incorrectly attacking my credentials, work experience, credibility, etc... you would now like to accuse me of being a "salesman." OK...I'm hurt. :D Actually, my functional role is closer to portfolio manager/analyst most days of the week.

I'm not trying to be complex here. I earned the MBA at a school with less of a reputation but a similar fee structure to Stanford at the time I went. It worked like a charm. I look back at my decision to get an MBA as one of the smartest decisions I ever made.

Sam
 
Quote from ssternlight:

Ah...

If it were only that easy to rewrite history.

...
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I really dont have any more time to debate your endless diatribe ..... and if you are worried about someone impuning your credentials on ET then in my opinion you have no credentials.

Anyone that hangs here and is investing all this time talking up their background and giving - in my opinion - dubious advice, can really only have one goal: selling their services or product.

I, on the other hand am not marketing anything here.

if you honestly believe that quiting a 100K + job on a career path that is not dead end, and footing the bill for 150K or so in direct costs for yet another degree is a good idea, then by all means in your retirement stop what you are doing and go back to school.

Good luck to the original poster. If he/she has any type of career going I hope they are not foolish enough to chuck it and go to school without a commitment of job and / or fianancial assistance from a viable company.

If not, ....well ... then they will learn how the game works and pay for that pleasure .....
 
FWIW I am entering middle age and have a net worth that is obviously greater than 90% of the people I know who have MBA's (No MBA flunked out of 2nd tier law school) and of those that I know who have MBA's probably a good 75% come from top tier schools. I have been a trader and entrepreneur for the last 25 years.
 
Quote from prt_systems:

I really dont have any more time to debate your endless diatribe ..... and if you are worried about someone impuning your credentials on ET then in my opinion you have no credentials.

Anyone that hangs here and is investing all this time talking up their background and giving - in my opinion - dubious advice, can really only have one goal: selling their services or product.

I, on the other hand am not marketing anything here.

if you honestly believe that quiting a 100K + job on a career path that is not dead end, and footing the bill for 150K or so in direct costs for yet another degree is a good idea, then by all means in your retirement stop what you are doing and go back to school.

Good luck to the original poster. If he/she has any type of career going I hope they are not foolish enough to chuck it and go to school without a commitment of job and / or fianancial assistance from a viable company.

If not, ....well ... then they will learn how the game works and pay for that pleasure .....
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Hmm,

I would like to invite all the members of ET to now subscribe to whatever service PRT seems to feel that I have offered on this thread. Please let me know what it was. :D

I also hope that no one is disuaded from seeking out a quality education. It really is one of the big opportunities in life and tends to pay one back many-fold in financial and personal satisfaction.
 
Quote from prt_systems:

All I was pointing out is that if you have a good career then leaving it to pursue an MBA which in cost will be more than 300K would be a very unwise decision - although many many people will try to sell you otherwise.

The only arrogance I perceive is your insistance that the mere possession of an MBA somehow instantly validates you as some type of wizard.

It just isn't so. Management is something that is learned by doing: running companies, managing people, running forecasts and valuation analysis, risk modeling etc etc etc.

You can get an MBA and NEVER have actually done any of this, yet somehow, the degree is worth putting your career in jepardy over ? Nonsense.

Its great you reveal who you are : You run OPM and by definition are in sales.
I work with a list of venture capital firms in excess of your list ... I dont need to reveal it and would not anyway.

To the poster my advice stands: If your career is not dead and you are considering footing the bill for Stanford or Haas or anywhere else then dont. Move to another company or simply work at getting a different gig in your existing company and obtain on the job training. When someone says - we will pay for your MBA or Executive MBA then consider the option that does not put all the risk on your head - again unless money and time are of no consequence to you ....
More...

Agree - 100%. A part-time Executive MBA paid by the employer would be the best option in this case.
 
Quote from granville:

To be honest, I just completed an MBA and have found that the lure of prestige appealing but empty.
More...

Damn straight to the point, man. To clarify, I don't have an MBA, but I agree that the lure of prestige is appealing, but empty.
 
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