5 Quick Ways to Bankrupt Yourself

[Joy Pathak]

Five Quick Ways to Bankrupt Yourself - CNBC

#5 was the most interesting for me and a valid fact.

5. Overestimating the value of an expensive degree.

The more education you have, the higher your pay, right?

Wrong.

When people take out student loans, few do the math to see what the average salary will be after graduation — and how long it will take to pay off their loans.

 

[Yike Lu]

True and I agree with the assessment in the case of general schools.

But they are also referring to FOR profit educational institutions in particular here, and by many accounts their sales tactics... well...

 

[TraderJoe]

There are people who quit $200 K jobs to go and do MBA at Harvard / Stanford / Wharton. So lost income is $400 K plus program cost is $190 K. But that $600 K loss is peanuts compared to what they make later on.

 

[Joy Pathak]

There are people who quit $200 K jobs to go and do MBA at Harvard / Stanford / Wharton. So lost income is $400 K plus program cost is $190 K. But that $600 K loss is peanuts compared to what they make later on.

Harvard alone takes more than 1000 people for MBA. Not all of them make enormous sums of money.

 

[Anthony DeAngelis]

I think you can get a great education from state schools, but I think some of this private school bashing or devaluing is kind of annoying. Best way to bankrupt yourself is to buy rather than invest. Paying 200K for a Harvard MBA is an investment. If you don't go into banking your ROI might be lower than someone at Blackstone, but you are still going to do a lot better than breaking even.

Besides, no one pays 200K to go to Harvard. If you are broke and get in you will go for free or a reduced tuition and if you are rich and have to pay the 200K you are not worrying about going bankrupt.

 

[TraderJoe]

Look, if someone came into our office and offered everyone admission to Harvard MBA program and told them quite clearly that they would lose two years salary and be $200 K in debt, I am sure that 90% of the people would immediately quit their jobs and join Harvard. It is as simple as that. There are some things which you just cannot put a monetary value on and which will last you a lifetime, especially the experiences and the friends you make at Harvard. How can you put a money value on that. IMHO, even if you end up bankrupt, it will still be worth it.

 

[helpteye]

Look, if someone came into our office and offered everyone admission to Harvard MBA program and told them quite clearly that they would lose two years salary and be $200 K in debt, I am sure that 90% of the people would immediately quit their jobs and join Harvard. It is as simple as that. There are some things which you just cannot put a monetary value on and which will last you a lifetime, especially the experiences and the friends you make at Harvard. How can you put a money value on that. IMHO, even if you end up bankrupt, it will still be worth it.

"IMHO, even if you end up bankrupt, it will still be worth it": what? That last statement is extremely illogical. You can make friends for free. If you want Harvard friends, visit. If you want a Harvard education, get it, once you can pay. But never think its worth getting bankrupt for; thats does not compute with me, sorry.

 

[Stefan Zota]

Look, if someone came into our office and offered everyone admission to Harvard MBA program and told them quite clearly that they would lose two years salary and be $200 K in debt, I am sure that 90% of the people would immediately quit their jobs and join Harvard. It is as simple as that. There are some things which you just cannot put a monetary value on and which will last you a lifetime, especially the experiences and the friends you make at Harvard. How can you put a money value on that. IMHO, even if you end up bankrupt, it will still be worth it.

You have an interesting office . I have a good friend that didn't take this risk and I am sure he is not in the 10%. As already said here, the risk is large. If a person has a 100k steady pay job, in this job market, it's a gamble to throw it away.
Of course, they can be successful, but what is the probability? U.S. doesn't need thousands of high level executives every year. Even if it would, would they all come from Harvard? Maybe Wharton, Kellogg or Columbia would have some as well? Maybe there are quite a few executives without MBA, wouldn't that be a "surprise"?

In the end, it's quite possible that >50% of the entire promotion will find jobs paid 100k (quite a few articles that confirm this statement). So if the wage defines your career, aren't they back in the same place with 200k debt?
A career change is a life impacting decision. If you pursue a degree at Harvard just because you heard some executives went there, you may be disappointed. But if you are really passionate about some area of business and you have a good academic experience, I am sure it will work out ...

 

[Anthony DeAngelis]

People you meet while going to college are totally different than people you meet casually. 200K in debt is nothing compared to the experience and people you will meet at one of these top schools.


All the hate is unnecessary.

 

[Yike Lu]

There are some things which you just cannot put a monetary value on and which will last you a lifetime, especially the experiences and the friends you make at Harvard. How can you put a money value on that. IMHO, even if you end up bankrupt, it will still be worth it.

Having spent my 4 years of undergrad at an elite school, I can tell you that the people are for the most part like anyone else... just with a big brain. Extremely intelligent people have neuroses and personality flaws just like everyone else, they may even have a higher number of them on average. If anything defined the people I knew, it was an overdeveloped sense of rationality, and yet these same people were just as apt to rationalize their own behavior as the next guy.

It can get lonely being so intelligent, unless you happen to also be a great communicator. With that loneliness often comes an awkward arrogance, as if only those near your level belong to your group.

In summary, there is nothing magical about the experience. Your next door neighbor might be a genius, but you're just as likely to find yourself consoling his drunk *** as he deals with a breakup as you would if he were just some normal guy.

Unless you're really just looking to get connected with people who might become famous some day... some people crave the attention that big name-drops come with...