Highest Starting Salaries for MBA Students in USA (2010)

From the link: http://www.businessinsider.com/highest-paid-mba-grads-2010-2011-1?op=1

I am not sure how many of the MBAs I know personally are making more than $100,000 a year. It is in the minority, probably, not the majority. In other words, there are a few, but not every MBA I know is making more than $100,000 a year. Also, remember that we do NOT have Finance MBA specialization at Ryerson University or a trading floor. Nor do we have a Strategy specialization. We do not even have a Strategy Consulting Club for MBAs (even though the undergrads have one).

Check out some staggering numbers from American MBA programs...

1. $350,000 - Wharton (UPenn) - Private Equity (Finance MBA)
2. $330,000 - Stanford - Private Equity (Finance MBA)
3. $300,000 - U. Chicago - Private Equity (Finance MBA)
4. $300,000 - Columbia - Investment Management (Finance MBA)
5. $300,000 - Kellogg - Strategy Management Consultant (Strategy MBA)
6. $250,000 - Harvard - Private Equity (Finance MBA)
7. $225,000 - Dartmouth - Private Equity (Finance MBA)
8. $180,000 - MIT - Finance (Finance MBA)
9. $152,000 - Duke - Healthcare (Healthcare Management MBA)

So, what you know from studying the information above is this: The MBAs who make the most money have the following specializations:

• Finance.
• Strategy.
• Healthcare.

Guess what are the subjects that interest me: Healthcare, Strategy and Finance, lol. Is this by accident? No, this was partly by planning, and partly by past training. I mean, I have a bachelor's degree in Medicine, yes. But since the beginning of the MBA, I have made sure to focus on Management Consulting line of work (by paying attention to Corporate Strategy subject), as well as knew that Finance is a well paying field (more towards the end of my MBA). Yes, Marketing is fun, and I love it, but it will not make you a millionnaire, ha ha. You have to know what you want in life. Yes, I want to do good for the world. But I do want to do well, as well. Someday...

Here is ANOTHER way to think about this - Yes, not everyone can get a Finance MBA. But even if you have a General MBA (like in my case), you can build on what you have learned and continue to study Finance, even after your MBA, and you can develop expertise in Strategy, in Consulting, in Finance, and in Investments, and you can keep improving your chances of financial success. There is no one to stop you from learning what you want to learn... Another option as I see it, is to do the 16 month MA in International Economics and Finance, to steer a career towards Investments... But that thought is for some other day...

Cheers,
Gerry Som.