I know a guy that is working on a BBA. His plan is to eventually complete a MBA. The thing is he already has a BS in Environmental Science. My advice to him was to take whatever prerequisites he needs to get into a MBA program and go for it. He is hard-headed and wants to do the BBA and then the MBA. For some reason he is all stuck on completing both. He told me he wants the BBA to fall back on. Geez! What do you guys think?
There is nothing wrong with that in principle. It all depends on one's background and work experience. Depending on that, someone may find they learn more on a bachelor program in business administration, or that they would like to get a solid foundation through it that they otherwise may lack. Although, employers looking for good MBAs (not just to tick off a box) will look at the work experience one has accumulated BEFORE entering the MBA program. Somebody without business/management related work experience would make a much better impression on many prospective employers if they first completed a BBA, then do a few years of professional experience in the field and do their MBA after that. In any event, it all depends on the background and history of the individual.
In that the OP’s associate’s undergrad degree is in a completely dissimilar discipline to what would be considered business-side oriented; the BBA would provide him with, IMO, a more inclusive core business discipline focus in the areas, for example; management, accounting, finance, economics, business law /regulation, organizational behavior /change/development, etc. than a 30-48 hour generalized MBA. Moreover, most credible MBA programs will entail BBA (undergrad) courses as prerequisites for those lacking an undergraduate degree in business /commerce. Consider that managerial accounting is still managerial accounting … no matter what the course number designation, e.g., basically the same classes except with higher numbers in front of the course, but with fewer courses generally than the BBA. I believe the MBA is projected to build upon previous knowledge acquired through the BBA. Side note: Consider that the market will determine the value of the MBA, not the student. And not all MBAs will make competent decision makers; that aspect (decision-making worth) will still be based on the person's aptitude and attitude as regards their profession.
Your friend's stated reasoning is that he wants the BBA to fall back on. When I think of a "fall back" option, it would be one that would allow me to pursue a different goal if the path to my preferred goal was blocked. It may be useful for you to understand how he considers it a fall back. It may, in turn, be useful for him to sound out his thinking with a friend. Perhaps there are other things at play, that might go beyond "fall back"- a desire to stay a student that much longer, a feeling that he's not ready for graduate level work in a new discipline, a desire to take more specialized courses in a particular branch of business that he doesn't think he'll get at the MBA level. Who knows? Good luck to you both!
Good stuff. His plan is to get into contract management. I e-mailed him a few contract management grad programs, but he is all over the place. I decided to fall back and let him do his thing. I just hate when people ask for your opinion and always go in the opposite direction. He actually has a guy working in the field advising him, but he is still doing it his way. I'm done with it and will be spending my time getting my own stuff together.
I've been trying very hard not to give people advice. My experience is that they only listen if what you're saying agrees with what they've already decided. Otherwise they just ignore you. Typically I just try to present options to people and then step back.
I learned a lot from my BSBA CIS. The cool thing about that degree is that it checks off all the prereqs for an MBA and it has a technical focus with the CIS portion. I finished mine primarily through testing out at Thomas Edison, a public state school. The business knowledge I gained was probably sufficient for most people and prepared me well for an MBA.
