Doing an MBA is a major life change that requires hard work and full dedication. And yet, many MBA students are married. So how tough is it on their spouses? Here, AGSM students Asif Abdullah and his wife Eve share their experience so far as Asif does the full time MBA at Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM).
Before moving to Sydney in November 2010, Asif was working as a Program Manager for the Global Equities division at the Royal Bank of Scotland in London, and Eve was Director of Communications for an online health and medical information company.
Asif’s career was progressing well, but he felt an MBA would give him a “bigger picture perspective”.
“My wife and I decided it was now or never”, he says, “and that if it was something I wanted to do, I should just do it”. So, in January 2010 Asif started preparing for the GMAT exams and exploring MBA programs. For him, it was important that his MBA had a respectable standing in the global rankings. In addition, he wanted a programme with an international focus.
The AGSM MBA program stood out: “Not only is it ranked first in Australia and thirty-fifth globally in the Financial Time MBA Rankings 2011, but it also attracts a culturally diverse student group”. Asif’s classmates come from Chile, Brazil, USA, Canada, Mexico, UK, Korea, Sweden, Germany, India, and China.
And as if moving to another continent wasn’t enough, they found out they were expecting their first baby only a few weeks before they were about to fly to Sydney. Of course, this brought fresh challenges to their adventure: the original plan was that Eve would work full time in Sydney providing their income for the year. With a baby on the way, though, they had to rethink their finances: “Australia, we have found, is expensive“, Asif says, “the Australian dollar continues to strengthen...the rents in Sydney are some of the most expensive in the world. And everyday items are more expensive than the UK.
“But, for us this is a year of investment. We are investing in the opportunity for me to grow professionally...and to build a culturally diverse network of MBA peers. It’s also an opportunity to live in and experience a different country and to take a ‘year out’ to invest in the future direction of my career”.
Has the AGSM MBA lived up to Asif’s expectations so far? “Yes”, he answers, “the AGSM MBA course is challenging. The pace of the workload is fast, so it is important to be disciplined about demarcating time for preparing for each lecture, completing assignments and revising for exams. The focus on group work is also a welcome challenge: it is important to be able to work with people with different backgrounds and skill sets. We are sometimes ‘storming’ rather than ‘performing’ in our individual groups, but that’s all part of learning to respect how others work whilst collectively working to a common goal”.
For Eve the workload and pace of assignments at AGSM is “fast and furious”. Because of that, she feels that her support is hugely important to the successful completion of Asif’s MBA: “a calm and stable home environment and an understanding of the time he needs to dedicate to meeting the demands of the course allow him to focus on achieving his MBA goals”, she says.
How was settling in Sydney, being the wife of an MBA student, and expecting a baby at the same time? “Asif is often ‘holed’ up studying in the evenings and at weekends which sometimes leaves me with time on my hands”, she answers. But that doesn’t seem to be a problem for her: “we chose to live in Surry Hills because it’s a vibrant area of town with independent boutiques, organic cafes and trendy restaurants all within walking distance...I love rummaging for vintage finds in the myriad of vintage boutiques on the very creative and cosmopolitan Crown Street.”
Eve also works full time for a consumer health PR firm in the city which has allowed her to participate in the business world in Australia and to meet and make friends with new colleagues.
In addition, AGSM recognises the importance of partners’ support to MBA students. The school has organized events to let partners to meet each other: “Asif’s course mates are also a social bunch with ad hoc days and nights out to which partners are invited. Last Friday it was a curry night on Surry Hill’s Cleveland Street. Recently one of the wives set up a Facebook page for the AGSM MBA 2012 girls, which is used as a platform to organise regular brunches and other catch ups”.
Overall, she loved their adventure: “It’s fabulous to have the opportunity to experience a new city, meet new people and feel smug when friends and family back in the UK complain about the cold and damp weather whilst we’re bathed in warm sunshine!” She wishes Asif every success and promises she will do everything she can to help him: “especially since Asif has promised me a pair of my favourite shoes by Jimmy Choo once he has completed his MBA and made a return to the business world!”
Settled into the AGSM MBA 2012 course, and enjoying what life in Sydney has to offer, Asif and Eve now hope that their “little Aussie baby, due the week of the first semester’s final exams will stay in its Mummy’s tummy until the exams are over”.
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