Dan Walsworth

CNS220
Applied Research Project
For my target city I focused on a consulting job working in Charlotte. Charlotte is
an example of a large city whose cost is not necessarily over the top. An average salary is
anywhere between $55,000- $70,000 depending on job specific. Typical rent was around
$1300-2300 and utilities were not too costly. I used basic research to make estimates on
other expenses such as insurance, phone plan, and social outings. Charlotte is full of
things to do, so I would think you would invest in experiencing the nightlife and culture
when possible. Despite the cost for that, I do not think it is comparable to a more
expensive city such as New York. Overall, the cost of Charlotte is reasonable and average
salary for a consulting job allows for saving or increased spending.

Name

Amount

Leftover
Extra

$413.96

Total

$3,103.46

Revenue
BiWeekly

$1,551.73

Expenses
Total
Rent
Utilities

$2,689.50
$765.00
$215.00

Water

$30.00

Electric

$80.00

Wifi

$35.00

Cable

$35.00

Trash/Pest

Insurance

$35.00

$310.00

Car & Rental

$200.00

Health/Dental

$110.00

Cell Phone
Food & Drink
Groceries
Alcohol

Outings

$50.00
$250.00
$150.00
$100.00

$550.00

Meals

$400.00

Bars

$150.00

Clothing

$125.00

Next, I researched the costs and benefits of attending graduate school. Since consulting is
a wide-range category of job, one may attend various sorts of graduate schools, and
change career paths to a certain degree. I focused on a comparing a MS degree and an
MBA. Masters degree programs often demand undergraduate degrees within the same
field of study, while a student pursuing an MBA may complete undergraduate studies in a
major other than business. The MBA is a generalist degree in business where students
take courses in each functional field. In contrast, the MS is offered in some business
fields such as accounting, finance, marketing, IT, HR, and possibly others depending
school. I decided to look up the top 5 MBA program costs to have a better idea how
costly they are to attend.
SCHOOL
COST
Harvard University
$53,000
Stanford University
$57,000
University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
$57,026
MIT (Sloan)
$57,920
Northwestern (Kellogg)
$56,550
Despite these high costs there are several benefits of receiving an MBA. The expected
average starting salary for new bachelors degree hires was $42,859 for the class of 2102,
according to the Graduate Management Admission Council. This is about half the
$85,654 figure for new MBA hires. 79% of companies also say they are looking to hire
recent MBA graduates. MBAs saw an 81% gain between pre-MBA and post-MBA
salaries. Below is a graphic of the average salary for MBAs. Below is a graphic
illustrating five potential job opportunities post-MBA.

People with an MBA are earning much higher paying jobs with better hours. An MBA
also allows for more choices when searching for a job. Employers will make the student
with only a bachelors degree work there way up in the company, while they are more
likely to give the student with an MBA a higher position from the start. Overall, it is
obvious that the top MBA programs are going to be extremely expensive, however the
higher salary received from having an MBA will be better in the long run. Getting into a
top MBA program is difficult and may suggest working for a year or two after college to
gain some experience. I think it is important to make connections and keep networking
through internships, which will most likely lead to a job. After doing great work at the job
for a couple of years after college, apply to an MBA program that is a good fit.
Works Cited
"Best Business Schools." Best Business School Rankings. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov.
2013.
Blackman, Stacy. "The Future Looks Bright for B-School Grads." US News.
U.S.News & World Report, 01 June 2012. Web. 19 Nov. 2013.