Why do professionals quit jobs to pursue a one-year MBA?

Filter Results

Topics

Audience

Industry

Year

What inspires professionals to quit jobs for a one-year MBA?

19 Feb 2025
- admin
What makes mid-career professionals leave stable jobs to go back to school? For many, it’s the hunger for growth, the desire to break free from stagnation, and the need to upskill in a rapidly changing world. They want more than just annual increments and repetitive tasks, they want roles where they can lead, innovate, and make a bigger impact.

A one-year MBA offers the perfect solution as it’s fast, focused, and designed for professionals who can’t afford to stay out of the industry for too long. Whether it’s mastering data analytics, diving into marketing, or transitioning into leadership roles, each student’s story is unique yet relatable.

In this blog, meet four such professionals who made bold decisions to quit their jobs and pursue the one-year PGPM at SOIL.

Alumni stories

Understand why they took the leap, how they chose this program, and what their future holds.

Rahul Chakraborty

I am Rahul Chakraborty and I come from Kolkata. I did my schooling from MCV and then I went to IHM Chennai for my bachelor’s, post which I worked with Mahindra Holidays for 29 months and then Amazon for about 3 months. After that, I decided to do my MBA and joined SOIL.

While I was working, there were certain periods of time when I had to devise strategies to increase my room nights, boost the number of guests, or maintain a certain level of occupancy. While strategizing these processes, I felt I couldn’t do it with 100% accuracy because I did not have prior knowledge of marketing and sales.

I was learning from my peers and applying it. Since I already have a creative bent of mind, I thought Why not do an MBA, learn consumer behavior and marketing management, and get into the depth of the subject? Then maybe I can go back to hospitality to make my work more effective.

I already had 32 months of work experience, but my experience was very domain-specific. I needed to explore departments like marketing and sales and also understand how businesses function. Since I already had experience, I didn’t want to go for a two-year program. SOIL’s one-year PGPM program seemed like a great fit because it’s their flagship program.

When I came to SOIL, one thing I really wanted to learn was analytics. Our future is moving toward data science, but my previous work didn’t require any analytics. This made it even more important for me to learn this skill, as it will help me in all dimensions, whether I’m in a corporate environment or building something of my own.

Thanmayee

My name is Thanmayee. I have overall 62 months of work experience in the finance sector across various industries like e-commerce, manufacturing, and investment. Previously, I was working with WNS Global Services, a billion-dollar company.

The reason for leaving my job and pursuing the PGPM program was mainly because I wanted to upskill myself. I was looking for a job change, and when I sat for many interviews, I realized there was a gap in the skills required by companies. Most of the roles required management skills, which needed more industry knowledge and business acumen. To bridge this gap, I left my job and decided to pursue PGPM.

The reason I chose a one-year MBA is because the market is changing rapidly due to developments in AI and other advancements. I wanted to do an MBA, but I didn’t want to spend too much time upskilling. I wanted to get back into the industry quickly. The managers I saw in my previous organization were already equipped with the skills needed to lead teams, represent them in front of clients, and balance client expectations. I wanted to acquire those same skills.

During this one-year MBA, my specific goals are to improve my business acumen and understand how the industry works. I’ve been gaining knowledge from industry leaders and learning what exactly is happening in the corporate world. Most of the time, we don’t pay enough attention to the bigger picture, but when aiming for a manager position, it’s essential to understand it well.

Joy Alphan

I’m Joy Alphan. I did my undergrad at Loyola Chennai and worked at Deloitte for close to two years as a junior data analyst. At Deloitte, I was working for hotel chains-understanding the ins and outs of their business and analyzing the profits they were making. My job involved explaining these insights to non-technical stakeholders.

Leaving Deloitte was a very big decision for me, and I thought about it for a long time. I had been considering doing an MBA for two years but kept delaying the decision because of my work. Eventually, I felt that two years of experience was enough to understand the basics of analytics, and it was time for me to amp up my game. My mother wasn’t initially convinced by my decision. I didn’t tell her until after I put in my papers because I knew she wouldn’t agree. It was hard, but eventually, she understood that I was making this decision to grow and improve my career.

Since I already had two years of experience in analytics, I felt that a one-year MBA with a focus on analytics would further develop my decision-making and analytical abilities. It would give me a solid base to analyze the products I work on and help me make better decisions.

My career goal is to move toward product management. Since I’ve chosen data analytics, I believe it will help me expand my vision and focus on that path. For example, if we’re developing a product for a company, we need to analyze the market, competitors, product differentiators, and pricing. Analytics helps in making these decisions, and it’s essential to have this foundation before stepping into a product management role.

Shivam Sood

Hi, I’m Shivam Sood. I did my schooling at St. Xavier’s High School, and after that, I went to Chennai for my graduation at VIT University. Later, I joined Tata Consultancy Services and gained 65 months of experience there.

After working for over five years in the same domain, I started feeling stagnated. I was doing the same tasks repeatedly, and there was no real growth. I noticed colleagues with around 10 years of experience who hadn’t done an MBA were receiving limited opportunities to learn new technologies and getting annual increments of just 4–5%. On the other hand, my managers had much more exciting roles. They dealt with clients, strategized, and expanded the business. That inspired me to explore that side of things, and I began thinking seriously about pursuing an MBA.

I considered online programs and weekend courses to learn marketing, but I realized that dedicated time and focus were essential to truly learn and grow. That’s why I chose to do an MBA at SOIL. Given my five years of experience, I felt that a one-year program would be the best fit. A two-year program seemed unnecessary, as it would come with a higher opportunity cost. Thankfully, I was able to take a sabbatical, which was a safer option given the current state of the job market.

My goal is to develop myself as a well-rounded business professional and not restrict myself to one field. However, I’ve always had a passion for marketing. I’m eager to dive deeper into how brands build themselves and attract customers. I want to understand the practical, on-the-ground side of marketing-how it really works beyond just the theory.