Re:How Harvard Business School Has Reshaped American Capitalism
by caminante on Monday May 01, 2017 @01:32PM
(#14239585)
Prestige matters in finance, too. However, a JD's not really comparable to an MBA because (a) getting the post-MBA jobs you mentioned typically require prior, relevant, gold-plated work experience (Switching into these finance sub-fields is VERY hard even for HBS MBAs.) and (b) these jobs don't require an MBA (unlike many jurisdictions that require accredited JDs). JDs typically don't have gold-plated work experience and have to rely on their law school's brand for signalling.
In other words, most HBS folks who choose this high finance route already have the credentials and pedigree for the job without needing an MBA.
For the rest, I recommend googling HBS job reports and re-thinking a few of your assumptions about where/how people create value at firms.
These seem like employers who are all about credentials, since there's no real way to demonstrate a propensity for gutting companies or engineering IPOs a priori, and since these groups are run on autopilot by corporate drones instead of people with a real sense of ownership or entrepreneurship (and thus, a desire to acquire and retain good talent regardless of its pedigree). In such cases, the hiring seems to become 99% about the value placed on the institution that granted the degree, and 1% about showing up in an adequately expensive suit and car.