Alt-MBA: Gain Real-Life Experience Instead

Written by

Paula Tesch

In 2008, Seth Godin told everyone not to go to business school. He encouraged everyone to forgo the two-year commitment (and exorbitant fees) and apply to spend six months as an intern in his Alternative MBA Program, learning from him and gaining real-life experience instead.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t accept everyone. Thankfully, Alt-MBA was born.

What is the Alt-MBA?

“Consider the traditional top-tier MBA: It takes two years, you need to move and it costs more than $125,000.

The best business school experience is transformative. It exposes students to a new way of thinking as well as a cohort of fellow travelers, motivated, smart people in a hurry to change things.

What’s changed is that access to information is no longer the reason to go to business school. The information is everywhere.

Our goal with the altMBA is to assemble leaders (corporate executives, non-profit linchpins, founders, managers and people in a hurry) and to connect them and amplify their work.

Without leaving home. In just a month of intense effort.

The altMBA doesn’t pretend to make you an expert in finance, cost accounting or marketing. We don’t even try. Instead, we’re organized around action, around publishing, around sharing your work and learning from it.

If this sounds like it might be part of the change you’d like to see in your life and career, we hope you’ll apply.”

UPDATE: It’s 2015 and Seth Godin’s online program continues to thrive and foster a community of people who love what they do and are motivated to make change happen.

Check out the website and apply to (or stay posted on) the next Alt-MBA program.