ok even I have to jump in here. There are a FEW examples of self made billionaires who didn’t finish college. But you make it sound like there are a ton which is flat out not true, PLUS a good portion of those billionaires got their brilliant idea while in college, so if they never went, they wouldn’t be a billionaire
The topic of the thread is HBS PLD. Someone had a negative reaction to one of the people who attended the program not having a college degree.
The discussion of how many successful people or even Billionaires there are without college degrees is at best a tertiary point. Here is a list of a 100 highly successful people many of who were, are or would be in today’s dollars billionaires: http://elitedaily.com/news/business/100-top-entrepreneurs-succeeded-college-degree/
Yes, many college drop-outs use some of what they learn before they drop out.
I do not see any issues with successful people without a college degree attending an elite program. I assume you agree with my point that people’s intelligence, ingenuity and ultimate success should count more than their degrees - degrees are one of a range of tools to get there.
Best,
BGT, CFA
Hey, BGT, CFA - what are your thoughts on CFA ethics which state that you cannot sign the CFA letters on an online forum when attached to a moniker such as BGT?
Also, how did you become an investment banker, PE expert and a corporate finance professional? That seems sweet. What was starting salary and what’s the work life balance like?
Well you brought it up as a support to your argument. All I did was point out it didn’t make sense.
My takeaway is that this program sounds like anyone that wants to pay $ can do it, which means Harvard is selling out their name for the money. I’ll make sure to ding any resumes that have this when it comes across my desk.
^yeah, I didn’t see anything about admissions criteria. Is this as stringent as the business school’s standards?
If my company were willing to pay my way to do this program, then why not? But otherwise, I’m failing to see the benefit, which should be obvious given the $$ amounts.
hai2u, depends on how thoroughly you’ve read the actual handbook and how you interpret it. I believe I am in compliance. All the best.
itera, I brought it up, backed it and explained it. My mentioning that it is a tertiary point was to explain that even if you had different data, it would not change anything else I’ve said. I agree with your point about people getting ideas in college, but not sure about its relevance to the point I had made. You are free to have any takeaway you want. Your latest note is, again, making statements without specific basis. It’s your personal opinion and you are entitled to it. The program has a selection process and if you contact them they may give you the statistics on how many of the people who apply get admitted.
Some of these comments seriously make me question reasons why people are on a blog beyond sharing knowledge. All the best.
Best,
BGT, CFA
BValGuy, don’t make assumptions, contact the school and find out.
Re: benefits and what’s a fit or not for a particular person, see above. All the best.
Best,
BGT, CFA
“Members and candidates must not use a pseudonym or fictitious phrase meant to hide their identity in conjunction with the CFA designation. CFA Institute can verify only that a specific individual has earned the designation according to the name that is maintained in the membership database.”
I guess you will have to be more thorough. But then, maybe Harvard likes to keep things a little more high level… Wouldn’t want the higher-ups getting lost in the weeds!
hai2u, since you’ve mentioned thoroughness, wanted to point out that some may consider you to be in violation of the CFA Institute Code of Ethics And Standards of Professional Conduct, Standard I.C. – Misrepresentation as you are not properly sourcing the quoted material, and, as a result, not giving people easy access to its context.
If one was to go into more detail, Standard VII.B., Reference to CFA Institute, the CFA Designation, and the CFA Program states: “When referring to CFA Institute, CFA Institute membership, the CFA designation, or candidacy in the CFA Program, Members and Candidates must not misrepresent or exaggerate the meaning or implications of membership in CFA Institute, holding the CFA designation, or candidacy in the CFA program.”, CFA Institute Code of Ethics And Standards of Professional Conduct (effective since 1 July 2014), page 2.
“The eleventh edition of the Standards of Practice Handbook contains the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct with related guidance and examples illustrating application of the Standards in the day-to-day professional activities of members and candidates.”, http://www.cfapubs.org/toc/ccb/2014/2014/4
The quote you provided comes from the guidance portion of the Standards of Practice Handbook starting at page 213. Note, it is guidance, not strict instructions, prescription or directive. Since you did not reference, someone may think that you are trying to conceal the rest of the language of the guidance or hiding the fact that you are sourcing from the guidance and not the standards portion of the handbook. I don’t think that’s what you were doing, but someone could use a technicality to accuse you of violating Standard I.C. Misrepresentation and ask improper questions or challenge your credibility.
I am in compliance with the actual Standard VII.B. Given the meaning of the key words in the quote (as per the Cambridge Dictionary), the example of prohibited use of “Crazy Bear CFA”, CFA Institute Standards of Practice Handbook, Eleventh Edition, page 218 and given the context in the pages 213 - 221 of the CFA Institute Standards of Practice Handbook and the context of this conversation, I am in compliance with the guidance as well. However, since the CFA curriculum teaches striving to avoid even perceptions of conflict of interest, impropriety, etc., I will forego the signature which bears no relevance to the topic of the thread.
I agree that senior (in experience) professionals definitely have to recognize key objectives, which detail is relevant in getting there and the value of time.
Regardless of contrary views, compliments on your intent to study and use the CFA Institute Code of Ethics And Standards of Professional Conduct as best as possible and good luck in your journey.
Pretty sure you were in violation by using a pseudonym with the CFA designation…
maybe his CFA is his membership of the Cat Financiers Association
Since you have nothing to hide, can you post your full name so that we can properly vet your standing as a CFA Charterholder and confirm that you aren’t an imposter hiding behind a pseudonym? It’s not that I don’t believe you, I just want to confirm your real identity before I allow your input to sway me toward submitting an HBS application.
I greatly appreciate your your time posting to this forum - thanks for all the valuable info so far!
I did an HBS PMD many years back (one of the precursors of today’s GMP - the other one was called TGMP).
HBS avoids diluting their true MBA brand by awarding EMBAs, but if there was an equivalent, it probably would be the GMP (One on steroids even, given the kind of CVs they admit to it).
The real powerful thing about HBS though is the alumni network (if PLD grads become alums as just like GMP Grads, then I personally would consider that a higher value than the inflationary EMBA title.
Some younger participants here might be mistaken, that “titles” are overly important for a career. I don’t think they are. They might be to HR underlings, not though to Managers who interview to hire. It is about intellectual agility (at times knowledge) and a pleasant way to suggest to People who hire that you are hungry and capable to help them solve/control professional problems.
A strong network Never hurts in getting to the right place at the right time.
Interesting… I always thought these branded programs compared to the full MBA was like Claritas compared to becoming a CFA Charterholder.
this thread is good
Can it be accepted as a masters, in case one want to further to PhD?
Can PLD Harvard it be accepted as a masters, in case one want to further to PhD?
In a word, no.
Insofar as I can tell, this is not a formal degree program and has no formal educational pre-requisites for admission whatsoever. I am not trying to denigrate the program. I am sure it confers great value to the right folks. Just answering your question. It is not a Master’s Degree program. You can achieve Harvard almuni group status apparently, but you don’t have a Harvard degree from it, nor do you need any particular GPA or test scores to be admitted. Possibly not even a college degree is required for the right candidates, if they look like they can keep up. If you’re looking to do your PhD, also be aware that if you do undertake a Master’s Degree at a different school, then you will likely have to re-do it at the institution that admitted you for your PhD program. It’s not usually transferable towards another school’s PhD. A PhD program often wants you to complete it all the way there.
There are some great schools (Columbia, Georgetown, etc.) offering official Master’s Degrees through their schools of professional studies, where you can complete them online even. Harvard is not one of them yet, to my knowledge. But even at those degree conferring schools, if you did your PhD elsewhere you likely would re-do your Master’s Degree at the PhD institution unless they have some special exception.
For the Harvard PLD program, if your firm is paying for it then it’s a no brainer. If you’re paying for it and aren’t looking to change firms/careers but are looking to add to your personal network or perhaps demonstrate to your superiors that you have leadership potential, then it’s also a logical option to potentially consider. If you’re looking to hit the job market afterwards, well then consider how strong the recruiting programs are at the schools you could enter into as an MBA. If a top school, then their MBA or EMBA will probably give you far more career opportunities just based on completion of the degree and the on campus recruiting that comes with the degree. And if you’re focused on PhD possibilities, focus on your test scores and publications, not any non-degree conferring executive training programs. Cheers and good luck with your journey wherever it leads.