MBAs who can't find jobs

I disagree. A career in management is very different from a specialist career, and both are essential. I made the switch from an IC (individual contributor) position to tech management about five years ago and received proper training at my company.

My anecdotal experience and consultations with my professional network (from startups to colleagues at FAANGs) indicate that most companies value both management and specialist career ladders (The 'Y career' [1]).

[1] https://hrconsultantuk.co.uk/y-career-understand-what-it-is-...

I have no formal programming education but started coding 35 years ago. I also have an MBA in finance. For my brain, learning something like functional monadic composition is something I was able to do on my own, but there is no way I'd ever have learned finance at that same level on my own.

It is worth noting that there is a pretty big difference between an MBA in finance, marketing, or operations/supply-chain. As different as developer, tester, and devops at least.

"On this course you'll be learning why the the people who graduated before you won't be hiring you after you leave."

In the longer-run, I've observed a few of the people who did apply did struggle greatly, and either had to find a new position, or lost interest in the new line of work they were trying. But others did a good enough job (after a rough start) to do well at their new position, which would then give them the work experience to easily be competitive for similar positions or even better opportunities for their career.

So, in general, I've seen that it's a good idea for the applicant to apply, even if they aren't fully qualified.

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For Edelman specifically, he both competed in the olympics in his sport, and was a seven-time national champion in his country. He even has a detailed Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Edelman

That level of competitiveness in the sport takes a lot of persistence, discipline, and skill, so it's a fair basis for a resume—especially with an MBA from a recognizable university. His background as an Olympian and national athlete is a fair basis for his resume.

But he also has a rigorous background in engineering. According to Wikipedia, he has a degree in mechanical engineering from MIT, and is potentially well-connected through his father (who also has a Wikipedia page), who is an engineering professor at MIT and a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

In his case, I wonder if he would find success by talking with people he has worked with before (such as fellow athletes or sponsors), or people he's known from his experience at university. He likely also has a potentially strong professional network through his family.

Perhaps he's only applying for a narrow range of opportunities in a specialized area. But then again, it does sound like he's applying cold for hundreds of positions. Another possibility is that some miscommunication occurred when he spoke to the journalist for his relatively minor part in the article.

I got my MBA covered by my employer, but honest to god - I didn't learn or see much new.

Prior to that I had a MSEE, as well as a Bachelor in Econ and Business Administration. All the classes were just mixes of core finance/accounting/management classes. Had electives, but again, nothing I wouldn't have learned on the job or in my own spare time.

I guess you can get some academic/knowledge value if you're completely green to things related to business. But undergrad econ/finance/management/etc. grads? Same old.

The real value lies in the networking. It's just a formality to land certain jobs, or if you want a career change.