For many professionals, the first big financial decision after years of saving seems simple: buy a house. Property is often seen as the safest investment — something tangible that grows over time. But for Weekend MBA student David Birtwistle, the choice wasn’t so straightforward. He wondered: what if the best investment wasn’t bricks and mortar, but himself?

While pursuing his MBA at Imperial, David continues to lead Endeavour Life, a personalised online coaching service helping professionals transform their health. In a recent LinkedIn post, shared below, he explains why he chose to reinvest three years of savings into developing high-value skills instead of buying property and how that decision could shape his career and future in ways a house never could.

Why I invested in an MBA instead of buying a house.

I saved all my income from personal training for three years and didn’t spend a penny. I could have spent that on a house and hoped it appreciated or at least didn’t devalue over my time living there.

But I did this instead because I was only able to earn the money I saved because of my skills.

Those skills cost me time and money to acquire.

Those skills were not highly valuable skills, so I only got some money for them, not a lot of money.

But what if I could get more money for my skills in less time?

Well I would need better skills. And those skills would take money and time to acquire. But then I could earn more faster.

So instead of accepting my earning potential, I reinvested my savings into developing more valuable skills, in the hope that I will one day be able to recover the investment in less time that it took me to acquire them.

I’m betting that I will be able to make more money in less time than if I put the money into a house, so that at some point in the future I can provide a better house, car, education, security and life for my family.

The other thing is that these skills will be with me for life and there is no risk of them being taken away unlike a house if you don’t pay the mortgage or its value declines.

Why Imperial’s Weekend MBA is a valuable investment?

Our Weekend MBA is designed for experienced professionals, like David, who want to develop high-value business skills without stepping away from their careers. The programme’s part-time structure prioritises immediate impact, allowing students to put new frameworks into practice on real workplace projects from day one. Strengthening leadership capability and strategic thinking as they learn. With a wide range of Elective modules that focus on areas such as Innovation, Big Data, AI and Machine Learning, the curriculum integrates Imperial’s STEM-led approach to business education. By developing future-ready skills, students can advance into senior, higher-paying positions, all while cultivating a global professional network. The accelerated financial return David was seeking can also be seen in our graduate outcomes, with 81% of the Weekend MBA Class of 2024 progressing into new roles within 4 months of graduation, and 31% receiving a salary increase.

Students are also exposed to business environments across the world through Global Experience Week. This week is a core part of Imperial’s Weekend MBA, included in the tuition fee, giving students the opportunity to immerse themselves in an international business environment through company visits, applied projects and cultural insight. These experiences help students build global perspective, deepen cultural awareness and gain practical insight into how businesses operate across different markets.  David’s decision to prioritise skills that deliver long-term value is reflected in the lifelong access to bespoke career support. Graduates are supported long after they leave Imperial by the Careers Service, ensuring they’re able to continue building on the benefits of the MBA as their goals and opportunities evolve.

For David, the Weekend MBA represents an investment that grows over time — not just in earning potential, but in confidence, capability and the freedom to shape his future on his own terms.