We all use the idea of "opportunity cost" in our every day lives. In general, economists define the "opportunity cost" of any good or service as the value of all the other goods or services that we must give up in order to produce it (http://william-king.www.drexel.edu/top/prin/txt/Neoch/Eco111r.html). While the cost of a good or service often is thought of in monetary terms, opportunity cost of a decision is based on what must be given up as a result of the decision. Whether we use it in our personal lives or the workplace, it is a factor that we all contemplate time and time again.
Situation.
A person has been given a choice between the following ways to live their life: (1) to take a leave of absence from work, move out of town, and pursue an MBA full-time or (2) to maintain their job while enrolled in a local MBA program. .
Comparison.
In the above situation the first factor that both choices involves is to give up something. Choice one seems to be giving up a lot of things from their personal life, friends, and most importantly family. Choice two is giving up the idea of not finishing an MBA as quickly as desired. There are benefits and costs associated with each choice. Both need to be weighed to make the best alternative choice.
When making the decision to go back to school, one should consider the opportunity cost, which includes the income that the student would have earned given they went with choice one. There also needs to be a consideration that by leaving town to pursue an MBA full-time would mean not being able to spend your time holding down a salaried job or developing your skills and moving up in the company. These lost opportunities may represent a significant loss of utility. Picking up and moving to start all over again may not appear to cost anything, until the consideration of the opportunity forgone to use that time earning money and working on the degree as you do that.