2

The MBA Programmes

The MBA degree is offered in many variations depending upon your specific needs, such as Master of Business Studies (MBS), Master of Business Economics (MBE), Master of International Business (MIB) and so on. However, the original MBA is offered mainly in three kinds of formats. The first is the full-time MBA, which typically takes two years at most American business schools and one year at most European business schools. Variations to the above are offered, for example, by the one-year MBA at Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in the US and the two-year programme at London Business School in Europe. Then there is the part-time MBA more suited to those people who want to study for an MBA degree while they continue working. These degrees are usually funded by their employers. Finally, there is the executive MBA for senior managers who want to gain a deeper knowledge of a certain function and, hence, require a very focussed and short-term course aimed at filling the need-gap between current knowledge and required skills. Specialized MBAs focussed on marketing or finance are not much in vogue these days but have been discussed in some detail in this chapter. Lastly, slowly catching the fancy of people in developed countries is the online MBA programme, which concludes the discussion in this chapter.

Full-time MBA in the US or Canada

This is the most popular and traditional MBA programme. Many universities in the US offer this and the student bodies in these schools are relatively young, with the average age of the entering class being around 27 to 29 years. (We know that is not exactly ‘young’ by Indian B-school standards, but relative to other programmes around the world, they surely are.)

Students in these schools have typically worked for four to five years after graduation. There is also a portion of students with advanced degrees (mostly a master’s, and on rare occasions, a Ph.D. as well). Though most of these programmes used to admit students directly after graduation a couple of decades ago, the trend is now towards admitting students with greater work experience. However, this does not rule out admission for a younger candidate—some top schools believe that talent can be spotted early and encourage even college seniors to apply.

Owing to the intensity of the programme, life during a full-time MBA is hectic and brings a two-year hiatus in one’s career. This could mean reverting from a cushy corporate lifestyle to a tougher student life, running up a substantial education loan and probably sacrificing family life for the sake of education.

However, on the positive side, a two-year full-time MBA offers significant interaction between the students and the faculty. This could be a boon if one is thinking of changing one’s career path. The second year in most of the US full-time MBAs is highly flexible and you can choose the subjects that you want, thereby honing your skills in the areas that you want (about half the total number of courses in a typical programme are elective). This is one advantage that other MBA programmes cannot match.

The professors who normally teach full-time MBA classes in the US also do a fair bit of research. Some of them are consultants to the industry, and spend time working with corporations on industrial research projects. This exposure to the latest management ideas works to a student’s advantage.

The total cost of attending a two-year MBA programme could range from USD 80,000–130,000. Hence, financial aid and scholarships can be two of the most important criteria for Indian students. More information about this would be available in Chapter 14 which deals with financial aid and other related aspects.

Table 2.1(a) Basic Information on Select MBA Programmes in the US

Table 2.1(b) Basic Information on Select MBA Programmes in Canada

Full-time MBA in Europe

The European version of the full-time MBA is mostly of shorter duration (typically a year, though there are exceptions such as the London School of Business which offers a two-year programme) and is, therefore, more intense than the US one. Bulk of the coursework that is handled during the first year in the US is rushed through in a semester of three months. This is because most of the students are more experienced and have a better understanding of the subjects before they enter the programme. The average age in these European MBA programmes is around 29 to 31 years.

These programmes are known to teach more of soft skills (courses on leadership, teamwork and interpersonal skills) than hard skills such as accounting or finance. These schools also have a higher percentage of international students as compared to an American MBA programme. INSEAD in Fountainbleau, France, for instance, has more than 85 per cent of its class coming from countries other than France. As against this, a typical US MBA programme has only about 30 per cent of non-US students.

A drawback of these programmes is that functional specialization or a change in career (e.g. if you want to move from marketing to finance) is very difficult, mainly on account of the short duration of the course. However, for professionals with significant work experience, this could be a great option as it means lesser time away from work as also lesser total cost. Most of these institutes have excellent connections with the industry—making placements a very successful affair. This is a very good option for those who wish to take up jobs with European companies. US firms with significant international presence such as some banks and consultant firms also recruit in large numbers from these schools.

Table 2.2 Basic Information on Select MBA Programmes in Europe

Part-time MBA

A part-time MBA, as the name suggests, allows students to hold a fulltime position at their workplace and attend the MBA classes over a period of three or more years. However, it has lesser number of subjects per term than a full-time programme. A part-time MBA allows you to hold a job and earn money as you study. If you are lucky enough, you could get your employer to fund your MBA studies as well.

These advantages are however offset by the demands placed on your time—handling both a full-time job and the workload of an MBA programme could be too much for the less initiated. Your classmates would be from the same area as you and this reduces the diversity of the class and, therefore, the learning experience. Networking through your fellow students for jobs is difficult as little time apart from the classroom time is spent together.

Placement services, again, pose a problem as most of the schools focus on their full-time MBA programmes rather than on the part-time ones.

Table 2.3 US—Part-time MBA Programme Rankings

In the context of Indian students, the returns from a part-time MBA programme are not worth the effort if it is not from one of the top ten to fifteen programmes. Else, you would be better off attending a full-time course; the commitment would definitely be greater, but so would be the returns.

Executive MBA

These programmes are for those who cannot leave their current jobs and have location-related constraints. It offers flexibility by way of weekend classes and a course schedule that can be tackled along with a full-time job. The average age of students entering these programmes is around 32 to 38 years. The acceptance rates in these programmes are higher, in the range of 20–40 per cent.

For prospective students from India, this is a very distant option as most executive MBA programmes are not considered to be full-time courses and do not lead to a degree. The main purpose of these courses is improvement in skill levels and qualifications within the context of current job. Most of these programmes also require sponsorship and letters of support from your employer. Apart from being very heavy on the pocket, executive MBA programmes are not usually associated with good placement services or a good choice of electives. So unless you are with an organization you would love to work with in the future and which is ready to sponsor you, an executive MBA becomes a very difficult proposition.

Table 2.4 US—Executive MBA Programme Rankings

The more reputed universities and their respective programmes are listed in Table 2.4. Many of the popular rankings rank executive MBA programmes separately. These rankings can be used in the same way as the full-time MBA rankings (refer Chapter 4 for interpreting rankings).

The executive MBA is a fast-growing field and many universities have established tie-ups with management schools in other countries to cater to the requirements there. For instance, Kellogg conducts joint executive MBA programmes with local management schools in Israel, Germany and China. It makes good sense to check the latest developments in this field before choosing a particular programme.

Specialized MBA

Specialized MBAs are being increasingly offered by some B-schools to cater to the needs of students who have already made up their minds about their area of specialization after MBA. While most of these schools offer specialization in the second year of the curriculum, some schools have combined regular MBA curriculum with special courses in other fields. Examples include the dual degree MBA programme offered at CMU (the two-and-a-half-year MBA-cum-Master of Science in Computational Finance) or the three-year JD/MBA programme at Yale.

Table 2.5 US—Specialized MBA Programme Rankings

Areas of specialization offered by various universities include finance, entrepreneurship, marketing, technology and non-profit. Various MBA rankings give a separate list of the top MBA programmes. For candidates who know clearly the area of specialization they want, it is a good idea to look at the specialization rankings rather than overall rankings. The difference between the two can be stark, as is evident in the comparison in Table 2.5.

Online MBA

Nothing can replace the gruelling schedules of classes, compelling arguments during case discussions as well as the study-group assignments and the fun-filled years of attending a business school in person. It’s an experience of a lifetime, where people make friends, learn skills, develop themselves and go back, equipped to handle the toughest of problems, handle mergers and acquisitions and lead corporations. However, with the paucity of time and the need for qualifications taking up most of the mental space, the format catching on really fast is the online version of the programme, offered by several well-known universities around the world. Notable among them are the MBA programmes offered by the University of Phoenix and the Universitas 21 Global MBA, which is a consortium of 17 top MBA programmes around the world. Rankings have recently been compiled for these programmes as they gain in popularity worldwide. You should check these programmes out in greater detail to find out more about the courses offered and the costs as well as the timelines for completing the course. This format offers an easy route for those looking for a global certification obtained without the accompanying hassles of relocation to another country for obtaining the same.

Table 2.6 Online/Distance Education MBA Rankings