mba online

mba online

The Impact and Effectiveness of Online MBA Programs

1. Introduction to Online MBA Programs

The United States has a specialized system for many areas or functions which are often more broadly managed in other countries. Corporate training and development is an area of major specialization in the United States; much of its development is the result of historical events. The aggregate total spent on corporate education is quite significant, making the state the dominant trainer for many whose formal education ended with a four-year college degree. In the corporate education system, business schools have been very profitable parts of colleges and universities. The high costs of such programs and declining corporate educational budgets should encourage colleges and universities to seek new educational markets beyond the traditional MBA.

In a world that is increasingly shaped and changed by technology, one part of the business world has, until recently, remained immune to such change—the Master’s of Business Administration (MBA) degree. For nearly a century, the MBA has imparted knowledge to generations of the business elite. In recent years, however, online MBA programs have emerged. Is there a substantial difference between online and traditional MBA programs? The answer is yes, but an exclusive focus on the difference between online and traditional programs will neither provide a complete understanding of online programs nor place them within the modern corporate education system. To understand the status and future development of online MBA programs, it is necessary to first examine the larger context which has shaped the entire educational enterprise in the United States.

2. Benefits and Challenges of Online MBA Programs

The same benefits, coupled with the enormous internationalism of the internet, also allow schools to enroll students from all over the country and all over the world. The financial advantages of educating large numbers of previously non-accessible customers are enormous. Boards of education have generated numerous reports regarding the benefits of distance learning to educators and administrators. The flexibility of online learning has numerous advantages for students, benefits that can help to overcome the negative feelings that often accompany an inferior educational environment. The freedom to learn extends to the instructional process as well. Students are able to log in to their courses whenever they wish and do so multiple times a week.

Students enrolled in online classes do so because they find such classes flexible and convenient. In fact, students characterize online learning as the ultimate in student-centered learning resources because they are given access to educational opportunities regardless of location, work schedule, or family responsibilities. No longer do students have to choose between the life they are living and the life of a full-time student; online education allows students to be both. Consequently, schools have a whole new population that they can serve with their courses and programs.

3. Comparing Online and Traditional MBA Programs

This present paper casts light on the gray area of management education research and scientific progress by examining web-based MBA programs from thirty-nine ranked business schools. It compares residential and web-based MBA programs in terms of student learning outcomes as measured by ETS Major Field Test (MFT) and ETS Business School Exit Exam (BSEE) tests and Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). Forces contributing to the lack of reported research in residential MBA programs and MFT and BSEE test results reporting from specific graduate programs are identified and potential solutions are proposed. An example using a specialized MBA program designed for engineers and other technical professionals is elaborated to demonstrate how an MBA program can serve its primary audiences in a way that a generalized MBA program may not. The example is then extended to Tampa Bay area financial institutions and financial services institutions to illustrate advantages to organizations from sponsoring or supporting employees to attend such a specialized MBA program.

In order to understand the findings and results reported here, it is necessary to have a basic understanding of the delivery mechanisms of online education. Courses are designed as “stand-alone” self-contained learning materials that do not require teacher-student interaction. These materials contain lectures, readings, glossaries, quizzes, charts, tests, or whatever else the teacher wants to include in a particular driven format – students follow these course materials at their convenience. Faculty support is provided as needed. This may consist of explanations, additional readings, or offering one-on-one help to students having difficulty. Students may communicate with each other, usually by email or listserv, both privately and publicly, but in no case is it a requirement that they do so. Communication that is frequently present in traditional classrooms, such as question and answer sessions, routine consequences between students and students and students and teacher, spontaneous classroom discussion, and group projects is at best diminished or in some programs absent in online courses. The absence of personal routine interaction is a key difference of online education.

4. Best Practices for Success in an Online MBA Program

Selective data from a series of focus groups with students from four online MBA programs delivered through a variety of approaches suggests key elements that provide insights into such best practices. The focus group sessions with students in MBA or Executive MBA programs from four institutions, all of which were established and well-regarded business schools offering programs with outstanding faculty. These schools provide a unique concentration and hence, comparison of factors influencing the approach to higher education or type of students influenced by that approach. The homogeneity of the student population was happy to discuss their programs created a comfortable environment for open discussion.

Interest and demand are high for online MBA programs, leading not only business schools to enter the market, but also many different providers increasing access to such programs and their content. Consequently, prospective students seeking the “best” programs for themselves seek some rationale to guide decisions among these many options. Even though students have so many different programs to choose from, once they enroll for online MBA programs, how to be a successful online student is rarely considered. What characteristics define best practices for success in online MBA programs is required to aid these students in understanding what is going to meet their needs, guide readiness decisions, or arrange programs to meet their unique needs.

5. Future Trends in Online MBA Education

Skepticism Toward Online MBA Education. Respondents were characteristically optimistic about the future of online MBA education, with approximately 50% indicating that it will become more common. This contrasts with the fact that currently, few of the respondents’ colleges or universities are considering the delivery of an online MBA program. The key rationale for resisting its delivery is a low level of enthusiasm on the part of the industry, which the participants believe fails to differentiate between the relatively poor and the extremely high-quality programs among the various online MBA programs available in the marketplace.

Naturally, the trends identified in this study are only a sampling of possible future aspects of online MBA education. Nevertheless, the experiences and thoughts of administrators, instructors, and students provide insights into likely future advances in online MBA education. The four central themes are identified as diversity, lifelong learning, student services, and technology. However, before a detailed discussion can be made of these four trends, it is necessary to first discuss the overarching issue of industry skepticism toward online MBA programs as this is a contributing factor to the trends identified by survey participants.