CarrotCruncher

I have a few weeks left until I finish my Bachelor degree and my next step will be starting to work on an MBA. I am happily located in IA (in the process of AOS), and have one far away, but commutable college which offers an MBA program. I would rather not make the 120 mile round trip. Therefore, I am looking for online, with non-profit, established programs, and my primary concern is that I have a degree that will be usable upon completion. So far, in the US Keller / DeVry is an option, and in the UK the University of Liverpool is another.

I thought I'd ask if anyone has done their MBA online? If so, who with and were there any issues with it being accepted by employers? I'd also be interested if anyone has had any issues with degrees transferred in from the UK, or indeed if there were no issues.

Thanks in advance.
CC

avanutria

My first impression (and just my opinion) is that a MBA from a reputable US online programme would be easier for US employers to deal with than one from an equivalent UK programme. A UK one would give you the hassles of converting marks and stuff to US standards without the benefit of being able to say "hey, I studied overseas, isn't that cool".

Sue

I am in the process of transferring to the University of London's International programme (though not for an MBA) so can't comment on the transferability (is that a word? ) but know a couple of US based people who did their Masters with them.

scrubbedexpat099

I have not done one, but know quite a few people who have.

Seems that the institutions reputation is nearly as important as the qualification itself.

E3only

Totally.

To the OP, I would get a bit of work experience first before I start my MBA. But that's just me. If I had to do mine again, I would definitely wait up and get some work experience under my belt.

CarrotCruncher

I probably should have mentioned; I have a total 16 years management experience, including 10 years technical project management experience, so I am OK in that respect, but good advice, thanks.

E3only

I will bite my tongue!

CarrotCruncher

Please don't! I'm seeking opinions; I wish I had the answer, or Google could furnish me with everything. I am hoping people's experiences can give me an alternative view, and provide some much needed advice.

E3only

From my perspective, I really believe that you should take into consideration the institute as much as cost / travel / online or not. The problem is, sure online degree will give you the degree but for it to be of any value – it’s probably advisable to do to course study and I would definitely recommend US based degree.

I did mine from university and I ended up paying about 80% more than the average university but I really felt it made a difference – like finding work. FYI this was in Australia (where I was before moving to the states).

Something like MBA is much more than the qualification. Its about Alumni, connections, networking, being surrounded by the right people, making life long bonds etc. I doubt a UK online or even US online MBA offers that.

I doubt though, with your level of experience you need anything more than a degree so I appreciate your thinking.

anotherlimey

I think you should attend classes if you can. And go to the best place you can get into, the name on the certificate means everything; Harvard MBAs make up something ridiculous - like 80% - of Fortune 500 boardrooms.

US university courses are always going to be very expensive relative to the UK (well, maybe not for much longer), but if you want to stay in the US, you may as well get the qualification here.

CarrotCruncher

The name on the certificate is defiantly the common theme and Harvard would be a dream come true, alas my feet have to stay firmly planted on the ground.
I am trying to stay "local" because I have 3 young children (6, 9 and 12) who are settled in a fabulous school system and excelling in everything they do. My ultimate career goal is to teach at college level, which is why I am pursuing an MBA.
My thoughts on an online degree were that I could gain some US work experience whilst completing the MBA. Upon completion, begin looking at teaching positions. If I choose the wrong program this could be a moot point; which is my main dilemma. What is a good online program?

scrubbedexpat099

Sounds like you need to have a beer with some of the people working in areas you would like to.

Britishbees

Hi CarrotCruncher

In my personal and professional experience, the reputation of the institution itself has a huge bearing on the impact/power your MBA has when listed on your resume.

That said, I have had the interesting experience of coming across some people with MBAs and similar post-grads from top business schools, and to be frank, in business terms, they were oxygen thieves - all the academic stuff, but not enough practical application. And I've had the joy of working with those from the other end of the spectrum - no qualifications but wonderful 'smarts' in practice.

I got my masters from a UK Red Brick university - I completed it whilst being unemployed following my second redundancy. When I got the letter from the university to say I could now use the post-nominals and claim my new degree in my resume, my hit rate for interview applications went from around 20% to around 80% success literally overnight.

I had to get my UK degrees checked for equivalence when applying recently (July 2010) for my L1 - that was something arranged by our lawyer - and seemed to be an important part of the application process in showing that no US citizen at the moment could do the job I'm here to do. I'd be happy to point you to the person who did this for me.

From the professional side of things - I'm responsible for the development of Country Manager level people in my company, global remit, and I have to say that the content, nature and challenge level of the course, plus reputation of the school carries more weight for us (not just me...) than a US-centric course. Depends on needs, but my employer has a global operation and an increasingly global focus.

We live in a 'globalised' world, like it or not, and increasingly I'm seeing how an overly US-centric view point is increasingly getting in the way of easier progress for people and companies...

My final comment would be to think very carefully about taking a 'cheap' option. A good school/course over 2-3 years will cost around £50K upwards in the UK. The real question is what you want to do and be in the future, and what kind of MBA experience/class/school is needed to make this happen - if any - and the answer to this should drive your selection, less so what country to do it in - the good schools/classes are available internationally - those that aren't I suspect are unlikely to truly meet the needs of a globalising business...

Good luck

Harry The Spider
(I know - I've hijacked the OH's session!)

anotherlimey

Do you need to get an MBA if you want to teach? Surely you want a Masters in whatever subject you want to teach, well I'm assuming that.

If you absolutely have to do an MBA online, look at the Business Week rankings; they have a top 10 list of all types of programs.

Bomjeito

Just my opinion, but Keller and DeVry don't exactly match up to an MBA from a State University or even a private university.

As a hiring manager in the USA, I'd have to be hard pressed to take the time to see if those schools ever even got accreditation- I remember DeVry as the technical school for folks to learn auto mechanics, and other vocational skills.

So I checked Keller out -

http://www.ope.ed.gov/accreditation/

Okay, its accredited. Just a thought, though, have you looked into programs at ISU?

If you are planning to apply for big management, the top MBA programs should be on your resume (Sloan, Hass, Wharton) .... but if you are doing it as an exercise only, I'm sorry, to me, there is nothing at all wrong with doing it at a school abroad. I think it would also show a level of flexibility to learn about other business styles/systems, etc., then translate them to US-styles of management - this would be a bonus sell from you to any hiring manager in the USA.

My MBA was done in the classroom. My MS in Accountancy was done 100% online via a State University, which happened to be well recognized for its accountancy programs anyhow. I do not feel that I was neglected in any way in the education sense, and actually had more time with the professor, albeit via emails. I learned a lot this way, and would do an online degree again.

I did the MBA in a university setting as they are very general, very theoretical, and should require more teamwork and projects. Just a thought.