Executive MBA's - Are they Inferior and Second Rated.

Question

Why do we go for MBA? In the History their are so many successful people that never visited MBA Schools. Isn't that we all need to be self tutored and determined and learn from real life as much as we can. However I have visualized MBA degree as a interface in ones career that can give Life Long Network of some intellectuals or ambitious Folks.

I am an entrepreneur and I do not have time to go for a Full time MBA. I was Visualizing to go on for Executive MBA. I emailed to Wharton Business school and according to them curriculum, resources and all other inputs all are same in EMBA, but their are many of my Peers, in fact most of them, who belive that EMBA is a second rated degree especially the one in which students go on evening in weekends.

Their is also an opinion that "such MBA programs(EMBA Weekend Evening) dont allow students to switch careers , which is also one of the main reasons one pursues a regular MBA"

What is the Truth and Myth behind such analysis, are they Rumors or some substance is their in these Myths.

Cycle14 · Answer

On the off chance that this isn't a troll post....a good EMBA can be a very rich experience - as you state in your opening line, the ability to "learn from real life as much as we can" is actually one of the key strengths of a good EMBA program - one of our professors noted that he learned as much from the students and our dialogue as he taught us. A strong student body brings strong experience and opinions to the classroom.

Honestly, I'd be surprised if you heard anyone who'd actually been through a top drawer EMBA program tell you that it was "second rate", but it's a very different proposition than a full time program. For one, everyone is still keeping a day job going - that brings real world problems to the classroom every time and the class room discussion comes from a position of deeper experience.

If you're after a label, then by all means listen to those who think that an exec MBA is a watered down degree (actually its the same degree in many places), if you want a real experience, then give it some thought. I would recommend those programs that are residential in structure though - that forges a much stronger/tighter network.

honchos · Answer

Can you elaborate the above statement in detail.

Cycle14 · Answer

The label part, the experience part or the connections part?

honchos · Answer

Label and Connection. Feel Free to speak more on Experience Part also.

Cycle14 · Answer

Label - if getting a particular line on your resume is critical to future success, then maybe a full time MBA would make more sense. Not that doing an EMBA should be seen as a lower qualification - Wharton, as with several other schools, requires that you complete an equal number of credits to receive an MBA whether you reach that degree through the full time or the executive format. In some careers it may be more important that you do that as a full time student. As an entrepreneur, I'm not sure that's quite your situation. My hypothesis is that it's more important to consider what will you gain from the experience as much as the line you get to add to your resume. Executive MBA's appeal to a different crowd - typically you'll find mid to senior level individuals make up the student body. Typically these aren't people who are willing to walk away from a good salary and growing career to go to school for 2 yrs full time.

The connections are strengthened in the setting where the program has a residential requirement. Many EMBA courses run every other week or every few weeks for a few consecutive days at a time. The class stays in the same hotel, studies together, shares evenings together etc. You'll have more conversations, forge stronger links when everyone isn't trying to rush home every night or going back to the office in the middle of periods of study.

The experience is driven as much if not more by your fellow students, what insights they bring and how they challenge you as it is about the professors and the class material. That may not be a different concept than a full time program, it's just that as noted above you're doing that with individuals who have that many more years of work/life experience under their belt.

My point is that the two options (FT or Exec) are different to one another - it's not that one is intrinsically subordinate to the other.

Cycle14 · Answer

Apologies to Admissionado - I realized I replied in the "ask admissions consultants" forum, not the general discussion forum!

Admissionado · Answer

No worries dude! :lol:

It was a good discussion.

Executive MBA's - Are they Inferior and Second Rated.

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