The eMBA

You’ve accumulated 10 years of professional experience but find that your options for advancement to senior executive levels are blocked because you lack an MBA. You can’t give up your position – or even cut back to half-time – but really need the skills and opportunities that an MBA can bring.

You might consider an executive MBA. Usually reserved for individuals with seven or more years of professional experience, the executive MBA (eMBA) is tailored to fit the needs of men and women who seek the benefits of an advanced degree in management but who want to continue working full-time in their careers. (Some programs require fewer years of work experience.)

Maury Kalnitz, Managing Director of the Executive MBA Council, said the typical eMBA student is different than someone earning a traditional MBA.

“These are not part-time programs, so people are working full-time” on their careers and their education, he said. “They do not have to leave their place of employment. So as times get tough, potential students look at this as a way of enhancing their marketability and value while remaining in the workforce.”

Kalnitz continued that an eMBA student “is significantly older, with 10-15 years of work experience, and has responsibilities. He or she can’t just take off from work to get an MBA.” And the experience learning from their peers – team members – is often more valuable than what they learn in classes, said Kalnitz.

In fact, graduates of eMBA programs often say the opportunity to learn from their peers is the reason they chose an eMBA over a part-time MBA program. George Bobinski, Associate Dean in the School of Management at Binghamton University (SUNY), indicated that his students have said 20 to 33 percent of all learning in their eMBA programs has come through the in- and out-of-class interaction with other high achieving professional students.

The ability for students to contribute to their classes is vitally important, said Bobinski, who also serves as Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Executive MBA Council. “Most programs run with a significant lock-step, cohort-based component, and a very significant portion of student learning occurs through exchanges with other participants in the class,” he said.

The Executive MBA Council is a global non-profit organization made up of approximately 215 institutions offering eMBAs, with 75 percent of those in the United States. According to Kalnitz, there is currently significant growth in the number of business schools outside the U.S. offering executive programs.

Critics of institutions that have added eMBA programs sometimes point to what they consider lower – or less stringent – standards. While the processes may be different, Kalnitz said the programs are just as rigorous and often more valuable to those that choose them.

“The academic requirements are as high – if not higher – than traditional MBA programs,” he said. “The academic rigor is just as high as with other programs. These are fully accredited programs.

“I’ve heard the ‘MBA Light’ term used by some. Well, try telling that to someone who is working 60 hours a week and spends another 30 studying for his program. I think people see individuals working full-time and going to school – carrying a full load – and they just figure, ‘The only way they could be doing that is if there is little rigor.’ It’s an urban myth; it’s just not true.

“These are high achievers who learn rapidly how to balance their lives. They accept that there are some things they will not be able to continue with while they are in school – families tend to suffer a bit. But they learn quickly how to manage their time, which is a very valuable skill.”
Bobinski agreed that proper balance is critical to the success of students in eMBA programs.

“You have to have the ability to balance work and academic schedules, and be able to give priority to both,” he said. “They are – almost in all cases – fully employed and working far more than 40 hours per week. They have family responsibilities in many cases. And they are pursuing a very aggressive schedule, where they’re completing their program in 18 and 24 months.”

In the past, most eMBA programs were fully funded by an individual’s employer. That is no longer the case. However, while the number of companies paying for the complete program has gone down to around 30 percent, the majority of students entering eMBA programs are getting some level of assistance from their current employers.

In addition to the economy, one of the reasons for the decline in the number of employers footing the bill is that they know with an eMBA their employees are more valuable to other companies. Many companies require their employees to sign a contract, guaranteeing they will stay for a certain number of years after completing their programs. Others will “loan” the funds to cover an eMBA program to an employee and forgive a certain portion of the debt for each year the employee stays until it is paid off.

Even though students are picking up a larger portion of the bill – and an 18-month eMBA program can cost $70,000 or more – business schools continue to receive large numbers of applications. According to 2004 survey data gathered by the Executive MBA Council, 63 percent of schools reported an increase in the number of applications received, compared to 2003. For traditional MBA programs, research shows that applications decreased over the same time period (see graph).

For employers, experts suggest that companies consider the costs and benefits before agreeing to fund employees’ eMBA studies. While they can multiply the effectiveness of an organization’s most valuable employees, they also can create difficulties. Workplace disruption, temporary loss of productivity, significant financial costs and the potential negative effect of making your top producers more marketable to other employers are just a few things to consider.

As the former co-chair of the Executive MBA Council’s Research Center, Bobinski indicated that graduates from eMBA programs report a very high level of satisfaction in the value of their education. From 2000-04, exit surveys have indicated that, in grading overall performance of the program, 82 percent of graduates say their program performed extremely well. In overall quality, 81 percent rated their program as excellent.

If you’re interested in finding more information about eMBA program opportunities, you might visit the Executive MBA Council website at www.emba.org.