Heriot Watt MBA or Edinburgh Napier MBA ?

Discussion in 'Business and MBA degrees' started by lyesdehili, Aug 20, 2015.

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  1. lyesdehili

    lyesdehili New Member

    Hi,

    I have been accepted to both programs and because my geographical location, I have access to a substantial tuition fees reduction. The total cost of both programs would be the same at roughly 6500 USD though with Heriot-Watt there would be additional examination fees. I have tried to weight the pros and cons of each one and still having a hard time to decide which one to go for.

    Edinburgh Napier :
    - No proctored examination which can be a plus
    - Videos based learning platform
    - You get to join a cohort which gives you a feel of being in a classroom though a virtual one
    - Courses looks a bit easy
    - Very bad ranking in British league tables though they have a good business school

    Heriot-Watt :
    - Solid program structure
    - Very good reputation, well ranked
    - Huge international network
    - Looks a bit difficult
    - Seems very isolating with 0 support

    My background is in marketing and I'm very good at learning on my own though not the best self-disciplined person. The Heriot-Watt route is tempting as the difficult side of the program make it challenging and I have the impression that I will get a huge return/satisfaction from it instead of just earning a piece of paper as I feel with Edinburgh Napier.

    Anyone can share their opinion/experience ?

    Thanks!
     
  2. FTFaculty

    FTFaculty Well-Known Member

    I'd go with Heriot-Watt. ratings aren't everything, but there's a pretty huge disparity there.

    UK League Tables:

    Business

    H-W: 25/117
    E-N: 53/117

    Overall

    H-W: 37/124
    E-N: 92/124

    The Guardian Rankings:

    Business

    H-W: 13/118
    E-N: 49/118

    Overall

    H-W: 18/119
    E-N: 64/119
     
  3. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    Po-ta-to, po-tah-to. Two schools almost no one in the U.S. has ever heard of. I doubt the distinction between ratings will ever come into play.

    Choose the one that feels right to you in terms of costs, time, delivery method, content, and anything else you find important.
     
  4. AV8R

    AV8R Active Member

    The original poster doesn't mention where he/she lives other than to say
    It looks like he/she might live somewhere in the UK, although I have been wrong once or twice in my life.
     
  5. lyesdehili

    lyesdehili New Member

    @FTFaculty, @Rich Douglas

    Thanks both for your answers. I don't really care how these programs are perceived by US employers and I care little to how good they rank in British league tables. I'm based in North of Africa btw. Just trying to gauge which one would give me the best ROI in terms of learning experience and skills development. I also want to leave the doors open for a DBA or a PHD, so getting a rigorous training is important.
     
  6. FTFaculty

    FTFaculty Well-Known Member

    I've interviewed prospective employees before and I've looked into rankings. Inasmuch as the internet is available virtually anywhere, it's not like people in the U.S. or North Africa or Timbuktu can't check out the British rankings; takes about 30 seconds to pull up.

    Again, as I said, rankings are not the only thing, not the period that ends all arguments, so we can all hold hands there, but everyone who has ever said they don't care about rankings knows darned well that ceteris paribus, they'd rather have a degree from the school ranked #1 than the school ranked #1000.

    If I were hiring, sure as heck I'd take a quick look at rankings, just like I'd take a look at references, experience, interview quality, level of education, etc. I'd be a fool not to throw it all in the pot.
     
  7. FTFaculty

    FTFaculty Well-Known Member

    Regarding the DBA, H-W also has a DBA program that can be pursued purely at a distance. It is also remarkably affordable considering the relative quality of the business school there.
     
  8. Phdtobe

    Phdtobe Well-Known Member

    E-N has a distance DBA which is cheaper than H-W DBA.


    Southpoint Education International DBA » Southpoint Education International
     
  9. edowave

    edowave Active Member

    I've been a part of the DL and on-campus program at EBS. You can read my FAQ here: Edinburgh Business School MBA program FAQ - Drannbauer.com

    When living in Edinburgh, I would take the bus to Heriot-Watt and it would pass Napier. The two universities are very close to each other. I got to hear what the locals thought about Napier. It wasn't pretty. Granted, that was over 10 years ago, and before they became "Edinburgh Napier", and before they had a DL MBA program.

    IMHO, If you can work independently, and want flexibility, go with Heriot-Watt. If you want to be in a cohort, go Napier. I'm not sure, but they might be groupwork heavy. (Which personally I'm not a fan of, but I guess some people like.)
     
  10. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    During the 9 years (1991-2000) my company was doing the marketing for Heriot-Watt/EBS in the US and Canada, it grew to become the largest MBA in North America. We had students from more than 70 of the Fortune 100 companies. I was, and am, very fond of this program. Rich is right that neither is a household word . . . but H-W probably has more than 100 times as many students and alumni as Napier.

    The exam pass rate was a bit troublesome in our time; don't have current statistics. Vicinity of 50% on first try. And it "only" required a 50%R score to pass. But with the opportunity of an automatic second try . . . and their most unusual (in my experience) "compensatory pass" opportunity (which benefited dozens and dozens of students), it is by no means unattainable. (FWIW, during our time, the pass rate in Canada was significantly higher than in the US.)

    --John Bear, who never had any academic involvement, and
    who has not been involved in any way since we sold our
    marketing business to Pearson in 1999
     
  11. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    Out of curiosity, what is the current cost for the H-W DL MBA program?
     
  12. major56

    major56 Active Member

    For a U.S. MBA student: $1500 (USD) per course x 9 courses (7 core /2 electives) = $13,500
    Plus $200 per exam fee x 9 exams = $1800
    Total: $15,300
    *Course-by-course fees (pay-as-you-learn)
    https://www.ebsglobal.net/study-with-us/fees/#_

    Although a more expensive option than HW-EBS … I’d also consider The Open University MBA (Triple accredited B-School: AACSB, EQUIS and AMBA): £16,613 - £20,396
    How much it will cost | The Open University
    You register and pay for a module at a time.
     
  13. edowave

    edowave Active Member

    That's the fee in the US. EBS provides tuition for a lot lower other parts of the world. The OP would be paying around $6500.

    Between the EBS deal with the Financial Times (that would offer 2 for 1 or 3 for 2 deals on occasion), being able to buy courses that still had their "green sheets" off of eBay (which EBS doesn't use anymore), I paid around $8,000 for my MBA. That included my exams fees and partial on-campus in Edinburgh! Oh the good ol' days.
     
  14. LifeLearn

    LifeLearn New Member

    About the isolation of the H-W program. They have recently added online tutorial and the Facebook group seems to be pretty active. You always have the option to attend classes on campus at in Edinburgh, Dubai and Malaysia. There also some limited online videos. Nothing like an in class recorded lecture if that's what you're looking for.

    Someone once told me the best way to iudge a program is to check linkedin and see who has graduated from that program and what jobs they are doing. It will give you an idea how far that degree would actually take you.
     

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