Never having enrolled in MBA studies but looking at the programs offerings, it appears – on the outside, at least – that a lot of planning and fine-tuning goes into curriculum planning. However, how tightly integrated into the curricula are the courses of typical MBA programs (DL or residential) really? What I mean to ask is, could I take Managerial Accounting at School A, then Organizational Behavior at School B and the rest of the courses (including graduation) at School C and get the same quality MBA education. The issue is NOT the transfer policy of School C, but instead how interdependent, if at all (despite what the schools may suggest), the courses actually are, in terms of subject matter, keystone project integration etc. Secondly, is there a difference between DL and residential programs in this regard? Many thanks and season's greetings!!
. With all you MBA grads out there and those currently in MBA programs, I was hoping for a bit more input. To rephrase How integrated are the classes in your DL MBA program actually? THanks.
Russell, Page 18 of the AACSB standard may address a portion of your question. The information I gather from the board is that the AACSB accreditation is the "gold" standard. http://www.aacsb.edu/accreditation/business/standards01-01-04.pdf Actual acceptance of any course would be predicated on the institution. However, use the learning objectives of the course to determine suitability. As always, check with your institution for credit transfer and I believe you will find most schools open to a limited amount of credit transfer from other schools of similar My DL MBA program while not AACSB accredited included these areas. Not sure if this helps at all.
With all of the different programs out there, there is not a simple answer. In some programs a lot, in others not much. Sometimes the program at the same university system but at different schools does not mesh well. You will have to compare each individual school to school. Also the statement that you are not concerned with transferability should be reconcedered. Transferability is the main problem, unless you are just taking classes to take classes, and then who cares.
What is quality? If a students current subject knowledge base is challenged and added to then quality has been experienced and education has been attained. (whatever the hardship). Moreover, the effort you put in will dictate the output you receive. In this instance quality may be both subjective and objective. As O.W.Holmes said: "A mind stretched beyond its original limits never returns to its original shape".
My sense is that while business schools strive for quality across subjects, not a huge amount of thought goes into tying the content of various courses together, "capstone" courses or not. Also, while 2 schools may offer a course with the same topic, the emphasis the course can be completely different, "quality" notwithstanding. Therefore, for schools that are roughly on a par mixing and matching courses would, I feel, be not that different to doing them all through the same school. But given the adminstative and other issues, why would anyone want to?
In my experience a DL program is MORE integrated than a B&M. I was in a lock step program, where each class built on the next. This made it essential that you worked in order, and the capstone class was supposed to tie it all together, but a real let down (not an issue of the course, but the instructor was deficient). I also think there is a huge difference in schools. In my DL program, the instrcutors met as a groiup, and one assignment worked to the next, but in my undergrad B&M all classes were completely seperate. Class sizes ranged from 30-150, teaching styles differed, no integration. In the DL the professors met as a group and tried to build on eachothers assignments (again, only one class was a true problem for most students, but was supposed to be the most critical one).
ANGELA: I guess you could compare it with shopping for a bouquet of flowers. Do you buy a ready-made bouquet or do you put one together yourself (given you know exactly what you what)? Could I take Managerial Accounting at School A because the professor is a reknown expert in international tax accounting and that is of interest to me. Then, I would take Organizational Behavior at School B for similar reasons, because the professor won a teaching award, or other reasons. I could customize the MBA to fit my purpose(s). Some schools that have the type of program I am looking for, do not offer it in DL mode, while some DL MBA programs offer just a couple of the course/emphases I am looking for. Why be tied to only one school? The only reason I can think of is that the courses are closely integrated. Excelsior offers the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies, but not an MBA. Maybe it could. It offers a BA in Business. GENO: With the effortutput ratio on the student's part being a constant (proportional), I see quality of a course as a combination of the professor's expertise and, probably more importantly, his/her ability to really teach the subject matter.
I think this is for 2 reasons: 1. Money 2. The school know what is taught at their school, but have to go through a process to ensure that other schools have the same content and quality. Some schools partner together, like CSU programs, or CSU to community colleges in CA. They have taken the time to find these classes are similar.
This from the Excelsior College website found here: "Master’s degrees are offered in liberal studies and nursing, with an MBA degree in its final planning stages. Find it here When is this to be rolled out?
