Which not-MBA?

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by MISin08, Dec 18, 2009.

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  1. MISin08

    MISin08 New Member

    Reading a recent thread comparing UK schools, I came across Warwick Business School, and their MSc in Business Analytics and Consulting. I'm about 6 months away from finishing my BS at Excelsior, and at 48, behind where I want to be career-wise. I am drawn to pursue a master's, but when I think of doing a MBA (what my employer would most likely support) I want to keep looking for alternatives, because it's a management-focused degree. I am a manager now and view taking on more management responsibilities as a distant third choice in terms of developing my career. I'm in financial services; fraud detection, metrics, business intelligence and IT have been my focus for the last 5 years.

    The Warwick degree caught my eye immediately, as consulting (either internally or externally) is what engages me. Unfortunately I'm not in a position to attend a residential program in the UK, and so I have been looking for similar programs via DL or DL/limited residency in the US.

    I'd appreciate others' thoughts on this. The MSc from Warwick looks like part MBA, part Operations Research, and includes a practicum. So far I've found programs with varying degrees of similarity. A MS in Operations Research or Applied Statistics has a quant focus (probably more than I want, and not a lot of the business focus of the Warwick program) and some programs do have a consulting practice element. My local U has a MS in Systems Science with a bit of a consulting focus (and the subject matter appeals to me), but I worry that recruiters will fail to "get it" on the resume. Another alternative would be to pursue a MBA, as it is useful and understandable to others, and choose electives that suit my goals.

    This program at Florida Institute of Technology looks interesting, seems like the closest match yet, apart from lacking the strategic focus of Warwick. A little less quantitative, a little more business than an OR degree. Unless it's very tied in with military or space -- related work. Is anyone familiar with it?

    Phillip
     
  2. -kevin-

    -kevin- Resident Redneck

  3. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 18, 2009
  4. Glor1295

    Glor1295 New Member

    The University of Strathclyde offers the distance version here.

    Most other quantitative business degrees that I've seen offered by distance learning fall into one of two categories: Quantitative Finance and Operations Management. Then, of course, there are some pure Operations Research degrees.

    It sounds like you want something like the University of Cincinnati's MS-QA program. So far I have not seen any distance learning degrees that are comparable.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 19, 2009
  5. MISin08

    MISin08 New Member

    Thanks, Ian. As an Excelsior student I looked at their MBA. The credit requirement is a big deterrent, especially for someone with no grad credit to start with. Also, for the cost, there are better-regarded degrees out there (many discussed on this forum) if I were to go MBA.

    Phillip
     
  6. MISin08

    MISin08 New Member

    Thanks, Kevin. The Alabama offering looks like it would be perfect for someone who likes managing and wants to do more of it. For me a lot of the motivation to pursue an advanced degree is to get out of a management role.

    Phillip
     
  7. MISin08

    MISin08 New Member

    Bingo. I don't know how I missed that. Thank you.

    As for QA, CSUDH offers a MSQA by DL, not quite my thing, though it looks fun.

    Phillip
     
  8. Glor1295

    Glor1295 New Member


    Glad to be of assistance. Actually the Cincinnati MS-"QA" is for Quantitative Analysis. It is similar to the MBA in breadth, but consists of [extremely] quantitative courses from up to 6 areas of business. Perfect for someone who wants to be an actuary, analyst, market researcher, or someone who just hates his/her personal life and wants to destroy it.

    I stumbled upon it some time ago while looking for programs and found it to be interesting. I like the quant. side of business because of my science background. I decided to go the Ops mgmt route instead, though.
     
  9. MISin08

    MISin08 New Member

    Forgive me. I actually did look at the Cincinnati program before responding, just not closely enough. New bifocals...yes, that must be it...

    Phillip
     
  10. Glor1295

    Glor1295 New Member

    The program page isn't exactly clear about it either. You kind of have to dig to figure out what the degree is.

    Please let me know how the Strathclyde degree works out. It is a very interesting degree and the school seems to have quite a few distance options.
     
  11. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member

    I earned the MSQA from CSUDH and it was a lot of fun; plus I acquired skils that I applied to my job. My local community college said I could teach business courses with this degree. A folow-on online doctorate is available from http://www.indstate.edu/consortphd/schedule/quality.html
     
  12. MISin08

    MISin08 New Member

    I have also looked at the MS since QA is another of my hats, but moved it down the list because it's so specific (QA is applicable everywhere, but not as prevalent in financial services, where audit & compliance and QA are often confused). Ian, your indication that you could teach business with it is encouraging.

    Phillip
     
  13. Glor1295

    Glor1295 New Member

  14. Go_Fishy

    Go_Fishy New Member

    Just to throw this out there, have you looked at the Oregon Executive MBA? http://www.oemba.org/ This program is a degree from the University of Oregon in cooperation with Portland State and Oregon State. All three schools are AACSB accredited.

    The program is not distance and probably not exactly what you are looking for content-wise, but it is fast-track, taught in Portland, and interdisciplinary. It is also designed specifically for mid-career professionals.
     
  15. MISin08

    MISin08 New Member

    Thanks, Go_Fishy.

    The local connection and networking would be valuable, especially if I want to consult. At the price I would consider Indiana as well, though DL would be a different experience.

    Phillip
     

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