Hello, I am thinking about getting my MBA via distance learning from South Africa. Several business schools in South Africa, such as Regent, Regenesys, Mancosa and Milpark, offer MBA degrees via distance learning. I am wondering what the defferences among these schools are. Give me some advice.
Regent Business SchoolRBS Regenesys Business SchoolRegenesys | Awakening Potential Management College of Southern Africa (Mancosa)Mancosa Home Milpark Business SchoolMilpark
What a fascinating question! Usually when people here ask about South Africa, they're asking about public universities there, like Unisa. What's drawn you to the private alternatives?
Unisa doesn't offer an MBA, but an MBL (Master of Business Leadership). Other public universities offers MBAs, but they require at least short residency. I have sent inquiry e-mails to the above mentioned schools and their responses are quite friendly. I am getting more interested in these private schools. These private business schools are ranked good there.
Yes, they're worth considering in my opinion, provided that they're considered the equivalent of a university in whichever countries where you'll be using the credential. I gather from your location description that you're a South African living abroad?
It depends on what the meaning of the word 'university' is. All of them are accredited institutions there and their degrees are considered the equivalent of those from universities, such as UFS, NWU and UNISA.
The op fails to mention that at UNISA the Masters in Business Leadership is actually a coursework degree. Also, UNISA offers a Masters in Commerce degree (the standard at this school) with several specializations, including Business Management. Here's the list. Master's and doctoral qualifications So you can get all hung up on nomenclature, worried about the letters that appear after your name on your business card, or you can earn a good degree from a good school. If you're going to go south african-private at least make sure that the school is actually authorized to provide the degree.
I have sent inquiries to these schools about distance learning abroad. Regenesys and Milpark have given me friendly responses. I am waiting to hear from Mancosa and Regent.
The rankings are here, if it helps. http://www.pmrafrica.com/Business_School_Rankings_2010/Business_School_Rankings_2013.pdf Thanks, CalDog! (I nicked the link from his post in another thread.) :smile: Milpark is a bit ahead of Mancosa, which still occupies a pretty good spot. And Mancosa was the only school listed in the "by Distance only" section -and, as I said, with a pretty good score. Regenesys was below both Milpark and Mancosa. I believe both those schools, while not "cheap" in any way, may be less expensive than Regenesys, which seems pretty costly to me by South African standards. They (Mancosa and Milpark) are long-established, while Regenesys is a relative newcomer. I have no personal experience with the two schools, although I know both enjoy a good reputation. I've known the names etc. and not much more, for years. At one time, I did correspond a bit with a Milpark MBA grad, who spoke highly of his experience.
I started the thread to discuss which standalone business schools in South Africa are friendly with distance learners outside southern African countries, such as RSA, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Botswana, rather to find out which schools are ranked better than others. I am looking at these schools not because I expect cheap tuition but because I am interested in getting my MBA from a South African school.
The question that you've just asked is actually a better, more to the point, question than the one you originally posed. However, answering that question might require someone to have direct experience with at least one of these institutions while living in one of the countries you've listed. Low probability on this board which has a strong tendency to be US-centric. What you've discovered is that discussion boards do just that. They discuss. Frequntly the discussion wanders, especially if no one really knows the answer to the question. I don't really know what it means to be "friendly" with students from other countries. Does it mean admission rates? Graduation rates? Language barriers? Also, I'll say outright that I find nothing wrong with looking at South African schools because of low costs. Best of luck with your choice.
I understand that most of the discussions here are by North Americans. But I find the questions and answers here helpful to me, a non-American. Many thanks. I referred to responses from these instituitions as "friendly" to mean the responses are quick and informative. In my experience so far, Milpark and Regenesys are quite prompt and Regent and Mancosa are not. I have heard from the latter two business schools and found them quite nice, welcoming a student abroad. No problems.
I can only advise anyone NOT to study at Regenesys at this point in time. I am in my final stages of their D-MBA and the experience has been poor to say the least. If it wasnt for all the time lost I would be tempted to cut my losses and try to complete it at another institution. Given the fact that Regenesys charges more than Mancosa for example one might as well pick the cheapest option.
I'm indeed sorry that you had a less-than-stellar experience with Regenesys, Saiman - but I thank you for confirming the opinion I expressed here and in another thread - that Milpark, Mancosa or other SA schools would be better choices. And yes - I agree with you. Finishing up at Regenesys despite its shortcomings is a wise thing to do. You've "paid your dues" in aggravation -- no need to incur additional expenditures of money and time by "jumping ship." I wish you every success and hope the school keeps further nuisances to a minimum. :smile: Johann