European university accredited MBA ?

Discussion in 'Business and MBA degrees' started by Andrewtx, Apr 24, 2014.

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  1. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    No, the question of Heriot-Watt University's validity is not raised by anything here. It has the UK's equivalent to institutional accreditation by having a Royal Charter -- the same as Oxford or Cambridge. It doesn't have "add on" accreditation of its business programs from AMBA, EQUIS, or AACSB, but those are extras beyond institutional accreditation.
     
  2. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    Accreditation VS Reputation

    Ok thanks for the clarification. So basically a european university's reputation is not based on its accreditation, but rather on its recognition by a government body and historical reputation I guess. But if you're not familiar with the country enough to know about a university's reputation, how can you know what school is better than another if the ones you're looking at are all accredited by the government?
     
  3. CalDog

    CalDog New Member

    Well, that can be difficult. You may have to do some research to become more familiar with the country in question.

    This is why a foreign degree may be a disadvantage on the US job market. If a job applicant has a degree from the local state university, then an employer will automatically assume that is legit. But if a job applicant has a degree from a school that the employer has never heard of, located in some foreign country that he can barely find on a map, then the employer may need to do some research in order to learn about the school's reputation.

    And in that case, maybe it's just easier to hire the guy with the local state university degree instead.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 22, 2014
  4. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    Thanks CalDog. Don't you think its a bit silly (or at least frustrating) to be hostage of the narrow-mindedness of recruiters?
    Personally, I would tend to see it as something positive if a candidate has made the effort to leave his home country and educate himself beyond the confines of his own culture. So it's not only about the university's reputation, but it also says something about the candidate and his openness to the world.
     
  5. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    I just think it's a shame that things aren't more straightforward and accreditation bodies are making heeps of money on the backs of students who are trying to make the best decisions for their careers..
     
  6. CalDog

    CalDog New Member

    Look, you need to understand that fake university degrees are a huge industry worldwide. One big distributor, in Pakistan, makes an estimated $70,000,000 per year selling totally bogus diplomas online. Most of these degree mill operations are located outside of the US, where law enforcement is weaker.

    So people in the US have legitimate reasons to be suspicious of degrees from obscure foreign schools -- such degrees are often completely fake. So a foreign degree should ideally have some form of recognized accreditation and/or government approval. If the legitimacy of a foreign degree cannot be readily confirmed, it may not be trusted.

    I'm not suggesting that any of the schools discussed in this thread are necessarily fake. However, the concerns about degrees from fake schools may affect degrees from legitimate schools as well.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 28, 2014
  7. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    Ok I see what you mean.. Anyway at the end of the day, I degree alone won't make a good employee and he would be made sooner or later..
    "One big distributor, in Pakistan, makes an estimated $70,000,000 per year selling totally bogus diplomas online" - That's insane.

    But wouldn't you agree that a degree from England or Germany or France would be a good indication of an applicant's openness to the world and general culture?
     
  8. CalDog

    CalDog New Member

    Sure, a legitimate foreign degree could show that. However:

    (1) this would primarily apply to traditional residential degrees. Realistically, studying at a foreign school by distance learning from the US would provide only limited exposure to international culture.

    (2) the average US employer may not particularly value "openness to the world and general culture". Realistically, most US jobs do not involve international travel or networking; for most people, any job-related travel or networking tends to be local. And in that case, a degree from a local school, which would ideally plug a graduate into a local alumni network, may be more valuable.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Oct 29, 2014
  9. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    Ok I totally agree with you on the limited added value of doing it remotely. Distance learning would not serve the same purpose as physically being somewhere, obviously. If you get a corporate gig in a place NCY, Miami or LA, chances are you'll have to cross borders at some point.

    As for the central question: ACCREDITATION. I guess we won't revolutionize the academic stystem.. but I do think there needs to be more uniformity and clarity. An accredited school is should be valid school period.
     
  10. Andrewtx

    Andrewtx New Member

    I was reading an article in the NY Times that made me think of this discussion. Studying abroad is indeed valued as an important asset.

    Here are a couple of quotes from the article:
    "Learning how to interact with people from other countries and cultures equips future leaders in all sectors to address urgent issues — from curing diseases and finding energy solutions, to fighting terrorism and hunger — shared across borders"

    "Every parent, teacher, professor, adviser and employer should support making international experience an essential and affordable component of a well-rounded education"

    I went through this thread again. Honestly I think that all an employer needs to do is look up the European University online. It's really easy to pick up on fake diplomas..

    On the other hand, what's harder is to gauge the quality of the "real" schools. That's why I was initially thinking about the idea of finding a way to measure their reputation. A university's reputation is built over years of consistency, success stories and so on.. In my book, this should have at least as much weight as other Accreditation processes..
     
  11. Robetrino

    Robetrino New Member

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  12. heirophant

    heirophant Well-Known Member

    Robetrino revived a 4 1/2 year old thread in order to post an advertisement (complete with link) for an essay-mill.
     
  13. JBjunior

    JBjunior Active Member

    Considering the service is "very reliable" and he gave it a "highly recommend," it must be good. The "anyway" he could finish was by using it; if it can help "it" then it must be good.
     

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