Distance MBA – Factors to check before enrolling

Distance MBA can be a safe bet towards enhancing your career prospect without disengaging from your current work profile or working status. Still, if you have decided to go for Distance MBA, hold on. It is very important to check a few things before you select the mode of study, or the programme for your Distance MBA.

Acceptability of a Distance MBA programmes in the corporate world is one of the major factors before you choose one. Hence, before enrolling to a Distance MBA programme, tick off the following aspects so that you don’t have to worry about its validity and acceptability.

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The following 6 factors will help you assess the situation and take the final decision.

Is Distance MBA the only way forward? – If you have more than 3 years of work experience, instead of Distance MBA, you can go for the Part Time Executive Programmes as well. These programmes are held in evening hours of the week days or during the weekend. The Part-Time Executive MBA programmes are offered by the top B-schools and if you can afford to opt for that programme, then go for it rather than the Distance MBA. However, if you work in a shift job or do not get weekend holidays, then Distance MBA is the way to go.

Accreditation of institute – Accreditation or recognition of the institute matters most. Before zeroing down on an institute, make sure that it is accredited and recognized by Distance Education Council (DEC). Apart from that, the other recognitions which matter are UGC and AICTE. If your institute is not accredited by any of the aforementioned bodies, the degree would not bear any value. Remember, you will find hundreds of institute offering Distance learning programmes, but going for one of the top institutes would matter the most in the long run.

Fast facts on the institute – After checking the accreditation part, get to know about the other fast facts, such as the eligibility criteria, fee structure, selection procedure, faculty, programme and exam details etc. Also check about the overall reputation and impression about the institute.

Review the programme thoroughly – After deciding the institute, the next step is to know about the details of the programme. Review each and every aspect of the programme, such as the duration including minimum and maximum number of years for completion, courses offered, electives and specializations, mode of delivery, frequency of updating curriculum etc. Analyze how relevant the courses would be for your career. For example, if you are working in IT field, studying a specialization on Health Care Management or Media Management would not be beneficial. Hence, choose the programme wisely.

Assess the rigour you have to put into the process – Obtaining a degree is not a cakewalk. That’s why it is said that you ‘earn’ a degree. Even in Distance MBA programmes, you do not get the certificate just by enrolling or attending the lectures. You need to put adequate effort too for studying the courses and understanding the concepts. Hence, ensure that you will be left with adequate time to study for the programme, submit assignments within the deadline and appear for the exams after fulfilling your professional and personal responsibilities.

Recognition and relevance in the industry– This is another important factor which you have to check before enrolling to the programme. You can discuss the scopes and opportunities of career growth with the senior managers of your company to assess how fruitful your degree would be in the long run. Since there would not be any placement offered by the Distance MBA institute, getting industry perception on such programme is very important. Also you should analyze how resourceful the degree would be in terms of job switch.

What do peers say – To get the real picture, there is no better way than speaking to the pass outs of the programme and know their growth trajectory, reception of the programme in the industry, relevance of the programme and other details. In this age of media boom, it is not difficult to get in touch with students or get instant institute reviews. More than the institute spokesperson, the ex-students would give you the genuine feedback.

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Distance MBA - What, Why and How

Distance MBA - Pros and Cons to check before you enroll

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