Pros And Cons Of Distance MBA Degree

Holding an MBA degree is a matter of great pride and career assurance for many, but it’s not that easy to get. For many it is not feasible for various reasons like lack of funds, unable to secure a seat in your dream institute, your regular job, etc. For those who still want to get an MBA degree and make an upward push in career, distance MBA is a viable option. Before you are ready to jump on any decision you need to understand certain aspects of distance MBA.

Though distance MBA is popular among young professionals and students you need to understand that it is not a replacement of a regular full-time MBA degree. There are certain pros and cons that you need to be aware of before doing a distance MBA.

Merits:

Flexibility

Flexible study option is one of the most popular advantages of a distance MBA. Though classes are prefixed, you can reschedule your class as per your convenience. Also you can take semester exams as per your suitability and can schedule dates, time and centre.

Learn and Earn Option

The best part of any distance MBA is learn and earn option. If you are a young professional, you can earn your degree without sacrificing your job. This gives you the financial freedom along with studying. Most distance learning programs will offer weekend classes so that students can continue working during the week.

Low Cost

MBA degrees come at sky rocketing fees which many students are not able to manage. However, in distance education mode the fee structure is very nominal and is affordable for most individuals.

Demerits:

Lack of Recognition from Employers

Some distance learning programs might not be accepted and recognized by recruiters. This will hold good even for premier institutes. Promotions, salary hikes and lateral movements might not be made depending on your distance education degree. Some employers still prefer regular MBA to a distance one.

Lack of Networking

It is one of the most important factors that students of distance learning miss. In a full-time course you get to network with many fellow students and seniors, professors, visiting faculties, etc. which could be useful in future while looking for employment. Pursuing MBA as a distance learning course of education will not have such opportunity.

No Placement

Another problem area for students enrolled for distance learning is that there won’t be placement opportunities like other full-time courses. This would mean that after finishing the course you will either stick to the same job at the same position or look for a change with the anticipation that employers will value your distance education degree and offer a good salary.

Lack of Discipline

Another factor that diminishes the status of a distance degree is its disciplinary aspect. As there is no monitoring system, you are left to your preferences. No compulsory classes, exams and course patterns and you can schedule your exam as per your convenience and this as a whole acts against you. Eventually employers find it hard to believe that these degrees will really impart any useful skills to students.

Whether to pursue a distance MBA is a matter of choice. However, you need to evaluate your situation and condition properly before enrolling for a distance MBA degree. There are instances when after finishing distance MBA individuals have been promoted to certain level within the organisation. These courses are company sponsored programs and organisations ask their employees to get these courses if required in executing individual roles and responsibilities.

Opportunity cost of doing MBA in India

Out of all study programs, MBA is a favorite course among Indian student community. Given the prospects of a rewarding career after mba in iim and other premium institutions; many candidates are treading the path of management studies. However, before making headway in this direction by considering this critical life altering move, take a pause and get down to calculate the opportunity costof pursuing  MBA in India.

While evaluating whether to go for MBA or not one should objectively evaluate the decision on parameters of overall Return on investment, opportunity cost, tuition fees, preparation cost, badge value, alumni network, choice of career etc. to clearly understand the real cost of doing an MBA. The impact of the decision to pursue an MBA on personal finance can be long lasting.

Ask yourself if MBA is financially worth?
Bear in mind that pursuing an MBA from best institutions in India has its share of financial burdens on the individuals and their respective families. This clearly implies that one cannot afford to overlook the importance of financial costs while considering the prospects of studying MBA program from a leading MBA school.
What is the opportunity cost for doing an MBA?
Tuition fee takes the major chunk of your financial resources
The first and foremost to cast a huge impact on your financial resources is tuition fee and cost of living while doing an MBA degree. A two-year residential MBA program at one of the best b-schools in India will cost anywhere from 10-15 lakh.
You can always count on the education loans available from various Indian banks. However, you must weigh your existing financial condition before going for loan of such mammoth amount at 10.5 to 12% floating rate of interest. Banks on their part will also ensure if an individual is in a position to repay the loan by sealing the contract with collateral security and other mandatory modalities.

 The opportunity cost

The whole idea of going for an MBA is to either accelerate or change one’s career. While deciding on MBA one should carefully consider the opportunity cost. Opportunity cost includes foregone salary, professional experience and perhaps a promotion. One should also evaluate the future value of any asset (by retirement age) which one could have invested into using the tuition fee and cost of living mentioned in Point 1 above.

Cost of application forms
Let’s now come to the lesser amount, but significant one when it comes to calculating the opportunity cost of studying MBA program at the top MBA College in India. The application fee for CAT exam, which is the doorway for prestigious iim colleges in india, is approximately Rs 1600. If you want to apply to other business schools accepting CAT acores, then be ready to part away with the cost of their separate application forms, which is anywhere from Rs 1500-2500. Now, let’s get to the closer understanding of taking the GMAT exam. If you want to take the GMAT once, then you will have to spend US $250. Add to this US $28, the cost of sending additional score report to each business school.
Save a portion for preparatory classes
With the country youth vying to enter the gates of a prestigious MBA school to pass out and land a job in top global brands, the number of coaching classes has also sprung up exponentially. For a written entrance exam, be ready to shell a minimum of Rs 25,000 for good coaching centers. If you are lucky to have cleared the entrance exam, add similar amount to be giving away at the coaching centre for the interview and essay writing preparation.

Giving up your career for MBA?
If you are already settled in a career before taking up MBA course, you have a lot of brainstorming to do to calculate opportunity cost. You must take into consideration the forgone salary, possibilities of a promotion, and years of professional experience you are going to forsake for MBA degree from top collages in India.
Cost of doing an MBA has a significant impact on individual and his family. One not only needs financial support but also emotional support from the family. It is important to clearly evaluate MBA option along with the impact on personal finance both in short as well as long-term. It’s important that benefits of doing an MBA considerably outweigh financial costs associated with it.

How to choose the right B-school in India

Finding a best college for MBA in India is not only hard, but also a very stressful task to perform for any student as they also undergo summer internships, placements, and other entrance exams.

So students with thoughts to pursue MBA in India must be prepared for a lot pressure to deal with, apart from required hard work that the course demands. However, students can ideally reduce the pressure of finding the right MBA College for themselves by smartly looking for features beyond ranking in any MBA college.

Hence, it is very important to understand your needs and select the right institute. Since you will be spending a lot in your MBA, it is important you select the right institute. How do we differentiate between these colleges? Here are some tips that you can follow -: 

1) Reputation: Some B-schools already have a very good brand value and are very well recognised in the industry. Students of these well-reputed B-schools are sought-after by employers across industry. The brand value of the college adds value to the student's CV. If it is a new or upcoming college, then it is advisable to consult with somebody in the industry to understand the industry perception of the college.

2) Rankings: Every year, reputed newspapers, magazines and websites release B-school rankings. Although these rankings are not very reliable, they give some idea about the relative merit of the college.

3) Accreditation: Does the college have the requisite approvals? Is it AICTE- approved? What other collaborations does the college have? It is very important to know what all accreditations your colleges have. If your degrees are not recognized, they won't hold much value especially if you're seeking jobs in the public sector.

4) Placements: One of the primary reasons why many students opt for MBAs is to get a well-paid job. It is for this reason that most students carefully study the official placement report of the college. When looking at the placement statistics, try and find out the job profiles offered. Also check out which companies hire from these institutes.

5) Alumni: Talk to the alumni, find out about the college and where they are placed. Try and get your doubts cleared about the quality of education offered and the facilities available.

6) Faculty and Staff: Find about how many permanent and temporary faculty members are there. Find out about their qualifications. A healthy mix of people with some industry exposure is preferred. This brings in insights from the industry and academics to the classroom.

7) Students: Data such as the average CAT/GMAT scores, average age, average work experience and male-female ratio gives you a fair idea of the student mix of the college.

Go ahead and study well! All the best..!!