Hi Colleagues,

I see so mini schools have ACBSP Accreditation and they convince me that ACBSP and AACSB are similar in reputation and quality of the MBA. However, ACBSP grants the accreditation to the Business Schools focus on Learning and AACSB grants the accreditation to the Business Schools focus on research.

What you think?
Regards,
Mohamed Emam

You are mistaken on both points. Those two standards are in no way similar in reputation or quality, as can be seen by comparing the schools they accredit. AACSB accreditation is not focussed on research.

You are mistaken on both points. Those two standards are in no way similar in reputation or quality, as can be seen by comparing the schools they accredit. AACSB accreditation is not focussed on research.

[Edited by mo-em on Dec 21, 2015]

The difference is that AACSB is an extensive and long-term process that emphasises the building of organisational capacity and academic rigour in business schools, while ACBSP is a similar-sounding organisation lacking the same rigour. AACSB starts from a model of best practice, and helps schools to improve, while ACBSP essentially certifies schools as they are.

[Edited by Duncan on Dec 21, 2015]

The difference is that AACSB is an extensive and long-term process that emphasises the building of organisational capacity and academic rigour in business schools, while ACBSP is a similar-sounding organisation lacking the same rigour. AACSB starts from a model of best practice, and helps schools to improve, while ACBSP essentially certifies schools as they are.

I think that really depends on your goals. Personally, I don't see why anyone would take an MBA at a school that lacked respected international accreditation if they had the option to do otherwise. EduQua is not a university-level accreditation (it is for further education and training provision).

Actually I am in Egypt and Egypt lacks Business schools have international accreditation such as AMBA, EQUIS and AACSB. The only one is the AUC and it is too expensive! However, Maastrcht business School Netherlands provide MBA in Egypt and it is accredited by AMBA and ACBSP. Eslsca Business school provides MBA in Egypt but there is no accreditation. Business School Netherlands Provides MBA and it is ACBSP accredited.

So, that's why I am suffering!

BTW; see this link to know the history of ASBSP https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accreditation_Council_for_Business_Schools_and_Programs

Again, this depends on your goals and budget. Online MBAs may suit you better. The Illinois IMBA with coursera gives you a world-class MBA for $20,000.

Actually I am not comfortable studying MBA online. I am Sr. HR with 10 years Experience and my main objective is to improve my career to reach managerial level. My budget does not suit the Illinois actually. The Business School Netherlands MBA costs in Egypt about EUR9,000. But what is the relation between my goals and the accreditation? Also, is ACBSP Good to go for?

If you goals involve employment by a multinational firm that wants to hire MBA graduates, then the odds are they will look for respected MBA degrees with one of the triple crown qualifications. Personally, I would not recommend a degree without one.

If you goals involve employment by a multinational firm that wants to hire MBA graduates, then the odds are they will look for respected MBA degrees with one of the triple crown qualifications. Personally, I would not recommend a degree without one.

This will also depend on some other factors such as your target location to work, your level of experience, etc. along with some other indicators of the business school's quality (i.e. rankings, reputation, reputation for some specific specialization, facilities, the way they communicate with you, etc. and not only of the business school, but also of the university in a more general sense).

This type of accreditation, AACSB in particular, seems relatively more important for the US business schools and particularly for those who may want to teach at an AACSB-accredited business school. That said, I acknowledge and respect the added value of accreditation by any of the three well-known bodies, however, in my opinion, this is just one of the factors to consider, not the only and decisive one (For example in the Eduuniversal Business Schools Rankings, this is considered as one criterion along with various other criteria).

To give an example, in my country only a few business schools out of over a hundred have this type of professional accreditation, and only one of them can be considered among the top ones here. Honestly, there are various other business schools within top universities, which do not hold this type of accreditation, and hardly anyone -if not no one- would opt for another business school over these top ones just because the other has the accreditation stamp from any of the well-known three accrediting bodies.

My humble advice would be to use Linkedin for real-life cross-checks about the alumni of the business schools you are interested in. I work at a big multinational group, have talked to some "headhunters" from the UK and the US as well, and believe it or not I have met hardly anyone who had heard about these acronyms, let alone base their decisions on this.

[Edited by sts on Dec 22, 2015]

I agree with a lot of that, but it's a logical fallacy that the triple crown doesn't matter because you don't know many people who know about it. It's a clear quality signal, and the fact that each additional accreditation produces a rise in average salary backs that up. The schools are not valuable because they are accredited; they are accredited because they do things that create value.

In this respect, also see Why international accreditation matters http://www.find-mba.com/board/41224

Also here, "MBA Accreditation: Why is it Important?"

http://find-mba.com/mba-faq/mba-accreditation-why-is-it-important

This type of accreditation, AACSB in particular, seems relatively more important for the US business schools and particularly for those who may want to teach at an AACSB-accredited business school.

Thank you for your support really! What is the official site helps you find the rank of the business school?

[Edited by mo-em on Dec 23, 2015]

I'm not sure how official they are, but the most respected rankings of business schools are by the Financial Times, Business Week, and US News. The Economist, Forbes and the Wall Street Journal have also produced notable rankings.

Also the QS and Eduniversal rankings might be two other alternatives to have a look. I would also suggest learning about their methodologies, too, so that you can have a better understanding of what you are looking at. I, personally, also view the university rankings in a more general sense, along with these business school rankings. Of course, this will depend on your goals, programme choice, etc.

The Business School I am thinking of Studying at is Business School Netherlands. Their Methodology is Action Learning MBA. And here is their link: http://www.bsn.eu/business-school/business-school-netherlands.html . Th only 2 accreditation prove its quality are ACBSP & EDUQA. I did search on the sites you gave to me and I only found its profile on QS and here is the link: http://www.topmba.com/institution/business-school-netherlands-business-school. Also, I found out that it is classified as one of top 27 MBAs in Netherlands, and here is the link proves that: http://www.mbastudies.com/MBA/Netherlands/ .

My main goal is to study a qualified MBA that might help me improve my career. So Do your recommend it for me or not? Also, is ACBSP a good prove for a qualified MBA?

One of the top 27? Are there more than 27 in a country as small as The Netherlands? That's like being one of the top 140 MBAs in Egypt.