Hi, I recieved offers with scholarships for both the Cranfield Exec MBA and Warwick Distance learning MBA. I'm coming from an engineering management background and looking to shift towards management consulting post MBA. I quite enjoy face to face learning as I believe a MBA is not just about learning from lecturers but also through networking with the cohurts. I believe Cranfield lectures used to be face-to-face but now they went back to virtual lectures due to covid, while WBS Distance learning MBA is predominantly online with a couple of residency weeks for networking.

Would like to get the forum's opinion on which MBA would set me towards my consulting career before accepting one of the offers early Jan. Thanks!

Obviously Warwick and Cranfield are both following the same government's Covid regime. If one is not hosting on campus then neither is the other. Given the Plan B of the last week, teaching won't be on campus right now but both schools will return to campus teaching as soon as allowed. An EMBA will have a better cohort and learning experience than a DL MBA. I assume you are not in the UK, because the government funding for the senior management apprenticeship makes Cranfield and other schools in that programme, like Manchester and Henley, really compelling. 

[Edited by Duncan on Dec 18, 2021]

Hi Duncan, thanks for the response. Im from the UK. My employer however won't be finding my MBA so I won't be getting the Apprenticeship levy. Do you still think Cranfield EMBA is far better than Warwick DLMBA eventhough the FT league table puts Warwick at top? It's not a like for like comparison as one is EMBA and the other is Online MBA, so it's proving hard to decide which one will set me in a good path for management consulting career move ...

The employer doesn't pay extra: it just needs to say it doesn't mind you taking the course. That's the whole point about the levy system. Large employers pay the levy. The government pays the universities. Everyone benefits. 

The choice would include an assessment of your development needs. The EMBA is a more extensive experience. Cranfield's EMBA doesn't fit into the FT ranking anymore because the apprenticeship format doesn't fit the FT's need for lockset cohorts. However If you look at schools like/worse than Cranfield (say Henley or Strathclyde) then EMBAs are generally better paid and get a bigger boost than DL EMBAs. An EMBA will have a bigger personal development element. You might not need that.... or you might. 

PS A DLMBA will have a more functional and foundational emphasis. Are you near London? Maybe taking it at The Shard is an option if you want an on-campus experience. However, at the end of the day, these are not the only schools and they are not the best schools for a transition into many of the premium consulting firms. 

[Edited by Duncan on Dec 18, 2021]