Thoughts on AMBA's new Business Graduate Association (BGA) accreditation?

Inactive User

2.941 1.801

Posted Jul 12, 2019 17:38

I read on the AMBA site that they recently started a new association / network / accreditation body: the Business Graduate Association (BGA).

It's ostensibly billed as a networking tool, but there's also an accreditation element. There are three levels of membership for business schools, each costing more than the previous. A business school can join the association, and then basically pay for the review for BGA accreditation as an upgrade.

Schools that already have AMBA accreditation can join the network for no cost (although there would still be a fee for BGA accreditation).

I get it: AMBA wants to expand beyond its core 'MBA' focus and in this way build more revenue. But do business schools really need another 'badge?'

My worry is that the standards for the BGA accreditation will be much looser than those for AMBA and we'll see a whole load of subpar b-schools with this badge in the near future (much like we have with the AACSB "Member" label, which in my mind has negatively impacted the AACSB brand image.)

Any thoughts on this from the community?

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laurie

1.085 549

Posted Jul 15, 2019 19:16

I get it: AMBA wants to expand beyond its core 'MBA' focus and in this way build more revenue.

I think that's the point, so that they can open up new revenue streams.

All of these three agencies are expanding to other countries, but that will only go so far because in many countries, the business schools aren't as developed as those in North America / Western Europe. Therefore they probably won't have as much to invest in accreditations.

If they can differentiate it enough from AMBA but keep the same or similarly stringent standards, then that would alleviate most of my concerns.

[quote]
I get it: AMBA wants to expand beyond its core 'MBA' focus and in this way build more revenue.[/quote]
I think that's the point, so that they can open up new revenue streams.

All of these three agencies are expanding to other countries, but that will only go so far because in many countries, the business schools aren't as developed as those in North America / Western Europe. Therefore they probably won't have as much to invest in accreditations.

If they can differentiate it enough from AMBA but keep the same or similarly stringent standards, then that would alleviate most of my concerns.

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Inactive User

2.941 1.801

Posted Jul 18, 2019 15:38

Yes, agreed.

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