My Background:

I live in the USA. I'm 45 years old and over 15 years management experience (IT related). I have received offer letters from both Manchester Business School and Warwick Business School to do my distance learning MBA and will make my final decision to accept one of the two offers in the next few days.

I know there has been much discussion regarding MBS vs WBS but I would value your input regarding the distance learning components/comparisons and also in the context of my age and experience.

Thanks Kindly.

I think there's a huge amount of discussion about this in these discussion boards, and there's no point repeating all that here.

What are your goals? Do you have any specific questions? The Manchester Global MBA isn't a pure DL programme, so of course the difference in format and in content with the WBS programme is quite clear.

The two schools appear to be similarly regarded on the discussion boards. But please I ask your expert opinion, Duncan, as you have much more experience and exposure to the evaluation than I do.

Which has the better reputation internationally? I know the current rankings but those fluctuate from year to year and they are different depending upon the reviewing source.

Which school will be the best fit as regards the real world - considering my age and experience? I am intrigued by the Manchester Method - how closely does Warwick match MBS in theory vs practical application?

Frankly, I do not have very specific goals. I want to get an MBA as I wish to advance to senior management and the MBA affords me an opportunity to apply for such positions.

Sidebar: the MBS offer is for the Project Management specialization whereas the Warwick offer is for the general MBA. I am having second thoughts about whether I should specialize or just do the broader MBA (of course I can still switch to the Global track at MBS too).

Attending in person or an EMBA is not an option for me due to the demands of my environment (job is very demanding).

Their reputation is similar. Manchester is clearly better educationally because of the strong core curriculum and the project focus. Both involve a week or two a year on campus, don't they?

I do suspect that a UK MBA will not be well understood by some US employers. If you are aiming at places which are not snobbish then I would choose MBS because of its greater rigour.

Their reputation is similar. Manchester is clearly better educationally because of the strong core curriculum and the project focus. Both involve a week or two a year on campus, don't they?

I do suspect that a UK MBA will not be well understood by some US employers. If you are aiming at places which are not snobbish then I would choose MBS because of its greater rigour.

MBS is more heavy on everything.

I really like the final project vs a standard dissertation that MBS offers - its much more useful IMO. This is what initially drew me to MBS. So good point there, Duncan.

I wish a lot more MBS Global MBA students would post as the insight would be very useful. I always seem to find a lot more posts and blogs from WBS MBA students and they were the reason I started looking at WBS.

I guess the MBS students have too much work to do, while the WBS students have the benefit of fewer courses and projects.

Good Afternoon

I am on my final year on the Global MBA programme with MBS so if you have any queries, feel free to post or get in touch.

Choosing the right MBA school depends on what is important to you in a programme so I can only really talk about my own experience. I chose MBS for a number of reasons. Aside from its solid reputation and value, it has global centres around the world so I knew that wherever I wanted to work, there would be a workshop centre nearby that I could attend.

The fact that there are a number of global centres worldwide means you will also be tapping into a global network of alumni which I see as an advantage. For distance learning programmes MBS is very focused on face to face group work and it does not actually brand itself as a distance learning MBA unlike other schools, which is a bonus for your own career development.

If you have any more questions, please feel free email me.

Good luck with everything.

Best wishes

Frances

Hi Frances - thanks for taking the time to post.

Are you doing a specialization?

I am doing the Global MBA so not specialising in the finance or engineering stream if thats what you mean. The Manchester Global MBA encourages students to gain strong skills in the core subjects before they specialise. However of course when we choose our electives in the final semester we get to choose the specialisations that interest us.

Best

Frances

The only thing I know about Manchester is that it rains a lot!

I graduated from the Warwick Distance Learning MBA back in 2006, it was a brilliant experience, only 30% of the course were Brits with about 50 other nationalities making up the balance. The programme content and research capabilities of the school are brilliant, all of my immediate cohort ended up in the careers there wanted, supported by the grounding from WBS.

For post grad and graduate employment, Warwick is high on the agenda of many senior recruiters in major FS organisations, would not swop my time there for anything, and have been more than happy to pay them back by mentoring some of their undergraduates into employment which is very easy with the Warwick Stamp on their CV!

I hope that rainfall isn't a criterion for candidates choosing a distance learning programme ;-)

Well we used to have some problems with the roof of the server room so could be a legitimate concern from an IT guy

HI,

I am 44 years old and about to finish my DLMBA with Warwick BS (Dissertation handed in this week). Additionally, although maybe not relevant I never did an undergraduate degree but have around 20 years management experience.

I looked at several schools before deciding on Warwick back in 2008 but chose Warwick for several reasons, I realise that some of these reasons may equally apply to MBS cohort/programme.

i. Truly diverse cohort, geographically and industrywise - in my cohort I have doctors, IT, economists, marketers, general managers, physiotherapists, accountants. It is truly remarkable what this diversity has brought to my whole learning experience.
ii. Excellent tutor backup again diverse geographically and in experience.
iii. Method of delivery - the ability to mix from true DL aspects to face to face modules is a great help. The method of delivery has changed since I started and I believe that now you actually get a face to face module included and some of these are held overseas.
iv. Warwick weeks - where you go to campus for a week to meet and have lectures. This is a great way to break from the solitude of Distance Learning and a real boon.

Hope my comments help you and good luck in whatever you decide.

Thank you everyone for your thoughts and contributions - much appreciated. After much contemplation I have decided to go with Warwick for my MBA.

The primary reason for this decision is the tutor backup and the support system that they have in place for distance learning students.

Secondly, I want to complete my MBA within 3 years and the new Warwick format allows us to do so with a 30 month program.

I was very torn in my decision because the things I like about the MBS program are the project work and also I became fascinated with their Managerial Economics class - if you haven't researched it it appears to be very interesting indeed.

I will post here from time to time in the future - if I can help others as I have been helped from your guys I would surely like to do so.

This board is truly excellent!

Great choice, you won't be disappointed!

Ross Milburn

Hi,
I come late to this forum but have reviewed the postings with interest. I am currently part-way through my 2nd year on the Exec programme at WBS, so would like to say welcome to the team. I understand that your work is busy and that the DLMBA is your chosen option but would advise you to consider some of the Exec modules when selecting your electives. It is a great opportunity to meet a wide range of people from a variety of backgrounds, where you interact to produce assessed group output. I'm doing a DL elective at the moment and certainly the support has been really helpful (although personally I have benefitted from the people interactions in the exec weeks, possibly because I have 23 years in the health sector which is not as business focused (yet) as other organisations. This is an advantage of a multi-format programme like WBS, where you are able to select different modes of delivery as well as some international electives making it as a truly global programme not just in terms of fellow students.
I note your comment about project work and Managerial Economics; both of these are dedicated electives, so you still have the option of selecting these in the future.
Good Luck!

I understand that your work is busy and that the DLMBA is your chosen option but would advise you to consider some of the Exec modules when selecting your electives.

With Warwick, you can indeed study face to face modules which are the executive modules as part of a DLMBA for an additional module fee. On those face to face modules you are with a combined cohort of full-time, executive and distance learning students so the opportunities to increase your network are better too. Warwick offers some electives online too as well as some face to face modules in other countries as well. All the class discussions and interactions I have had (and I have done all methods of delivery in my DLMBA) have been wholly satisfactory.