Hello everyone,

My friend who graduated as an MBA at IESE Business School advised me that I should consider MBA degree for myself. Another friend told me the same so I actually started to dig into it seriously.

Since I live in London and I work full-time I am pretty much limited to this area. I am taking into account only part-time programme.

During our conversation she insisted that I should be focusing only on top schools and one in particular - London Business School.

When I did my research the outcome is that there is no part-time MBA on LBS but EMBA. I found weekend MBA on Imperial Business School that would suit my circumstances as well.

My profile looks as follows:
Age: 27
Citizenship: EU national (Poland)
Professional experience: almost 5 years. 3 years in finance controlling (project accounting) - manufacturing. Poland. Then I moved to London, 1 year as system analyst (SAP implementation) - top advertising company, 5 months (current role) as analyst (data & insights) in financial services firm (Fortune, top 100).
Education: Master's in Finance and Accounting from Uni in Poland so not reputable.
Personality type: ENTJ on the edge with INTJ

My goals:
1) I like business very much. I find it fascinating and I am focused on execution and results not too much paperwork.
2) I would like to accelerate my career fast and have a degree from reputable and respected institution.
3) Industries that I am looking into: Consulting, Media/Tech, Finance.
4) I need to loan 100% of the tuition costs and want to repay the debt as soon as possible.

My questions:
1) Would my profile suit one of the above programmes?
2) How employers actually perceive part-time MBA? I am concerned that they may not value it as much as full-time. I mean perception not the facts. Sometimes degree is great but when employers don't get it you are on lost position. Is it true in part-time vs full-time?
3) What is the difference in perception between EMBA and MBA? Is there any myth that people after EMBA are...(put here whatever cliche you want)

What would you recommend based on information that I have provided?

I am about to study and take my GMAT but I need to decide what I am after so I can find a proper financing.

I had a chance to read a lot of topics here. Extremely valuable forum.

Thanks,

Luk

It's not so much that employers look at the degrees differently, it's that, in terms of recruiting, the schools tend to focus more on full-timers rather than part-timers.

If you are looking to make at least one career transition (industry, function, or location), usually the best advice is to go with a full-time program, as part-time MBAs are generally designed for those who are generally happy with their career path and just want to climb the ladder a bit faster.

In terms of EMBA vs. MBA, EMBAs are similar to part-time programs but generally aimed at older, more experienced professionals.

Check out your loan options. Would your residency mean that you're eligible for loans from banks in the UK? If not, there are orgs like Prodigy Finance but I'm not sure if they can give 100% loans. It might be tricky to completely fund your studies through loans.

Hi mba hipster,

Thanks for reply.

My initial plan was to do part-time MBA, go to consulting for 2 years (Big 3 would be perfect but I am not sure if possible) and then leave to get some nice job in the industry. It's to accelerate my career and get rid of debt as soon as possible.

I reached out to Prodigy Finance already and they told me that they don't finance Weekend MBA at Imperial but they may do next year. Imperial has Future Finance on their website and I emailed them already. They can offer up to 40k/academic year.

As far as I know I should be able to get the loan from bank. I will get in touch with my bank and ask about it. Thanks for suggestion.

I ruled out MBA EMBAs, I am 27 with 5 years of experience as analyst so I think that my profile simply doesn't match.

The recruitment part that you mentioned is a concern. Since Imperial launched Weekend MBA last year they don't have any samples related to recruiting. In their brochure they state only current companies that employ full-time MBAs with an astrix that they expect same companies to hire Weekend MBAs.

But who knows where the truth lays. I wil keep digging the topic.

Thanks for help.

Just a word of caution. The outcome of a weekend MBA is not equivalent to one of a full-time MBA. I believe the weekend MBA is cash cow for those who are willing to pay for the brand while the business school maximises its revenue from leveraging its own brand.

Hi yipkc,

I think that you are right. It's another way of leveraging Unis name and reputation. I am not surprised. It's business on it's own.

My colleague advised me to ask admissions about strategy for careers services when you consider transition. Plus get in touch with some students so they can give me some insight.

We will see how it goes and what is expected value for money here.

It is mistaken to think of these as cash cow, either as analogies or as rhetoric. The student and their needs are different. It is often simplistic to rule out a part-time program at one school to take a worse program elsewhere.

Hi Duncan,

Thanks you for your reply. What do you think about value of part-time programme? ICBS to name one.

I contacted Univeristy and was told that they don't need GMAT on part-time studies which was a bit peculiar.

It depends on your goals and alternatives. Imperial has, obviously, a very good business school.

I haven't found anything that would be good enough for studying part-time while working in London. Imperial seems to be the only one. Unless I missed something.

The goal is to transition to top consulting firm and work with tech/media industry.

Hi Luk,

Lots of interesting questions and I have almost the same ones. Have you started your MBA? Have you arrived at any conclusion in particular?

I know this post is quite old, but hopefully you can give me some help.

Many thanks

Mariano

Hi guys,

I would really appreciate if anyone can give me a feedback about the executive mba from Henley business university.

Cheers

A colleague did the flexible executive MBA at Henley and found it really valuable. Since Henley joined Reading University I think it's had a challenging time. For a similar investment, the London cohort of the Warwick distance learning MBA, which meets at The Shard, might be better. For networking and elective choice, the extra investment in LBS, Cass, ESCP or the Chicago campus in London will be worth it.