Executive MBA Or Distance MBA: Which Is better?

Most working professionals in India are expected to have an MBA at some point in their careers. A globally recognized degree, an MBA can give you a hike in salary and better positions in your organization.

Over the years, several types of MBA have come up owing to the diverse needs and challenges of a vast spectrum of students which includes both college graduates and seasoned working professionals.

Two of these programs include the Executive MBA and the Distance MBA. While an executive MBA is an MBA for working professionals, the distance MBA is mostly pursued by individuals who can’t opt for a regular MBA and so a significant number of working professionals end up opting for it as well.

Executive MBA & Distance MBA

The Difference:

An executive MBA functions in a manner similar to the regular MBA except of course the duration is shorter and the method of teaching more practical. On the other hand, an online or a distance MBA is no different from a regular MBA, except for the medium of learning. A distance MBA is devoid of real-time classes and the medium is mostly online.

Both have their pros and cons but as a working professional seeking to move your career in a newer direction, it’s wiser to look at long-term benefits and make a comparative analysis between the two.

Who teaches you?

Firstly, in a Distance MBA, you are provided with lessons in the form of videos, notes, and online sessions but extremely limited teaching sessions. Therefore, in a distance MBA, you’ll be left to study some of the most complex topics in management entirely on your own. 

On the other hand, an executive MBA is exactly similar to a regular MBA as it offers students an opportunity to learn while being physically present in class and be taught by experts from the industry. Therefore, the training received in an Executive program is more personalized and more detailed and you end up learning skills beyond your textbooks.

Which of the two helps you grow?

The experience of learning in a Distance MBA is an isolated experience and therefore of not much help to people who wish to grow socially and mentally. Management programs are all about a complete transformation of your personality. This can only happen in a classroom course like the executive MBA where you get the opportunity to perform in group tasks, live projects, seminars, start-up competitions, etc.

Which one holds more value?

Lastly and most importantly, degrees acquired through distance mode of learning hold very little or absolutely no value in the corporate world. No matter where you go in your career with an MBA, a distance MBA will not be met with much appreciation. Needless to say, there will also be a difference in the salaries offered to professionals with an executive MBA and those with a distance MBA. 

While an executive MBA is a sure-shot way of getting promotions and raises in salaries, chances are there will be very few organizations willing to do the same for a Distance MBA holder. It’s quite obvious which course can offer you a better future. The choice is completely yours.

And if you’ve made your decision of going for an executive MBA in Kolkata, then no college can be as good as BIBS.

The BIBS Advantage - 

Bengal Institute of Business Studies, better known as BIBS, is one of the most reputed management institutes in eastern India that has been ranked as the 2nd best B-school in Kolkata and 5th best MBA College in Eastern India for two years in a row by the Times of India B-School Survey. Being the only management institute in West Bengal with an A++ rating, BIBS has academicians who are alumni from institutions like the IIMs and XLRI serving as its faculty. 

Apart from being listed among the top 10 institutes for finance studies in India by the Knowledge Review, BIBS has also received the Corporate Excellence Award for Education Institute by the World CSR Council.

The best part about the executive MBA is that you get rewarded with a regular MBA degree for an executive program known as the PGPEX. Aside from this, the timings of the classes are highly convenient as the course has been designed keeping the busy schedule of office goers in mind.

As far as placement goes, BIBS has strong industry associations both nationally and internationally and over 400 companies have recruited the students of BIBS. Some of the top recruiters at BIBS are Britannia, Deloitte, Kellogg’s, P&G, Amul, Coca Cola, Godrej, Nestle, Airtel, Capgemini, ITC Limited and HDFC Bank, among several others.