The research team at GetEducated.com has
completed the 2008 survey of distance learning graduate degrees offered at accredited B-
Schools across the USA.
Data related to the most popular online degree,
the MBA, is being released this week.
GetEducated's Survey of Online MBAs 2008 includes 168 accredited distance
MBAs: 91 from business schools that hold accreditation by one of the regional boards; 62
with AACSB accreditation; 15 with national agency accreditation, with the DETC being the
most common accreditor.
Trends in Online MBAs:
Public Universities Exceptional Buys
GetEducated's top ranked values in distance MBAs include
colleges that have earned the trust of consumers and employers alike. Most are publicly-
supported universities.
GetEducated's top ranked values in regionally accredited distance MBAs include, among others, California
State University, Western Governor's University, Fort Hays State University, Baker College,
Empire State College - State University of New York, Upper Iowa University, Excelsior
College, Northcentral University, and Troy University.
Many public institutions now offer the same low tuition they
offer state residents to learners everywhere. A distance MBA from California State
University Dominguez Hills, for example, costs $12,000 for all learners, regardless of state
of residency.
"$12,000 may sound like a lot of money," says Phillips, "but
in truth the average regionally accredited MBA costs $20,500. CSU costs $8,500 less than the
national average. Consumers need to know that a quality MBA need not cost them their life
savings."
"Fort Hays State," comments Phillips, "is an excellent
example of a regionally-accredited public institution that has found its niche online." The university appears on several of GetEducated's
Best Buy lists.
"Their brand motto is Affordable Success," comments Phillips,
"and that is exactly what they deliver by offering solid programs like their MBA at a cost
of about $14,800. $14,800 is $6,000 less than the national average for a distance
MBA. No one could argue that this institution
does anything less than meet the stated promise of its brand. As a result, learners nationwide benefit."
AACSB-Accredited Options
Escalate
The number of AACSB-accredited B-Schools offering online
degrees continues to escalate. GetEducated's 2006 survey featured 46 AACSB accredited
options. The 2008 survey features 62 such options. 31% of the online graduate business
schools surveyed for 2008 hold coveted AACSB accreditation.
"In 1989 when we began our distance learning surveys, no
AACSB-accredited B-School offered a distance MBA. If you'd have asked them if they intended
to offer a distance degree in the near future the answer would have been a resounding no,"
comments Vicky Phillips, Chief Education Analyst at GetEducated. "Today, consumers are being
offered unparalleled access to degrees from what most consider the elite of the business
school world."
AACSB accreditation is widely considered the gold standard of
business school accreditation. The fact that escalating numbers of these schools are
delivering through distance means helps confirm elearning as a respectable
choice.
Elite B-Schools on
GetEducated's 2008 survey list of distance MBAs include Babson College's F. W. Olin Graduate
School of Business, Indiana University's Kelley School of Business, Duke University's Fuqua
School of Business, and Thunderbird Graduate
School's Garvin School of International
Management.
Free Guidebook to Distance MBAs
Consumers can explore all their online university options by
downloading a free copy of the clearinghouse's 2008 guidebook to online business schools,
GetEducated.com's Best Distance Learning Graduate Schools, Business, Management and
Online MBAs.
Download FREE Guide
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