How Students Rate Their Online MBA Experience by: John A. Byrne on November 09, 2020 | 12,831 Views November 9, 2020 Copy Link Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email Share on LinkedIn Share on WhatsApp Share on Reddit What’s it really like to earn your MBA online? Do you sacrifice connection with classmates and faculty and have to settle only for the learning? After going through an online MBA program, how many graduates would actually recommend their experience to a friend or colleague? The median score is a 9.4 on a ten-point scale with ten reflecting the best possible answer. Every year for the past four years, Poets&Quants has set out to get answers to these and many more questions from the newest crop of online MBA graduates for its annual ranking of the best online MBA programs. And each year, we are surprised at the high levels of satisfaction among graduates of programs that are largely delivered over the Internet. This year we surveyed 5,880 alums and received responses from 1,143 graduates for a solid response rate of 19.4%. Sure, there are differences from one school’s program to another. And there are online MBA options that consistently get high grades from graduates from year to year. But overall, our student satisfaction surveys show that graduates of these online programs are a pretty happy bunch. OVERALL, GRADUATES OF OUR RANKED ONLINE MBAS WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND THEIR PROGRAMS TO OTHERS Consider the ultimate test: When we asked graduates if they would recommend their program to others, the median score for our ranked programs was a fairly hefty 9.4 on a ten-point scale, with ten reflecting the best possible score. Those high grades are a function of the resources many business schools have poured into their online courses, the enthusiasm with which faculty have embraced online teaching, and the advances in technology that make long distance learning far more engaging than ever. For 2020, when many residential programs have been forced online due to the coronavirus pandemic, that’s as true as it has ever been. Of course, the courses in an online MBA program differ greatly from classes in a residential program that has been shifted to remote instruction. In an online MBA, the courses were rebuilt from scratch for a different format. The work by faculty that goes into translating classroom interactions online makes these courses far superior to the residential programs that are now delivered by Zoom. Still, there are differences from one program to another, and our survey data clearly captures them. Our advice on how to read the data? Don’t get hung up on who is number one or number two on a survey question. Instead, realize that small differences in these scores are not statistically meaningful. Certainly, any program getting a 9.0 or above more than checks the box on the measurement. THE CORE SURVEY QUESTIONS AND HOW ONLINE MBA GRADUATES RESPONDED You’ll find that we attempt to measure what’s important and what you’re most likely to want to know. That’s because the survey questions were developed in cooperation with the business schools and with input from students. You’ll probably find yourself more interested in certain questions than others which is why we provide the guide below. It enables you to click on a question and go directly to the responses we received from the latest graduates of each of the ranked online MBA programs. Would you recommend the business program to a colleague, friend, or relative? How would you appraise the overall quality of your professors? How accessible and responsive were your professors? Rate your level of satisfaction with the live, or synchronous, online sessions Rate your level of satisfaction with the “asynchronous” portion of the online MBA program If you met for class in person or on trips, please rate your satisfaction with the in-person sessions of the program How would you appraise the amount and the quality of teamwork in the program? Rate your level of satisfaction with your ability to immediately apply what you learned in the program to your job Rate your level of satisfaction with your ability to participate in and learn from doing presentations in the program Rate your level of satisfaction with the flexibility provided by the program Rate your level of satisfaction with the opportunities provided to create good connections with fellow students Rate your level of satisfaction with the opportunities provided to create good connections with faculty Rate your level of satisfaction with the student clubs and organizations If you had a consulting project in your online MBA program, rate your satisfaction with the assignment If your program had a global immersion, rate your satisfaction with the international experience The 2021 Poets&Quants Online MBA Rankings Package THE BEST ONLINE MBA PROGRAMS OF 2021 HOW ONLINE MBA STUDENTS RATE THEIR EXPERIENCE HOW ONLINE MBAS RATE THE IMPACT OF THE DEGREE ON THEIR CAREERS ACCEPTANCE RATES FOR THE TOP ONLINE MBA PROGRAMS AVERAGE GMAT, GRE & GPAS FOR THE 2021 TOP ONLINE MBA PROGRAMS MOST & LEAST EXPENSIVE TOP ONLINE MBA PROGRAMS OF 2021 VIDEO: DEANS’ PANEL — A CONVERSATION WITH LEADERS OF THE TOP ONLINE MBA OPTIONS PODCAST: MBA ALTERNATIVES: A BUSINESS CASUAL CONVERSATION ON THE PROS AND CONS OF MBA ALTERNATIVES FROM ONLINE MBAS TO PART-TIME MBAS AND EXECUTIVE MBA PROGRAMS THE METHODOLOGY BEHIND P&Q’S 2021 ONLINE MBA RANKING Continue ReadingPage 1 of 16 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16