I heard the Manchester MBA is the most expensive course in Malaysia at above RM100k per pop. I dare not postulate how much the DBA would cost, if indeed they decide to offer it.

tinkerbel,

Thanks for the clarification on the cost of doing the MBS MBA. At 80k, I reckon it is the most expensive MBA in Malaysia at present.

DBA, in my opinion, is fast becoming a laughing stock. Read today's Star and you will notice the advertisement on "upgrade your MBA to a DBA - Uni of Newcastle". Or advertisements somewhere along the lines of "only 2 years to a 'Dr' in front of your name" which appear frequently enough. Utterly disgusting.

tinkerbel,

In general, an online MBA is certainly not as wholesome as a classroom-based one. But some online MBAs do have mandatory residentials at their campus. One such MBA is offered by Durham, one of UK's top 10 uni. Their distance learning MBA is quite reknowned and commands great respect amongst employers who know something about education.

I quite agree with your view. There is just no compelling reason to attend a classroom-based MBA in Malaysia if the main intention is to network with the who's who of the industry. Either the class is too small (I've heard of the Leicester MBA with only 5 participants - what a bore), or it is populated by junior executives (such as the USQ programme by Segi).

tinkerbel,

An online degree is considered a form of distance learning. But the name 'online degree' brings on many negative perceptions as compared to 'distance learning'. To illustrate, the Uni of London is the earliest distance learning course established ('external degree course' to be exact) and is still prestigious now. Although it has enabled web access to it's resources, nobody calls it an 'online degree'.

Here you go:
dur.ac.uk

How about people who have no undergrad degrees but go straight for their MBAs?

For those contemplating doing an MBA, do some research like checking out the courses available (newspaper advertisements, education directories, online MBA sites), calling up some institutions to have deeper insight, and very importantly, whether you are willing to pay the price (both RM and time). If any of these institutions don't fulfill your criteria e.g. time, cost and quality....strike them off your list. And once you've decided, GO FOR IT!

Doing an MBA is not a life and death decision. Barriers of entry to an MBA course is almost negligible. What matters is whether you have one...like everybody else. (said tongue in cheek la).

This post has been edited by Creamer: Feb 8 2007, 02:25 PM

Indeed. I feel there is no point contemplating hard about whether UPM is better than MMU, or if Nottingham is better than Strathclyde. So long as the institution is a respectable one, one shouldn't be perpetually questioning if this MBA is better than the one next door. The prospective MBA candidate should just do his due dilligence and execute the decision. If one can't even take this step, I personally feel he should not even qualify to embark on a masters-level programme.

At the rate MBAs are marketed these days, every tom d*** and harry will have an MBA in no time.