Are full-time MBAs performing?

Abstract

Full-time MBA students amount to about one-third of the 26,000 students enrolled on MBA programmes at UK universities. The programmes have become increasingly international in student composition and concerns have been expressed about performance, quality and comparability between programmes. Research into predictors of MBA success has been equivocal with few clear indicators. This paper presents two case studies at two post-1992 universities of full-time MBA programmes and the relationship between entry qualifications – interpreted widely – and graduation success. Full-time programmes inevitably attract overseas students from outside Europe and this creates differences, not only in culture and ethos, but also in content, teaching methods, assessment and attitudes to assessment. The discussion includes the competing perspectives of financial performance and education and the changing face of MBA programmes due to internationalisation. It concludes that there are broad similarities between the two institutions which has wider application and offers an approach that may enhance performance through improved application processes and the management of staff and student expectations.