Women and the EMBA

Are executive MBAs worth it?, asks GiGi DeVault‘s piece posted Wednesday on The Glass Hammer blog. The Financial Times‘s Della Bradshaw has described an EMBA as the “Gucci handbag of the business school world.” But, DeVault wonders, have universities really just constructed better mousetraps for snapping up tuition?

Women confront different challenges in business than their male counterparts, and DeVault contends that the value they place on their MBA degrees mirrors those differences.

Pointing to Graduate Management Admission Council‘s 2005 MBA Alumni Perspective Survey of more than 2,000 graduates–including EMBAS–DeVault says men typically rate the success of an MBA program in terms of their increased knowledge base and their ability to score an international assignment, while women focus on whether they gain more respect or recognition at work, or felt a boost in self-confidence.

DeVault goes on to cite 2008 GMAC research, which found that 37% of MBA students expected a promotion following graduation, and 43% actually received a promotion while enrolled in the program. For a lucky few, she says, an EMBA program entry is like a hot air balloon ride with its steady, thrilling ascent.

Is it worth it for women in business today to go after an EMBA? DeVault argues that beyond measures of personal satisfaction, the key issue will continue to be that where the degree is earned is what counts most. An EMBA must meet a woman’s individual and professional goals, of course. But perhaps even more so, the value of the degree is wrapped up in the reputation that a business school has achieved based on alumni success and the intellectual capital of its faculty.

Do you have any thoughts on the value of the EMBA for women? We’d love to hear from you…just leave a comment below.

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