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Journal of Education for Business
ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20
Traditional Master of Business Administration
(MBA) Versus the MBA With Specialization: A
Disconnection Between What Business Schools
Offer and What Employers Seek
Pola B. Gupta , Paula M. Saunders & Jeremy Smith
To cite this article: Pola B. Gupta , Paula M. Saunders & Jeremy Smith (2007) Traditional
Master of Business Administration (MBA) Versus the MBA With Specialization: A Disconnection
Between What Business Schools Offer and What Employers Seek, Journal of Education for
Business, 82:6, 307-312, DOI: 10.3200/JOEB.82.6.307-312
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/JOEB.82.6.307-312
Published online: 07 Aug 2010.
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TraditionalMasterofBusiness
Administration(MBA)VersustheMBA
WithSpecialization:ADisconnection
BetweenWhatBusinessSchoolsOffer
andWhatEmployersSeek
POLAB.GUPTA
PAULAM.SAUNDERS
WRIGHTSTATEUNIVERSITY
ABSTRACT. Atrendinmasterofbusinessadministration(MBA)programshas
ABSTRACT.
beentooffermorespecializationsbeyond
thetraditionalbroadMBA.Inthisarticle,
theauthorsexploretherecruitmentpracticesofbusinessandthecurriculaofMBA
programscomparinggeneralMBAdegrees
withMBAdegreeswithspecialization.
Theauthorsempiricallyexaminewhether
employerspreferageneralMBAoran
MBAwithaspecialization.Onthebasisof
ananalysisof758employmentadvertisementsand27MBAprogramsbeingoffered
byuniversities,theauthorsfoundadisconnectionbetweenwhatemployersappeared
towantandwhatbusinessschoolsoffered.
Keywords:employers’preferences,general
MBA,masterofbusinessadministration
programs,specialization
Copyright©2007HeldrefPublications
JEREMYSMITH
QBASEDATASERVICES
I
nacademicterms,themasterofbusiness administration (MBA), developed in the United States in 1908, has
mostlybeenasuccessstory(Pfeffer&
Fong,2002).Althoughresearchershave
frequentlycriticizedthevalueofthecurrentMBAprograms(Bennis&O’Toole,
2005; Elliott, Goodwin, & Goodwin,
1994), many educators, employers,
and students agree with Gavin Staude,
Director of Rhodes Investec Business
School(Jordan,2004):
ThecompetitiveadvantageofanMBAis
that it provides managers with a holistic
perspectiveofmanagementandbusiness
anditequipsthemtoassisttheirorganizations to deliver superior business results
by immersing them in the ‘enabler’ and
cutting-edgedisciplines.(p.40)
Many students say that the opportunities for increased salaries and career
advancementarethereasonsforpursuinganMBAdegree.TheyviewanMBA
asthequickestpathtotheseniorlevels
ofmanagement—somuchsothatmany
of them view its placement function
as more important than its knowledge
function(Hunt&Speck,1986).Inaddition,MBAstudentscanexpecttheirsalary to increase by approximately 18%
upon graduation and 53% 3–5 years
aftergraduation,accordingtothe2005
Careers Survey by the Association of
MBAs (Purcell, 2005). Another recent
survey of the MBA accredited schools
by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)
indicatedthatanMBAeducationhasa
positive impact on graduates’ employment, income, and job promotions in
theshortandlongterms(Zhao,Truell,
Alexander,&Hill,2006).
Graduate programs in business educationarepresentlyatcrossroadsasthe
students and faculty are torn between
selecting or offering a general MBA
program and an MBA with specialization. The existing literature supports
both of these options. It is clear that
businessschoolstodaydo,infact,offer
a variety of MBA programs, including
variations of the traditional MBA programsandMBAprogramswithopportunitiesforspecialization.
Traditional MBA programs focus on
requiredcoursesthatareaimedatcore
businessdisciplines,withnospecialization in the functional areas. Students
often take electives based on a variety
of interests, often at any time during
their program. MBA programs with
specializations have increased over the
yearsonthebasisofthebeliefthatbusinessesneedpeoplewhohaveamoreindepthunderstandingofparticularfunctions and the tasks that they require.
A compromise between the traditional
and specialization degrees is the general MBA. The general MBA provides
knowledge to students in all the basic
business areas and gives students the
opportunity to study certain functional
areasingreaterdepth.
Thebusinesscommunity,forthemost
part,seemstobesendingmixedsignals
(Bennis & O’Toole, 2005). For examJuly/August2007
307
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ple,companieshireMBAswithnarrow
specialization and then complain that
businessschoolsarenotproducingindividuals who will be able to both lead
andmakepracticaldecisions.
In this study, we analyzed 758
employmentadvertisementsfrommajor
newspapersandsomepopularWebsites
to determine if there is any evidence
thattheemployersarelookingforcandidates with a general MBA degree or
anMBAwithaspecializationinagiven
functional area, such as marketing or
accounting.Inaddition,weanalyzed27
MBAprograms,including13fromtop
businessschoolsintheUnitedStates,to
determinethepresenceorlackofavailableconcentrationsintheprogram.
LiteratureReview
Analysisofthe27MBAprograms(see
AppendixA)revealedtheMBAprogram
structures related to traditional versus
specialized curricula, and the literature
supportstheirexistence.HuntandSpeck
(1986)alsohadreviewed27MBAprogramsintheirresearchandsortedthose
programsintofivesimilarcategories:(a)
generalbroadMBA,(b)MBAwithspecialization, (c) general MBA, (d) MBA
with specializations, and (e) MBA with
numerousspecializationinnicheareas.
TheGeneralMBAProgram
The general MBA program tends to
focusoncoresubjectsthatareaimedat
developing knowledge and skills in all
key areas of business. Typically, managers on the way up move from entrylevel specialized jobs to positions with
broaderresponsibilities.Thus,business
educators design these general MBA
programs to develop general skills and
knowledge in management, rather than
expertise in specialized areas (Jenkins,
Reizenstein, & Rodgers, 1984). This
kind of MBA is accepted more by
employers who desire general business
organizationandcommunicationsskills
over specific functional skills.According to Elliott et al. (1994), “U.S. businesses would like to recruit managers
whoaremorebroadlyeducatedinbusiness,aregoodcommunicatorsandteam
workers, understand the importance of
process,andminimizecompetitionwith
fellowworkers”(p.56).
308
JournalofEducationforBusiness
Fortheseemployers,theprimarypurpose of an MBA is to produce managers who understand the entire business
ratherthanaspecificsegment.
MBAWithSpecializations
Manybusinesseducatorshavedecided
thatthecoreMBAcurriculum,although
stillvaluable,isnolongerenoughtosuit
theneedsoftoday’semployers(Bisoux,
2005). Bisoux suggests that business
schoolsarebettingthatcompanieswill
want to hire students who are exposed
toamorespecialized,integrated,experiential,andsequencedcurricula.Some
argue that too few details provided in
the general MBA programs may not
prepare students sufficiently for the
businessworld(Simon,1989).According to such critics, the classic general
MBA attempts to produce managers
who can understand every aspect of
thebusiness,buttodayMBAgraduates
will also likely be required to manage
specifictasksinatechnologicallycomplexenvironment.AccordingtoMowry
(2003), companies want employees to
learn specialized skills sets and they
will contract with MBA programs to
deliverthemonsite.
Hunt and Speck (1986) found that
neither corporate employers nor MBA
students preferred the general MBA
degree. Of the five possible MBA program types, those with specialization
were consistently selected above those
without specialization by employers
and MBA students. According to the
authors, however, these findings did
not conflict with the need for general
knowledge.
most respected business schools in the
United States and Canada are getting
rid of the specialization trend. Gerdes
addsthatsomeschoolsarecompromising by offering management specializations that have broad applications
suchasleadership.Manyeducatorsare
alsothinkingthatspecializationisafad
that is contrary to the purpose of the
generalMBA.Theyarguethatbusiness
schools need to provide students with
well-roundedcapabilitiesbecausemost
companiesstilllookforthecriteriathey
did30yearsago(Gerdes).
Perhaps in an ideal world, business
schools should prepare students with
both a generalist background and specific knowledge. Given the dilemma,
some business schools offer a combination of general MBA programs and
specializations. Jenkins et al. (1984)
reported that most schools divided the
MBAcurriculumsothatstudentscould
chooseanareaofspecializationtocomplementtheirtrainingasgeneralists.
Some universities give students an
optiontochoosebetweenageneralMBA
andageneralMBAwithaspecialization.
For example, students could get a generalMBAinwhichtheywouldcomplete
thecorecoursesrequiredtograduateand
thentakeadditionalelectivesorselecta
specialization in a functional area. Students may also have a choice of how
general or specific they want the programtobe.Thisseemstobealow-risk
strategyforthebusinessschoolsbecause
they can cater to the needs of two segmentsofthemarket:(a)companiesthat
seek general MBAs and (b) others who
wantMBAswithspecializations.
GeneralMBAandSpecialization
Options
MBAWithNumerous
SpecializationsInNicheAreas
There are, however, concerns about
focusingtoomuchonMBAspecializations. Focusing on a specialty could
glossoverthebasicssuchasmarketing
and finance. There is a risk of alienating big recruiters, such as consulting
companiesthatpreferthegeneralMBA.
Amorenarrowappealcouldalsoresult
in a smaller pool of applicants, a less
diversestudentbody,adiminishededucational experience, and limited career
choices for graduates’ (Gerdes, 2005).
AccordingtoGray(2000),someofthe
Another MBA program structure is
one in which business schools offer
MBAdegreesinnumerousnicheareas.
AccordingtoElliottetal.(1994),narrow
specialization may be more in demand
as businesses lean toward demand for
theinformedgeneralist.
Likemanyotheruniversities,theUniversity of Wisconsin-Madison’s School
ofBusinesshadseenadropinapplication for full time MBA programs. Its
full time applications dropped 30% in
3 years, and the university authorities
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felt that the situation was likely to get
worse (Gerdes, 2005). The authorities
respondedbydoingsomethingthatmany
moreschoolsaredoingthesedays—they
addednumerousspecializations.In2004,
theuniversityreplacedthegeneralMBA
with13distinctspecializationsineverythingfromartsadministrationtoapplied
corporatefinance.Studentschooseaspecialization before they take their first
class, and then they will work with a
team of students—each with a different
specialization—for the duration of the
program (Bisoux, 2005). As a strategy,
thespecializationseemstobeworkingat
schoolsliketheUniversityofWisconsinMadisonandBostonUniversity.Student
satisfactionisup,declineinapplications
has stopped, and higher rankings ultimatelymaybetheresult(Gerdes).That
isprobablywhymanyschoolsnowfocus
programsonafewwell-chosenspecialtiesandchoosetobuildtheirspecialties
aroundspecificindustries.
Many educators believe that today’s
competitive environment may require
an even more specialized program that
focuses on a single industry or function (Gerdes, 2005). Creating specialized MBA programs, like health care
orprojectmanagement,allowsmid-tier
schools to stand out. Other large universities offer similar programs. Stanford University has established a new
Institute of Design that teaches design
thinkingandstrategytobusiness,engineering,anddesignstudents.TheInstituteofDesignattheIllinoisInstituteof
Technology,anothertopD-schoolinthe
United States sends its gradutes to big
businesses (Merritt & Lavelle, 2005).
Gray (2000) said that business schools
thatarenoteliteschoolsordonotoffer
auniquecurriculummightbeinserious
dangerofgoingoutofbusiness.
Employers’PerspectivesofMBAs
Employers seem to have varying
preferences.Someappeartolikeawellroundededucation,otherspreferaspecializedone,andsomeemployersseem
to want both. According to Hunt and
Speck(1986),someemployersexpress
support for a broader orientation in
trainingforcareersinbusinesswhenin
actuality they have a strong desire for
technicalcompetence.
There are many reasons why the
MBA maintains its leading position in
executivequalificationoptionsandwhy
seniormanagersstillchoosetoinvestin
thequalification.Employerscontinueto
value the MBA as a guarantee of generalbusinessskillsandknowledge.Purcell(2005)reportsontheattitudeofSir
MartinSorrell,headofWireandPlastics
Products(WPP),theglobaladvertising
giant, who said that, “faced with two
candidatesofequalcaliber,ifonepossessesanMBA,Iwouldalwaysemploy
the candidate with the MBA” (p. 23).
Theproblemforemployers,businesses,
andstudentsisdeterminingthebestcurriculum structure at any point in time
that offers the greatest benefits. One
of the big curriculum questions today
isrelatedtotheissueofthetraditional
MBAversusthespecializedMBA.
PurposeoftheStudy
The traditional MBA degree emphasizes a general education, but results
of some studies (e.g., Hunt & Speck,
1986)suggestthatemployerswantspecialization.Duringthepast9years,we
havefoundnoacademicstudytodetermineifthereisadifferenttrendinterms
ofemployers’preferencesforageneral
MBA degree or MBA with specializations. We attempt to address this issue
byperformingacontentanalysisof758
advertisements from major newspapers
in the 15 cities in the United States as
wellasanalysisofpopularemployment
Websites.
ResearchQuestions
We investigated the following: (a)
DoemployerspreferatraditionalMBA
degree or an MBA with a specialization?(b)Dotheemployers’preferences
varyacrosstypeofindustry?(c)Isthe
level of position (upper, middle, and
lower) advertised related to employers’
preferencesforageneralorspecialized
MBA? (d) Do employers prefer a general MBA with a specific major in the
undergraduatebusinessprogram?
METHOD
Wecollecteddatafrom758employmentadvertisementsinwhichanMBA
degree was specified as a preferred or
required qualification. The advertisements were obtained from the classifiedsectionsofmajornewspapers(e.g.,
Chicago Sun-Times, New York Times)
andthetwonationallyrecognizedWeb
sites (monster.com and careerbuilder.
com) from 15 most populated cities in
theUnitedStates(seeAppendixB).The
data collected included job title, city,
state, number of years of experience
required, degree requirement, undergraduate concentration, MBA concentration, and if the MBA was preferred
orrequired.
Salariesofferedintheselectedadvertisements ranged from under $50,000
toover$200,000withameansalaryof
$83,393.Theexperiencepreferredinthe
advertisementsrangedfromunder1year
toashighasover15yearswithamean
experience of 5.5 years. Job postings
represented 9 different industries with
thetop3industriesbeingfinance,insurance and banking (38.8%), manufacturing(12.9%),andhealthcare(11%).
We selected 27 universities to see
what specializations they offered,
includingthetop13MBAprogramsin
the United States. The schools representedinoursurveyofferedanaverage
of nine specializations per school. The
rangeofspecializationwasfrom6–18.
The four most common specializations
thatnearlyalloftheprogramsoffered
were marketing, finance, accounting,
andmanagement.OthercommonMBA
concentrations included management
information systems, human resources,
international business, entrepreneurship, and operations management. The
universities also offered a total of 85
niche specializations (e.g., health-care,
project management, innovation and
change,creativity).
RESULTS
We performed content analysis of
758advertisementsinwhichemployers
mentioned MBA as one of the qualifications for the advertised position.
Approximately 95% of the advertisementsspecifiedthattheMBAwaspreferred,whichmeantonly5%ofthepositionsactuallyrequiredanMBAdegree.
Therangeofexperiencedesiredforthe
advertised positions varied from 1–15
years. With respect to the requirement
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ofaspecializationintheMBAprogram,
96% of positions required or preferred
a general MBA and only 4% of them
asked for a specialization. Out of the
4%thatrequiredaspecializationinthe
MBA,themostcommonlysoughtareas
were accounting and finance, which
accountedfor50%ofallthespecializationsspecifiedintheadvertisements.
Even though only 4% of the positions advertised required an MBA
degree with a specific specialization,
nearly 35% of advertisements required
aspecificmajorareaintheundergraduateprogram.Theresultsindicatethata
largenumberofadvertisedpositionsdid
notrequireaspecializationintheMBA
programatall.However,whereemployers desired special skills for the positions, the employers asked for either a
specialization in the MBA program, or
aparticularmajorintheundergraduate
program.
To find out if the employers’ desire
for an MBA with specialization and a
general MBA degree vary across varioustypesofindustries,weperformeda
crosstabulationbetweenCHOICE(specialization or general MBA) variable
andINDUSTRYTYPE.Wedetermined
INDUSTRY TYPE by classifying the
companiesthatadvertised758positions
into eight North American Industry
ClassificationSystem(NAICS)groups:
manufacturing, retail and wholesale,
informationindustry,finance,insurance
and banking, real estate, educational
services, and health care. The results
fromthecrosstabulationarepresented
inTable1.WeconductedaChi-square
testtodetermineifthereisanyassociationbetweenCHOICEandINDUSTRY
TYPEvariables.TheChi-squarestatisticwasnotsignificant,χ2(8,N=721)=
14.14, p = .078, at α = 5%, indicating
no relationship between CHOICE and
INDUSTRYTYPE.
We also performed an analysis to
determineiftheLEVELoftheposition
advertised was related to a general or
specialized MBA degree. On the basis
ofthetitleofthepositionintheadvertisements,allofthe758advertisedpositionswereclassifiedintothreelevelsof
management(upper,middle,andlower)
bytwoofthethreeauthorsofthisstudy.
Theauthorscameupwithasimilarclassification,exceptforafewcases,which
TABLE1.CrossTabulationofChoiceofMasterofBusiness
Administration(MBA)TypeVersusTypeofIndustry
Typeofindustry
Conclusions
ChoiceofMBAtype(%)
GeneralMBA MBAwithconcentation
Manufacturing
Retailorwholesale
Information(e.g.,publishing,broadcasting)
Finance,insurance,banking
Realestate
Professional,scientific,andtechnicalservices
Educationalservices
Healthcare
97.8
90.0
84.6
95.7
100
93.3
93.3
97.5
2.2
10
15.4
4.3
0
6.7
6.7
2.5
Note.χ2(8,N=721)=14.14,p=.078.
TABLE2.CrossTabulationofChoiceofMBATypeVersusLevelof
Managers
ChoiceofMBA
GeneralMBA
MBAwithaconcentration
Note.χ2(2,N=758)=2.45,p=0.29.
310
JournalofEducationforBusiness
Levelofmanagers(%)
Upperlevel Middlelevel Entrylevel
98.1
1.9
96
4
werelaterresolved.Thecrosstabulation
betweenLEVELandCHOICErevealed
no significant relationship between the
two variables because the Chi-square
statistic was not significant at α = 5%
(seeTable2).Theseresultssuggestthat
the desire for a general MBA or one
with specialization is independent of
thelevelofpositionadvertised.Wethen
concludethatirrespectiveofthelevelof
position advertised, an overwhelming
majorityoftheemployersdidnotprefer
anMBAwithaspecialization.
The preceding analysis of 758
employmentadvertisementsin15large
cities suggests that an overwhelming
numberofemployerspreferorrequire
onlyageneralMBAdegree.Thelevel
of position advertised or the industry type to which they belonged was
not related to the choice of a general
MBA or an MBA with specialization.
In advertisements in which skills in a
particularfieldwererequired,employers requested a specific major in the
undergraduate degree (35% of positions in our study) and, in only a few
cases,askedforaspecializationinthe
MBA degree (4% of positions in our
study).
95.1
3.8
Onthebasisoftheanalysisofthetop
13MBAprogramsintheUnitedStates,
we found that all of the universities
offered specializations. The range of
number of specialization across these
schools varied from 6–18 . However,
the content analysis of advertisements
indicated that the vast majority of
employers do not care about the specializationsintheMBAdegree,andyet,
schools keep offering more and more
nicheprograms.
If skills in a functional area were
requiredfortheadvertisedposition,the
employers usually required a specific
majorintheundergraduatedegree.For
example,inthisstudy,35%oftheadvertisements specified that the candidate
must have a particular major in their
undergraduatedegreefortheadvertised
position.
In conclusion, we found a disconnection between what MBA programs
offer and the employers’ needs. There
are several possible alternative expla-
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nations to explain this disconnection.
First, for many decades the offers of
specializations in MBA programs have
increased. For universities, it may be
a high-risk strategy not to offer specializationsbecausemanyschoolsoffer
them.Theriskisanydropinenrollment
thatcanwronglybeattributedtolackof
specializationsintheMBAprogram.
Second, even if employers do not
careforspecialization,studentsmaystill
want them. We conducted an informal
study of 27 prospective MBA students
enrolledinprerequisitecoursesrequired
for admission into the MBA program,
and approximately 40% of them said
concentrationsweresomewhatimportant
tothem.Ninetypercentsaidtheywould
choose a concentration if it were available.Therearemanystudentswhoenter
the MBA programs from backgrounds
other than business (e.g., engineering,
psychology).A specialized MBA might
bemoreattractiveforsomeonewhohad
a substantive background in a major
otherthanbusinessattheundergraduate
level.Third,employersmayavoidspecifying a specialization in the advertisementbecausetheydonotwanttonarrow
thepoolofapplicants.
Until researchers find the probable
reasonsforthedisconnectionstatedearlier, universities may pursue a low-risk
strategybyofferingbothageneralMBA
andanMBAwithspecializationstosatisfytheneedsofbothemployersandstudents.AgeneralbroadMBAcoversthe
basicsandprovidestheknowhowinspecificjobfunctions.Evenmoreattractive
maybeabroadMBAcurriculuminfused
withmultidisciplinary,practical,andethicalissuesthatteachdecisionmakingto
addressthecomplexchallengesbusiness
leadersface.Allowingstudentstotailor
elective classes could be another way
tobothcovercorefunctionsandenable
studentstogainskillsandknowledgein
amorespecificarea.
Offering specializations may benefit
some faculty. Faculty members may
prefer to teach courses in the specialized areas if they are relevant to their
researchinterests.Thistypeofpersonal
satisfaction could lead to high quality
of instruction and more enthused students.Disadvantagesmayincludefindingtherightfacultytoteachspecialized
courses.Theremaynotbequalifiedfacultytoteachtheclassesneededforthe
specialization.Thismaynecessitatehiring new faculty, which is an expensive
option. Offering many specializations
also may lead to lower enrollment in
some classes leading to inefficient use
offacultyresources.
Futureresearchshouldfocusonsurveyingemployerstounderstandexactly
whattheylookforinpotentialemployees,toascertainiftheironlinenewspaperadvertisementsaccuratelystatewhat
they really want, and to discover their
preferences related to MBA concentrations.Researchshouldalsobeconducted among MBA students to find their
viewsofageneralMBAversusanMBA
with specializations. It is possible that
even if the employers ask for specializations,studentsmaypreferspecializationstoupdatetheirknowledgeintheir
functional areas. As suggested above,
future research will, hopefully, offer a
clearexplanationofwhatappearstobe
a disconnect between what employers
want in an MBA program and what
the universities offer. Until then, we
believe,businessschoolsshouldcontinuetoofferbothageneralMBAdegree
andspecializations.
NOTE
Dr. Pola Gupta’s research interests are product placement, Internet marketing, software and
musicpiracy,internationalmarketing,andpublic
policyissues.
Dr. Paula Saunders’s research interests are
Internet,relationshipmarketing,highereducation
andservicequality.
JeremySmith’sresearchinterestsarecurriculumissuesinMBAprograms.
Correspondenceconcerningthisarticleshouldbe
addressedtoDr.PolaB.Gupta,WrightStateUniversity, Department of Marketing, 266 Rike Hall, Raj
SoinCollegeofBusiness,Dayton,OH45435.
E–mail:[email protected]
REFERENCES
Bennis,W. G., & O’Toole, J. (2005). How businessschoolslosttheirway.Harvard
BusinessReview,83(5),96–104.
Bisoux, T. (2005, May/June) The extreme MBA
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Elliott,C.J.,Goodwin,J.S.,&Goodwin,J.C.(1994).
MBAprogramsandbusinessneeds:Isthereamismatch?BusinessHorizons,37(4),55–59.
Gerdes,L.(2005,September5).B-schoolswitha
niche.BusinessWeek,3949,pp.70–72.
Gray, J. (2000). Fit or fad? Canadian Business,
73(20),72–76.
Hunt,S.D.,&Speck,P.S.(1986).Specialization
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Jenkins,R.L.,Reizenstein,R.C.,&Rodgers,F.
G.(1984).ReportcardsontheMBA.Harvard
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Jordan,D.(2004,July5).Thecompetitiveadvantage: Qualification teaches students to think.
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Merritt,J.&Lavelle,L.(2005,August1).Tomorrow’sB-school?ItmightbeaD-school.
BusinessWeek,3945,pp.80–81.
Mowry,M.(2003).TheevolvingMBA.Retrieved
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Pfeffer, J., & Fong, C. (2002, July 27). The
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SimonJr.,J.J.(1989).AreportcardonAmerica’s
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311
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APPENDIXA
Listof27BusinessSchoolsUsedfortheAnalysisofMBAPrograms
Number
Collegeoruniversity
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
BowlingGreenStateUniversity
CaseWesternReserveUniversity
ClevelandStateUniversity
ColumbiaUniversity
CornellUniversity
DukeUniversity
HarvardCollege
KentStateUniversity
MassachusettsInstituteofTechnology
MiamiUniversityofOhio
NorthwesternUniversity
OhioStateUniversity
OhioUniversity,Athens
StanfordUniversity
UniversityofAkron
UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley
UniversityofCalifornia,LosAngeles
UniversityofChicago
UniversityofCincinnati
UniversityofDayton
UniversityofMichigan-AnnArbor
UniversityofPennsylvania
UniversityofToledo
UniversityofVirginia
WrightStateUniversity
XavierUniversity
YoungstownStateUniversity
APPENDIXB
ListofSelectedCitiesforthe
DataCollection
Number
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
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JournalofEducationforBusiness
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ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20
Traditional Master of Business Administration
(MBA) Versus the MBA With Specialization: A
Disconnection Between What Business Schools
Offer and What Employers Seek
Pola B. Gupta , Paula M. Saunders & Jeremy Smith
To cite this article: Pola B. Gupta , Paula M. Saunders & Jeremy Smith (2007) Traditional
Master of Business Administration (MBA) Versus the MBA With Specialization: A Disconnection
Between What Business Schools Offer and What Employers Seek, Journal of Education for
Business, 82:6, 307-312, DOI: 10.3200/JOEB.82.6.307-312
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/JOEB.82.6.307-312
Published online: 07 Aug 2010.
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Date: 11 January 2016, At: 23:29
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TraditionalMasterofBusiness
Administration(MBA)VersustheMBA
WithSpecialization:ADisconnection
BetweenWhatBusinessSchoolsOffer
andWhatEmployersSeek
POLAB.GUPTA
PAULAM.SAUNDERS
WRIGHTSTATEUNIVERSITY
ABSTRACT. Atrendinmasterofbusinessadministration(MBA)programshas
ABSTRACT.
beentooffermorespecializationsbeyond
thetraditionalbroadMBA.Inthisarticle,
theauthorsexploretherecruitmentpracticesofbusinessandthecurriculaofMBA
programscomparinggeneralMBAdegrees
withMBAdegreeswithspecialization.
Theauthorsempiricallyexaminewhether
employerspreferageneralMBAoran
MBAwithaspecialization.Onthebasisof
ananalysisof758employmentadvertisementsand27MBAprogramsbeingoffered
byuniversities,theauthorsfoundadisconnectionbetweenwhatemployersappeared
towantandwhatbusinessschoolsoffered.
Keywords:employers’preferences,general
MBA,masterofbusinessadministration
programs,specialization
Copyright©2007HeldrefPublications
JEREMYSMITH
QBASEDATASERVICES
I
nacademicterms,themasterofbusiness administration (MBA), developed in the United States in 1908, has
mostlybeenasuccessstory(Pfeffer&
Fong,2002).Althoughresearchershave
frequentlycriticizedthevalueofthecurrentMBAprograms(Bennis&O’Toole,
2005; Elliott, Goodwin, & Goodwin,
1994), many educators, employers,
and students agree with Gavin Staude,
Director of Rhodes Investec Business
School(Jordan,2004):
ThecompetitiveadvantageofanMBAis
that it provides managers with a holistic
perspectiveofmanagementandbusiness
anditequipsthemtoassisttheirorganizations to deliver superior business results
by immersing them in the ‘enabler’ and
cutting-edgedisciplines.(p.40)
Many students say that the opportunities for increased salaries and career
advancementarethereasonsforpursuinganMBAdegree.TheyviewanMBA
asthequickestpathtotheseniorlevels
ofmanagement—somuchsothatmany
of them view its placement function
as more important than its knowledge
function(Hunt&Speck,1986).Inaddition,MBAstudentscanexpecttheirsalary to increase by approximately 18%
upon graduation and 53% 3–5 years
aftergraduation,accordingtothe2005
Careers Survey by the Association of
MBAs (Purcell, 2005). Another recent
survey of the MBA accredited schools
by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)
indicatedthatanMBAeducationhasa
positive impact on graduates’ employment, income, and job promotions in
theshortandlongterms(Zhao,Truell,
Alexander,&Hill,2006).
Graduate programs in business educationarepresentlyatcrossroadsasthe
students and faculty are torn between
selecting or offering a general MBA
program and an MBA with specialization. The existing literature supports
both of these options. It is clear that
businessschoolstodaydo,infact,offer
a variety of MBA programs, including
variations of the traditional MBA programsandMBAprogramswithopportunitiesforspecialization.
Traditional MBA programs focus on
requiredcoursesthatareaimedatcore
businessdisciplines,withnospecialization in the functional areas. Students
often take electives based on a variety
of interests, often at any time during
their program. MBA programs with
specializations have increased over the
yearsonthebasisofthebeliefthatbusinessesneedpeoplewhohaveamoreindepthunderstandingofparticularfunctions and the tasks that they require.
A compromise between the traditional
and specialization degrees is the general MBA. The general MBA provides
knowledge to students in all the basic
business areas and gives students the
opportunity to study certain functional
areasingreaterdepth.
Thebusinesscommunity,forthemost
part,seemstobesendingmixedsignals
(Bennis & O’Toole, 2005). For examJuly/August2007
307
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ple,companieshireMBAswithnarrow
specialization and then complain that
businessschoolsarenotproducingindividuals who will be able to both lead
andmakepracticaldecisions.
In this study, we analyzed 758
employmentadvertisementsfrommajor
newspapersandsomepopularWebsites
to determine if there is any evidence
thattheemployersarelookingforcandidates with a general MBA degree or
anMBAwithaspecializationinagiven
functional area, such as marketing or
accounting.Inaddition,weanalyzed27
MBAprograms,including13fromtop
businessschoolsintheUnitedStates,to
determinethepresenceorlackofavailableconcentrationsintheprogram.
LiteratureReview
Analysisofthe27MBAprograms(see
AppendixA)revealedtheMBAprogram
structures related to traditional versus
specialized curricula, and the literature
supportstheirexistence.HuntandSpeck
(1986)alsohadreviewed27MBAprogramsintheirresearchandsortedthose
programsintofivesimilarcategories:(a)
generalbroadMBA,(b)MBAwithspecialization, (c) general MBA, (d) MBA
with specializations, and (e) MBA with
numerousspecializationinnicheareas.
TheGeneralMBAProgram
The general MBA program tends to
focusoncoresubjectsthatareaimedat
developing knowledge and skills in all
key areas of business. Typically, managers on the way up move from entrylevel specialized jobs to positions with
broaderresponsibilities.Thus,business
educators design these general MBA
programs to develop general skills and
knowledge in management, rather than
expertise in specialized areas (Jenkins,
Reizenstein, & Rodgers, 1984). This
kind of MBA is accepted more by
employers who desire general business
organizationandcommunicationsskills
over specific functional skills.According to Elliott et al. (1994), “U.S. businesses would like to recruit managers
whoaremorebroadlyeducatedinbusiness,aregoodcommunicatorsandteam
workers, understand the importance of
process,andminimizecompetitionwith
fellowworkers”(p.56).
308
JournalofEducationforBusiness
Fortheseemployers,theprimarypurpose of an MBA is to produce managers who understand the entire business
ratherthanaspecificsegment.
MBAWithSpecializations
Manybusinesseducatorshavedecided
thatthecoreMBAcurriculum,although
stillvaluable,isnolongerenoughtosuit
theneedsoftoday’semployers(Bisoux,
2005). Bisoux suggests that business
schoolsarebettingthatcompanieswill
want to hire students who are exposed
toamorespecialized,integrated,experiential,andsequencedcurricula.Some
argue that too few details provided in
the general MBA programs may not
prepare students sufficiently for the
businessworld(Simon,1989).According to such critics, the classic general
MBA attempts to produce managers
who can understand every aspect of
thebusiness,buttodayMBAgraduates
will also likely be required to manage
specifictasksinatechnologicallycomplexenvironment.AccordingtoMowry
(2003), companies want employees to
learn specialized skills sets and they
will contract with MBA programs to
deliverthemonsite.
Hunt and Speck (1986) found that
neither corporate employers nor MBA
students preferred the general MBA
degree. Of the five possible MBA program types, those with specialization
were consistently selected above those
without specialization by employers
and MBA students. According to the
authors, however, these findings did
not conflict with the need for general
knowledge.
most respected business schools in the
United States and Canada are getting
rid of the specialization trend. Gerdes
addsthatsomeschoolsarecompromising by offering management specializations that have broad applications
suchasleadership.Manyeducatorsare
alsothinkingthatspecializationisafad
that is contrary to the purpose of the
generalMBA.Theyarguethatbusiness
schools need to provide students with
well-roundedcapabilitiesbecausemost
companiesstilllookforthecriteriathey
did30yearsago(Gerdes).
Perhaps in an ideal world, business
schools should prepare students with
both a generalist background and specific knowledge. Given the dilemma,
some business schools offer a combination of general MBA programs and
specializations. Jenkins et al. (1984)
reported that most schools divided the
MBAcurriculumsothatstudentscould
chooseanareaofspecializationtocomplementtheirtrainingasgeneralists.
Some universities give students an
optiontochoosebetweenageneralMBA
andageneralMBAwithaspecialization.
For example, students could get a generalMBAinwhichtheywouldcomplete
thecorecoursesrequiredtograduateand
thentakeadditionalelectivesorselecta
specialization in a functional area. Students may also have a choice of how
general or specific they want the programtobe.Thisseemstobealow-risk
strategyforthebusinessschoolsbecause
they can cater to the needs of two segmentsofthemarket:(a)companiesthat
seek general MBAs and (b) others who
wantMBAswithspecializations.
GeneralMBAandSpecialization
Options
MBAWithNumerous
SpecializationsInNicheAreas
There are, however, concerns about
focusingtoomuchonMBAspecializations. Focusing on a specialty could
glossoverthebasicssuchasmarketing
and finance. There is a risk of alienating big recruiters, such as consulting
companiesthatpreferthegeneralMBA.
Amorenarrowappealcouldalsoresult
in a smaller pool of applicants, a less
diversestudentbody,adiminishededucational experience, and limited career
choices for graduates’ (Gerdes, 2005).
AccordingtoGray(2000),someofthe
Another MBA program structure is
one in which business schools offer
MBAdegreesinnumerousnicheareas.
AccordingtoElliottetal.(1994),narrow
specialization may be more in demand
as businesses lean toward demand for
theinformedgeneralist.
Likemanyotheruniversities,theUniversity of Wisconsin-Madison’s School
ofBusinesshadseenadropinapplication for full time MBA programs. Its
full time applications dropped 30% in
3 years, and the university authorities
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felt that the situation was likely to get
worse (Gerdes, 2005). The authorities
respondedbydoingsomethingthatmany
moreschoolsaredoingthesedays—they
addednumerousspecializations.In2004,
theuniversityreplacedthegeneralMBA
with13distinctspecializationsineverythingfromartsadministrationtoapplied
corporatefinance.Studentschooseaspecialization before they take their first
class, and then they will work with a
team of students—each with a different
specialization—for the duration of the
program (Bisoux, 2005). As a strategy,
thespecializationseemstobeworkingat
schoolsliketheUniversityofWisconsinMadisonandBostonUniversity.Student
satisfactionisup,declineinapplications
has stopped, and higher rankings ultimatelymaybetheresult(Gerdes).That
isprobablywhymanyschoolsnowfocus
programsonafewwell-chosenspecialtiesandchoosetobuildtheirspecialties
aroundspecificindustries.
Many educators believe that today’s
competitive environment may require
an even more specialized program that
focuses on a single industry or function (Gerdes, 2005). Creating specialized MBA programs, like health care
orprojectmanagement,allowsmid-tier
schools to stand out. Other large universities offer similar programs. Stanford University has established a new
Institute of Design that teaches design
thinkingandstrategytobusiness,engineering,anddesignstudents.TheInstituteofDesignattheIllinoisInstituteof
Technology,anothertopD-schoolinthe
United States sends its gradutes to big
businesses (Merritt & Lavelle, 2005).
Gray (2000) said that business schools
thatarenoteliteschoolsordonotoffer
auniquecurriculummightbeinserious
dangerofgoingoutofbusiness.
Employers’PerspectivesofMBAs
Employers seem to have varying
preferences.Someappeartolikeawellroundededucation,otherspreferaspecializedone,andsomeemployersseem
to want both. According to Hunt and
Speck(1986),someemployersexpress
support for a broader orientation in
trainingforcareersinbusinesswhenin
actuality they have a strong desire for
technicalcompetence.
There are many reasons why the
MBA maintains its leading position in
executivequalificationoptionsandwhy
seniormanagersstillchoosetoinvestin
thequalification.Employerscontinueto
value the MBA as a guarantee of generalbusinessskillsandknowledge.Purcell(2005)reportsontheattitudeofSir
MartinSorrell,headofWireandPlastics
Products(WPP),theglobaladvertising
giant, who said that, “faced with two
candidatesofequalcaliber,ifonepossessesanMBA,Iwouldalwaysemploy
the candidate with the MBA” (p. 23).
Theproblemforemployers,businesses,
andstudentsisdeterminingthebestcurriculum structure at any point in time
that offers the greatest benefits. One
of the big curriculum questions today
isrelatedtotheissueofthetraditional
MBAversusthespecializedMBA.
PurposeoftheStudy
The traditional MBA degree emphasizes a general education, but results
of some studies (e.g., Hunt & Speck,
1986)suggestthatemployerswantspecialization.Duringthepast9years,we
havefoundnoacademicstudytodetermineifthereisadifferenttrendinterms
ofemployers’preferencesforageneral
MBA degree or MBA with specializations. We attempt to address this issue
byperformingacontentanalysisof758
advertisements from major newspapers
in the 15 cities in the United States as
wellasanalysisofpopularemployment
Websites.
ResearchQuestions
We investigated the following: (a)
DoemployerspreferatraditionalMBA
degree or an MBA with a specialization?(b)Dotheemployers’preferences
varyacrosstypeofindustry?(c)Isthe
level of position (upper, middle, and
lower) advertised related to employers’
preferencesforageneralorspecialized
MBA? (d) Do employers prefer a general MBA with a specific major in the
undergraduatebusinessprogram?
METHOD
Wecollecteddatafrom758employmentadvertisementsinwhichanMBA
degree was specified as a preferred or
required qualification. The advertisements were obtained from the classifiedsectionsofmajornewspapers(e.g.,
Chicago Sun-Times, New York Times)
andthetwonationallyrecognizedWeb
sites (monster.com and careerbuilder.
com) from 15 most populated cities in
theUnitedStates(seeAppendixB).The
data collected included job title, city,
state, number of years of experience
required, degree requirement, undergraduate concentration, MBA concentration, and if the MBA was preferred
orrequired.
Salariesofferedintheselectedadvertisements ranged from under $50,000
toover$200,000withameansalaryof
$83,393.Theexperiencepreferredinthe
advertisementsrangedfromunder1year
toashighasover15yearswithamean
experience of 5.5 years. Job postings
represented 9 different industries with
thetop3industriesbeingfinance,insurance and banking (38.8%), manufacturing(12.9%),andhealthcare(11%).
We selected 27 universities to see
what specializations they offered,
includingthetop13MBAprogramsin
the United States. The schools representedinoursurveyofferedanaverage
of nine specializations per school. The
rangeofspecializationwasfrom6–18.
The four most common specializations
thatnearlyalloftheprogramsoffered
were marketing, finance, accounting,
andmanagement.OthercommonMBA
concentrations included management
information systems, human resources,
international business, entrepreneurship, and operations management. The
universities also offered a total of 85
niche specializations (e.g., health-care,
project management, innovation and
change,creativity).
RESULTS
We performed content analysis of
758advertisementsinwhichemployers
mentioned MBA as one of the qualifications for the advertised position.
Approximately 95% of the advertisementsspecifiedthattheMBAwaspreferred,whichmeantonly5%ofthepositionsactuallyrequiredanMBAdegree.
Therangeofexperiencedesiredforthe
advertised positions varied from 1–15
years. With respect to the requirement
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309
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ofaspecializationintheMBAprogram,
96% of positions required or preferred
a general MBA and only 4% of them
asked for a specialization. Out of the
4%thatrequiredaspecializationinthe
MBA,themostcommonlysoughtareas
were accounting and finance, which
accountedfor50%ofallthespecializationsspecifiedintheadvertisements.
Even though only 4% of the positions advertised required an MBA
degree with a specific specialization,
nearly 35% of advertisements required
aspecificmajorareaintheundergraduateprogram.Theresultsindicatethata
largenumberofadvertisedpositionsdid
notrequireaspecializationintheMBA
programatall.However,whereemployers desired special skills for the positions, the employers asked for either a
specialization in the MBA program, or
aparticularmajorintheundergraduate
program.
To find out if the employers’ desire
for an MBA with specialization and a
general MBA degree vary across varioustypesofindustries,weperformeda
crosstabulationbetweenCHOICE(specialization or general MBA) variable
andINDUSTRYTYPE.Wedetermined
INDUSTRY TYPE by classifying the
companiesthatadvertised758positions
into eight North American Industry
ClassificationSystem(NAICS)groups:
manufacturing, retail and wholesale,
informationindustry,finance,insurance
and banking, real estate, educational
services, and health care. The results
fromthecrosstabulationarepresented
inTable1.WeconductedaChi-square
testtodetermineifthereisanyassociationbetweenCHOICEandINDUSTRY
TYPEvariables.TheChi-squarestatisticwasnotsignificant,χ2(8,N=721)=
14.14, p = .078, at α = 5%, indicating
no relationship between CHOICE and
INDUSTRYTYPE.
We also performed an analysis to
determineiftheLEVELoftheposition
advertised was related to a general or
specialized MBA degree. On the basis
ofthetitleofthepositionintheadvertisements,allofthe758advertisedpositionswereclassifiedintothreelevelsof
management(upper,middle,andlower)
bytwoofthethreeauthorsofthisstudy.
Theauthorscameupwithasimilarclassification,exceptforafewcases,which
TABLE1.CrossTabulationofChoiceofMasterofBusiness
Administration(MBA)TypeVersusTypeofIndustry
Typeofindustry
Conclusions
ChoiceofMBAtype(%)
GeneralMBA MBAwithconcentation
Manufacturing
Retailorwholesale
Information(e.g.,publishing,broadcasting)
Finance,insurance,banking
Realestate
Professional,scientific,andtechnicalservices
Educationalservices
Healthcare
97.8
90.0
84.6
95.7
100
93.3
93.3
97.5
2.2
10
15.4
4.3
0
6.7
6.7
2.5
Note.χ2(8,N=721)=14.14,p=.078.
TABLE2.CrossTabulationofChoiceofMBATypeVersusLevelof
Managers
ChoiceofMBA
GeneralMBA
MBAwithaconcentration
Note.χ2(2,N=758)=2.45,p=0.29.
310
JournalofEducationforBusiness
Levelofmanagers(%)
Upperlevel Middlelevel Entrylevel
98.1
1.9
96
4
werelaterresolved.Thecrosstabulation
betweenLEVELandCHOICErevealed
no significant relationship between the
two variables because the Chi-square
statistic was not significant at α = 5%
(seeTable2).Theseresultssuggestthat
the desire for a general MBA or one
with specialization is independent of
thelevelofpositionadvertised.Wethen
concludethatirrespectiveofthelevelof
position advertised, an overwhelming
majorityoftheemployersdidnotprefer
anMBAwithaspecialization.
The preceding analysis of 758
employmentadvertisementsin15large
cities suggests that an overwhelming
numberofemployerspreferorrequire
onlyageneralMBAdegree.Thelevel
of position advertised or the industry type to which they belonged was
not related to the choice of a general
MBA or an MBA with specialization.
In advertisements in which skills in a
particularfieldwererequired,employers requested a specific major in the
undergraduate degree (35% of positions in our study) and, in only a few
cases,askedforaspecializationinthe
MBA degree (4% of positions in our
study).
95.1
3.8
Onthebasisoftheanalysisofthetop
13MBAprogramsintheUnitedStates,
we found that all of the universities
offered specializations. The range of
number of specialization across these
schools varied from 6–18 . However,
the content analysis of advertisements
indicated that the vast majority of
employers do not care about the specializationsintheMBAdegree,andyet,
schools keep offering more and more
nicheprograms.
If skills in a functional area were
requiredfortheadvertisedposition,the
employers usually required a specific
majorintheundergraduatedegree.For
example,inthisstudy,35%oftheadvertisements specified that the candidate
must have a particular major in their
undergraduatedegreefortheadvertised
position.
In conclusion, we found a disconnection between what MBA programs
offer and the employers’ needs. There
are several possible alternative expla-
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nations to explain this disconnection.
First, for many decades the offers of
specializations in MBA programs have
increased. For universities, it may be
a high-risk strategy not to offer specializationsbecausemanyschoolsoffer
them.Theriskisanydropinenrollment
thatcanwronglybeattributedtolackof
specializationsintheMBAprogram.
Second, even if employers do not
careforspecialization,studentsmaystill
want them. We conducted an informal
study of 27 prospective MBA students
enrolledinprerequisitecoursesrequired
for admission into the MBA program,
and approximately 40% of them said
concentrationsweresomewhatimportant
tothem.Ninetypercentsaidtheywould
choose a concentration if it were available.Therearemanystudentswhoenter
the MBA programs from backgrounds
other than business (e.g., engineering,
psychology).A specialized MBA might
bemoreattractiveforsomeonewhohad
a substantive background in a major
otherthanbusinessattheundergraduate
level.Third,employersmayavoidspecifying a specialization in the advertisementbecausetheydonotwanttonarrow
thepoolofapplicants.
Until researchers find the probable
reasonsforthedisconnectionstatedearlier, universities may pursue a low-risk
strategybyofferingbothageneralMBA
andanMBAwithspecializationstosatisfytheneedsofbothemployersandstudents.AgeneralbroadMBAcoversthe
basicsandprovidestheknowhowinspecificjobfunctions.Evenmoreattractive
maybeabroadMBAcurriculuminfused
withmultidisciplinary,practical,andethicalissuesthatteachdecisionmakingto
addressthecomplexchallengesbusiness
leadersface.Allowingstudentstotailor
elective classes could be another way
tobothcovercorefunctionsandenable
studentstogainskillsandknowledgein
amorespecificarea.
Offering specializations may benefit
some faculty. Faculty members may
prefer to teach courses in the specialized areas if they are relevant to their
researchinterests.Thistypeofpersonal
satisfaction could lead to high quality
of instruction and more enthused students.Disadvantagesmayincludefindingtherightfacultytoteachspecialized
courses.Theremaynotbequalifiedfacultytoteachtheclassesneededforthe
specialization.Thismaynecessitatehiring new faculty, which is an expensive
option. Offering many specializations
also may lead to lower enrollment in
some classes leading to inefficient use
offacultyresources.
Futureresearchshouldfocusonsurveyingemployerstounderstandexactly
whattheylookforinpotentialemployees,toascertainiftheironlinenewspaperadvertisementsaccuratelystatewhat
they really want, and to discover their
preferences related to MBA concentrations.Researchshouldalsobeconducted among MBA students to find their
viewsofageneralMBAversusanMBA
with specializations. It is possible that
even if the employers ask for specializations,studentsmaypreferspecializationstoupdatetheirknowledgeintheir
functional areas. As suggested above,
future research will, hopefully, offer a
clearexplanationofwhatappearstobe
a disconnect between what employers
want in an MBA program and what
the universities offer. Until then, we
believe,businessschoolsshouldcontinuetoofferbothageneralMBAdegree
andspecializations.
NOTE
Dr. Pola Gupta’s research interests are product placement, Internet marketing, software and
musicpiracy,internationalmarketing,andpublic
policyissues.
Dr. Paula Saunders’s research interests are
Internet,relationshipmarketing,highereducation
andservicequality.
JeremySmith’sresearchinterestsarecurriculumissuesinMBAprograms.
Correspondenceconcerningthisarticleshouldbe
addressedtoDr.PolaB.Gupta,WrightStateUniversity, Department of Marketing, 266 Rike Hall, Raj
SoinCollegeofBusiness,Dayton,OH45435.
E–mail:[email protected]
REFERENCES
Bennis,W. G., & O’Toole, J. (2005). How businessschoolslosttheirway.Harvard
BusinessReview,83(5),96–104.
Bisoux, T. (2005, May/June) The extreme MBA
makeover.BizEd,pp.27–33.
Elliott,C.J.,Goodwin,J.S.,&Goodwin,J.C.(1994).
MBAprogramsandbusinessneeds:Isthereamismatch?BusinessHorizons,37(4),55–59.
Gerdes,L.(2005,September5).B-schoolswitha
niche.BusinessWeek,3949,pp.70–72.
Gray, J. (2000). Fit or fad? Canadian Business,
73(20),72–76.
Hunt,S.D.,&Speck,P.S.(1986).Specialization
andtheMBA:IsthebroadMBApassé?CaliforniaManagementReview,29(3),159–175.
Jenkins,R.L.,Reizenstein,R.C.,&Rodgers,F.
G.(1984).ReportcardsontheMBA.Harvard
BusinessReview,62(5),20–30.
Jordan,D.(2004,July5).Thecompetitiveadvantage: Qualification teaches students to think.
FinanceWeek,p.40.
Merritt,J.&Lavelle,L.(2005,August1).Tomorrow’sB-school?ItmightbeaD-school.
BusinessWeek,3945,pp.80–81.
Mowry,M.(2003).TheevolvingMBA.Retrieved
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Pfeffer, J., & Fong, C. (2002, July 27). The
$100,000question.Economist,364,56–57.
Purcell,J.(2005,August17).MBAbringsbenefits
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SimonJr.,J.J.(1989).AreportcardonAmerica’s
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311
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APPENDIXA
Listof27BusinessSchoolsUsedfortheAnalysisofMBAPrograms
Number
Collegeoruniversity
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
BowlingGreenStateUniversity
CaseWesternReserveUniversity
ClevelandStateUniversity
ColumbiaUniversity
CornellUniversity
DukeUniversity
HarvardCollege
KentStateUniversity
MassachusettsInstituteofTechnology
MiamiUniversityofOhio
NorthwesternUniversity
OhioStateUniversity
OhioUniversity,Athens
StanfordUniversity
UniversityofAkron
UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley
UniversityofCalifornia,LosAngeles
UniversityofChicago
UniversityofCincinnati
UniversityofDayton
UniversityofMichigan-AnnArbor
UniversityofPennsylvania
UniversityofToledo
UniversityofVirginia
WrightStateUniversity
XavierUniversity
YoungstownStateUniversity
APPENDIXB
ListofSelectedCitiesforthe
DataCollection
Number
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
312
JournalofEducationforBusiness
City
NewYorkCity,NewYork
LosAngeles,California
Chicago,Illinois
Houston,Texas
Philadelphia,Pennsylvania
Phoenix,Arizona
Detroit,Michigan
Indianapolis,Indiana
Jacksonville,Florida
Columbus,Ohio
Memphis,Tennessee
Denver,Colorado
Omaha,Nebraska
Cincinnati,Ohio
Dayton,Ohio