The Mini MBA's Big Appeal

Short programs that provide an overview of management essentials are in demand as a dislocated workforce discovers the value of a little business know-how

By Alison Damast

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Tom McKinley first heard of the mini MBA offered at the University of St. Thomas while attending a job networking group for unemployed workers in the Twin Cities. The weeklong class at the school's Opus College of Business (St. Thomas Executive MBA Profile) sounded like the perfect fit for McKinley, 58, a former sales manager and father of two college-age children who has been job hunting since being laid off six months ago.

"There are just a tremendous amount of people looking for jobs, especially in my area, and I knew that I needed to enhance my background and credentials," says McKinley, who was able to get the $2,495 tuition for the program covered by a grant from Minnesota's Dislocated Workers Program.

A few weeks later he found himself in a business school classroom with professors from the school's MBA program, brushing up on topics like finance and operations, reviewing case studies, and participating in a business simulation. The class has given him a boost in the job market, says McKinley, who has since added the credential to his LinkedIn profile and other job networking sites.

"I'm already getting more interest in my résumé since taking the class and I'm certainly promoting it as I go forward," says McKinley. "People are going to ask me, 'What have you been doing since you've been unemployed for six months?' This is one of the things I can point to."

cheaper way to boost credentials

With the downturn in the economy, people like McKinley are increasingly looking for fast and inexpensive ways to bolster their credentials and brush up on their business skills. Many are turning to quick-hit business education programs, commonly referred to as "mini-MBA" programs, which have proliferated at business schools across the country in recent years. The classes, which typically range in price from $2,000 to $4,000, are designed for middle managers who often don't have a business background or MBA, but want to get a better grasp on business essentials to help them progress in their careers. They also frequently serve as a testing ground for people who are not certain they want to invest the time or money in an MBA, which can take two years or more and cost upward of $100,000.

In recent years more business schools have started offering mini MBA programs through their executive education programs, according to experts in the field, though there is no data that track the number of programs. Classes usually are taught by MBA professors who, in a few days or in a month or two of evening courses, give a condensed overview of the major topics and concepts taught in full-time, two-year MBA degree programs. Students generally receive continuing education credits for the classes, though some schools allow them to earn credit hours toward a degree program. In most cases, tuition is paid by an individual's company, but increasingly schools are seeing more students pay for the classes out-of-pocket or, as in McKinley's case, through state unemployment grants. Schools say interest in mini-MBA programs has increased sharply in the past year, with many rolling out additional sections and enrolling a record number of students.

These types of MBA boot camps were originally offered by consulting companies such as McKinsey & Co. and Booz Allen Hamilton to get their recent undergraduate hires schooled on business essentials. But in recent years, more B-schools have begun to offer these types of programs on campus, and the use of the term "mini MBA" has taken on a more formal usage in the management education community, says Dan LeClair, vice-president and chief knowledge officer at the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, which accredits business programs.

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