Online MBA Forum

Interesting comment about the MBA being the ground level of management, in fact the progression and development of the MBA during the 40s and 50s was thought to be exactly that. A variety of programs were developed encompassing the new management thinking. They mirrored the rise of subjects such as human resources - which of course during those days was called personnel management. Organisational theory began to feature as a subject, along with the idea of financial management as opposed to simple historical accounting.

The seventies saw the beginning of the real boom in professional degrees, and the MBA began to see specialization. Increasingly it was recognized that experience before study could give students some basis to work with, so students were encouraged to work in industry for two to five years before returning to add theory to their practical experience.

James' comment about the generation of business in WW1 makes absolute sense. The early MBAs looked to the mechanics of business, how to manage finance and inventory; operational issues and sales. These subjects were covered in some detail, but the professional part of the MBA was the idea of dealing with a whole company rather than the sum of the parts - a principle that has, with some updating, remained the backbone of any MBA program.

Most students who studied for an MBA were from wealthy backgrounds; people who were expected to take over the family business. The MBA was the first step to the boardroom. They were guarenteed their place in business, all they needed was some knowledge to start them off. A little different from today's online MBA student, particularly working people who need to study and earn.

I've been looking at the history of the MBA, and how it came into being. The MBA grew out of the early accounting and bookkeeping courses that started to be fashionable in the early 20th century in America. Business was changing, industrialisation meant that American business needed to sharpen up it's frontier image into one of responsible and accountable transparency. There was also a perceived need to educate the people who owned and ran the businesses that were growing rapidly.

The standard American two year graduate program was seen as being the ideal model for this, with entrance immediately after gaining a first degree. This kind of course became recognised as having a professional rather than an academic content, and was therefore seen as an ideal entrance to a career in business.