What a Difference a Year Makes: One-Year vs. Two-Year MBA Programs

While the one-year option is usually more affordable and time efficient, it isn't for everybody. Each program offers something different.

Program Content

The typical one-year MBA program is a more highly focused, "quick-and-dirty" MBA than the two-year program, which usually relies on a second year to give students time for electives and specialization. The two-year model provides students fresh out of an undergraduate program with very little professional experience, an opportunity to explore which facet of business administration appeals to them. It is often accompanied by an internship component.

On the other hand, the one-year version is designed for those who cannot afford to leave the workplace for two years and who already have two or more years in the business world. One-year MBA students are interested in getting the degree to improve upon what they're already doing by taking just the core courses. They don't need electives. Novice business students aren't usually accepted to one-year programs. Technology has also changed the way MBA programs can be administered, with distance and online education components becoming commonplace in the one-year program.

Less Quality?

Although it's quick, don't worry that the one-year MBA is regarded as lower in quality. In fact, Albert Niemi, Jr., former dean of the University of Georgia's Terry College of Business, says, "I don't see, in the data that we have collected – in terms of starting salaries – that there is any difference in the way one-year people are treated by industry. One-year grads do as well as two-year grads in terms of earning power in the marketplace."

Source:

"Future Trends and Opportunities in the Twenty-first Century"; by John C. Hallenborg; Peterson's Graduate School - Why an MBA?