Dive Brief:
- MBA programs have undergone a number of shifts since Harvard offered the first program in 1908, the latest of which includes an increase in nontraditional students far-removed from the classroom.
- The university dean of business at American InterContinental University, Judy Bullock, points to adaptive learning as an important tool to serve this generation of students, who come with varied experiences, strengths, and weaknesses.
- American InterContinental University uses proprietary adaptive learning technology called Intellipath to create unique course pathways for every student, many of whom did not get undergraduate degrees in business and were not necessarily successful in traditional schools.
Dive Insight:
American InterContinental launched its redesigned MBA with Intellipath in April 2014. The online program gives MBA students a chance to skip ahead in lessons teaching skills they have already mastered and allows them to slow down the course during unfamiliar sections. Bullock said soft skills are also built into the curriculum to ensure students leave the program ready to be successful in actual office environments. The program was designed with employer needs in mind.
Another alternative business program long popular in Europe is the Masters in Management, which caters to younger students — some of whom have gone straight through from undergraduate to graduate coursework and do not bring the five years of work experience typically expected of business school students.