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Now-a-days, there are many different types of MBA programs. Before making a decision, you should evaluate each and every one.

Even though they are both full-time programs, one-year MBA programs are quite a bit different than their two-year counterparts.

A one-year MBA program has very strict requirements for admission, both in academic training and work history. Says Oumkar Umesh.

The education sector has undergone a massive transition. The management sector in particular has witnessed several sea changes. Each year sees a new set of courses being introduced. It seems as though everyone has a course to match to his or her interest. Several management institutions have restructured their buildings and their infrastructure to accommodate management students. IIMs, however, head the list and are held in high rank. Below them there are many other colleges in various parts of the country.

The number of colleges in Karnataka itself exceeds 40. But the point of argument is: do these colleges succeed in serving the purpose of their existence?

The common factor between other colleges and IIMs is that they share a common syllabus, with the same subjects. The marketing management book written by Philip Kotler remains a bible for all the management students. Despite the several common elements, IIMs continue to rule the top position. They are more in demand among prospective MBA students than others. It is obviously the brand, which sells them. "Yes, we do face a lot of difficulty in placing ourselves in good companies. We are many a times forced to choose a job much against our wish. Unlike IIMs, we do not have a wide range of choices. IIM students get what they like whereas we have to settle for what we get," says Sadashiv.

"I had to struggle for two years, to get into an MNC. I was good at concepts, but lacked practical experience. I worked for a credit card company much against my interest in the beginning, and only after two years, I got an offer with a good package," says Somesh. "One-year or two-year depends on the answer to 'Why MBA?' A one-year has a cost advantage but I have come to the conclusion that if your aim is career switching, you will be bewildered in a one-year programmes. The two-year programme offers a luxury called summer-internship where you can get hands-on experience in the field you want to switch to. A one-year is more for all those who have been-there-done-it-all who just want to enhance."

Most of the students complain that the companies ask for experience. The irony is unless they provide us job, how do they expect us to have experience, he asks. "Though two-tier and three-tier colleges possess all the infrastructure, they lack in the quality of education. Probably this is the factor, which hold the IIMs in high esteem. Only chairs and tables will not build our careers," he explains.

"We have seminars, group discussions, study tours as part of our curriculum but they are hardly conducted. Our study tours are more jolly picnics. The required seriousness is not found in these colleges. Immediately after I came to Bangalore, I was short-listed in the entrance test of a reputed college.

But in the second round, I was told that I lacked communication skills. I even joined a personality development course of one month. Now, I am a lot more serious than I was before," says Somesh.

"It is not that all of us suffer. There are unlimited openings. The private sector demands certain qualities, which we need to possess. How many of us try to inculcate what we lack? Some girls in my college did not know why they were in a management course? With such attitude, it is indeed difficult to dream of success," says Sadashiv. He adds that we never received any campus interviews. An IIM student has a complete and concrete plan of his future. It should be a combined effort of the college as well as the students to look after the benefit of the student.

"Every non-IIM student has to work as a trainee without much hope of good salary. The increased number of graduates has forced the selection process to be tougher. We have to be very selective. However, we cannot compromise with the quality as we are answerable to the industry," says Sucheta G. who runs a consultant firm.

We have known it for a while now: when the seven-figure salary itch happens, the MBA is the quickest way to move up from the Dilbertian cubicle farm to the classy corner office with a view. And industry opinion converges on this fact: an MBA is on everyone's radar.

Says Shiv Aggrawal, Director, ABC Consultants, "It may not seem like it now, but at some point in the future everyone will consider further study in business at the postgraduate level." Whether to broaden horizons and shift your career focus, to accelerate your progression up the ladder by specializing in a particular field, or to strengthen your CV and consequently, your earning potential, you are undoubtedly aware of the value an MBA degree offers to both prospective students and employers.

Now, however, two things are changing. First, the demographic the degree addresses is no longer the same. It's no longer the fresh graduate who signs up for the course but the experienced professional as well. Second, the traditional two-year course is morphing into a one-year degree.

The Indian School of Business at Hyderabad was the first to offer the one-year MBA programme in India in 200I, followed by XLRI in 2004. IIM Ahmedabad is also on course with its one-year programme, which begins in April 2006, there are also plans afoot by IIM Bangalore to launch a one-year Executive Master of Business Administration programme from the academic year starting July 2006.

Says Prof. A. Krishna Murthy of M. P. Birla Institute of Management Studies, "Trends in business education abroad generally point in favour of shorter programmes with the length of executive education courses continually shrinking." So, it is a global phenomenon that business schools are offering shorter duration full programmes or even shorter duration courses - from five-week courses to 10-day ones or even 7-day ones.

The one-year MBA is also an excellent value proposition for those who have left their jobs or taken a mid-career sabbatical for higher studies. "It takes into account the substantial and varied experience the selected executives bring to the classroom," says Tamonas Gangopadhyay, Professor In-charge of the one-year MBA programme at XLRI.

The upsurge seen recently in one-year degrees has been driven, for the most part, by corporate demand, serving mostly experienced professionals and recent undergraduates with some work experience. Although two-year programs are still the norm in most business schools, accelerated and specialized one-year programs are seeing slight increases in enrollment. Business schools have been adversely impacted by this trend; in fact, they are offering degree options that combine an undergraduate business degree with an MBA in a five-year program.

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