{"id":77928,"date":"2026-05-04T08:07:38","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T15:07:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/?p=77928"},"modified":"2026-05-04T08:08:37","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T15:08:37","slug":"new-16-month-mba","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/new-16-month-mba\/","title":{"rendered":"New 16-month MBA offers a practical solution for today\u2019s professionals"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a\u00a0rapidly\u00a0evolving job market where time is as valuable as credentials, a growing number of working professionals are\u00a0looking for ways\u00a0to advance their\u00a0careers\u00a0without pressing pause on their lives.\u00a0This summer, NAU will launch\u00a0a\u00a0<\/span>16-month online master of business administration<\/span><\/a>\u00a0degree\u00a0that\u00a0aims to bridge the gap between\u00a0ambition\u00a0and accessibility, offering a streamlined path to a master\u2019s degree that is both time-efficient and cost-conscious.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Designed\u00a0with flexibility at its core, the program caters to professionals balancing full-time work, family\u00a0commitments\u00a0and career growth. The\u00a0condensed\u00a0format allows students\u00a0to\u00a0complete\u00a0the\u00a0coursework\u00a0in\u00a0a little\u00a0more than\u00a0a year, significantly faster than\u00a0traditional\u00a0MBA timelines.\u00a0Its online delivery model removes geographic barriers and reduces overhead\u00a0costs, making higher\u00a0education\u00a0more attainable for a broader audience.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Mahendra K.\u00a0Joshi<\/span><\/b>, professor\u00a0in\u00a0<\/span>The W. A. Franke College of Business\u00a0and director of MBA programs, said\u00a0the\u00a0inaugural cohort will start this summer<\/span>.\u00a0Students will move together through the program,\u00a0taking about three\u00a0classes every semester.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey will work both in teams and individually, but the idea is to have a team-based\u00a0approach\u00a0to solving problems in the classroom,\u201d Joshi said. \u201cThis program is meant for working professionals with a few years of work experience. We want them to start sharing their experiences with each other because that, in itself, becomes\u00a0a great learning opportunity for them. There is also the networking aspect of it since they are coming in from all different industries and backgrounds.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This\u00a016-month\u00a0online MBA, accredited by the\u00a0<\/span>Association\u00a0of\u00a0Advanced\u00a0Collegiate Schools of Business<\/span><\/a>\u00a0(AACSB),\u00a0is not only fast\u00a0but\u00a0also more\u00a0affordable. On average, the total cost is 30-40% lower than comparable AACSB-accredited MBA programs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is probably the best value for the money you can get anywhere, not just within the state, but anywhere in the nation,\u201d Joshi said. \u201cWe tried to keep\u00a0it\u00a016 months because\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0intense, but it gets them in and out in a quick\u00a0time frame\u00a0instead of taking three or four years with lots of credits\u00a0and\u00a0high costs.\u00a0In this program, students only need 36 credits to graduate, getting\u00a0a good understanding of business\u00a0in less time and for less money.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2022, NAU launched an\u00a0online\u00a0<\/span>MBA\u00a0program for healthcare<\/span><\/a>\u00a0in partnership with Dignity Health to fill the need\u00a0for\u00a0leaders\u00a0in the healthcare industry.\u00a0Joshi said\u00a0this new program wants to do the same,\u00a0but\u00a0on a broader scale.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we have seen with our other\u00a0online\u00a0MBA\u00a0program\u00a0is\u00a0that we have very high retention rates, close to 95%,\u201d Joshi said.\u00a0\u201cPart of the reason is\u00a0that\u00a0students are getting a lot\u00a0out\u00a0of the program. They can learn business concepts in the classroom and apply them to their workplace the next day. That is the kind of learning we are\u00a0aspiring to do\u00a0for this program,\u00a0given that the students\u00a0are\u00a0working professionals.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As employers increasingly value both experience and advanced\u00a0qualifications, programs like this reflect a shift in how business education is delivered, prioritizing\u00a0practicality\u00a0and focusing on\u00a0real-world relevance.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMany of these students\u00a0are\u00a0already making decisions for the companies they work for,\u201d Joshi said. \u201cThey might not know the accounting principles or why they are solving problems so effectively. Once they\u00a0learn\u00a0these\u00a0concepts, they\u00a0will\u00a0start getting the\u00a0confidence\u00a0they need and will continue to grow.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For more information about\u00a0<\/span>NAU\u2019s online Master of Business Administration<\/span><\/a>\u00a0program, contact\u00a0<\/span>Ally Hubbard<\/span><\/b>\u00a0by email<\/span><\/a>\u00a0or by phone at\u00a0(928)\u00a0523-0037. Applicants can waive their application fee by using code #MBA26.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Northern<\/a>Mariana Laas | NAU Communications
\n(928) 523-5050 | mariana.laas@nau.edu<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a\u00a0rapidly\u00a0evolving job market where time is as valuable as credentials, a growing number of working professionals are\u00a0looking for ways\u00a0to advance their\u00a0careers\u00a0without pressing pause on their lives.\u00a0This summer, NAU will launch\u00a0a\u00a016-month online master of business administration\u00a0degree\u00a0that\u00a0aims to bridge the gap between\u00a0ambition\u00a0and accessibility, offering a streamlined path to a master\u2019s degree that is both time-efficient and…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":100,"featured_media":77931,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77928","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-research-academics"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77928","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/100"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77928"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77928\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/77931"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77928"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}