Michigan Ross has a part time programme on offer but the online degree will be a first for the U.S. business school. Forbes has deemed the move an important step in increasing the school’s competitiveness in the future. The programme is due to start in autumn 2019 and will be taught online except for some weekend sessions. “One of the things about the traditional part time programmes is that they were very much tied to geography and going online helps us be more geographically diverse,” Patti Russo, Managing Director of Part-time MBA programmes at Ross, told Forbes.

The online MBA will save students about 15,000 dollars compared to the traditional, on-campus programme (120,000 to 125,000 dollars). According to Forbes this is another remarkable development as “most schools charge the same for online classes as on-campus ones and a few charge substantially more”. This could indicate first signs of price pressures in online programmes according to the magazine.

Sometimes lower prices are associated with a drop in quality and academic rigour but Michigan Ross isn’t fearful of a perceived brand dilution due to the lower price point. “We will maintain the standards of our programme, requiring the GMAT, GRE, substantial work experience, an interview,” Russo said. “Our standards are rigorous and we’re looking for people we are proud to call part of our brand.”

Read more on www.forbes.com