When checking out an online college, make sure that it is properly accredited.
You may have heard of diploma mills, online schools that are not accredited and do not adhere to traditional academic standards. Your degree will be worthless if you attended to a non-accredited online college.
Your best way to verify that an online MBA program is accredited by a regional association is by visiting the website for the U.S. Department of Education. They publish a list of accepted accrediting boards.
If your degree is accredited, employers will recognize it. But how do you know if an online college has a good reputation in the business community? Start by looking at publications that rank online MBA programs. Just as in traditional higher education, online degree programs are ranked by publications like The Princeton Review and Business Week.
The truth is, it might be quite a while before any online college has the reputation of Harvard Business School. Online education is still relatively new and it takes decades to solidify a prestigious reputation, but there are plenty of quality online MBA programs out there.
If you’re still in doubt, talk with others in your field about the reputation of an online school. Even if you don’t find someone with personal experience, you may get some valuable information, such as a referral to a previously unknown online college.