Forget the MBA

When employers understand MOOCs, their attitudes are generally positive. (Thinkstock)

When Luis Ochoa wanted to make the leap from investment banking analyst to corporate strategist, he didn’t follow

the usual path of getting a master’s of business administration degree. Instead, the Stanford University graduate took

a few free strategy and financial accounting classes on Coursera, one of the major providers of so-called MOOCs

(Massive Open Online Courses), which have grown in popularity globally over the past few years.

“I gained a foundation with those courses that helped me transition into corporate strategy” at Oppenheimer Funds,

the 29-year-old New Yorker said. “Now, I’m not interested in an MBA because I’m where I want to be.”

Like Ochoa, a growing number of people are hoping MOOCs will be a ticket to a new job or promotion —without the

cost and time required to secure a traditional university degree. The challenge is to increase employers’ awareness

and appreciation of the value of online courses. “We still get questions from companies about how good MOOCs are,

but we’re finding that businesses are more and more willing to consider them to help fill skill gaps,” said Sebastian

Thrun, chief executive of the MOOC platform Udacity, based in Mountain View, California. “For some jobs, companies

are looking for specific credentials that MOOCs can provide, and not necessarily a degree.”

For some jobs, companies are looking for specific credentials that MOOCs can provide, and not necessarily a degree. —

Sebastian Thrun

A Bainbridge Strategy Consulting study of US human-resource professionals found that only about a third were aware

of MOOCs, while about half of the managers and directors in a global survey by CarringtonCrisp said they are

“uncertain of what a MOOC offers.”

“There’s a generation gap between those doing recruiting and the younger people taking online courses,” said Andrew

Crisp, director of CarringtonCrisp, a London-based higher education market research firm. “The older people in

companies got their degrees 10 or more years ago and have limited comprehension of the changes taking place in

higher education.”
Questions

1. Do you think the companies and the Human Resources Departments are prepared to accept candidates with

online courses? Do you think they have any kind of prejudice?

2. Would you interview a candidate that had his first degree on line? Why?

3. Would you do a course on line? Have you had this experience?

4. What are the advantages and disadvantages of doing on line courses?