Top 10 Reasons Why an Executive Education Program Can Change Your Life
So you have been in the corporate jungle, wondering how you are going to climb your way to the top of the food chain. You have realized by now that moving laterally, horizontally or diagonally is not the way to the top. Having hit the glass ceiling, do you feel stifled by the lack of growth?
Enter into the world of executive education programs. Like you, many managers feel either pressured or frustrated by the career roadblocks they face in their life. Professionals with two years or more work experience get stunted because their current work does not offer them a chance to develop cutting edge know-how.
What is an Executive Education Program?
Top colleges abroad have realized the need gap that is faced by the industry and its people. Many companies who want to upskill their employees find that the courses available locally don’t offer global exposure. Also, executives who did not get a Masters or MBA in one of the top-ranking colleges abroad fail to make the cut for the position of a global manager.
Executive education is usually made up of short, intensive courses to help students build specific skills. Many top business schools offer a wide range of executive education courses, in topics ranging from leadership to soft skill and negotiation. The objective of an executive education program is to enrich the students’ skillset and promote career growth.
How is Executive Education Abroad Different from a Traditional Masters’ Degree Course?
First off, the executive education program requires you to have at least two years’ work experience to enrol for the course. A masters’ program may or may not emphasize on work experience as a mandatory requirement.
The course follows an integrated approach, covering theoretical as well as practical modes of learning. In most cases, learners can access the class either from the test centres or can have the convenience of learning through the remote login. According to surveys on executive education in India, the majority of the professionals prefer face to face lectures. However, there is an equally strong base who prefer online and blended mode of delivery.
These programs are often focused on individual executive responsibilities or customized to suit the specific needs of an organization, offering a customized learning solution for executives within a single company. Some executive education courses are also modular, where courses build on each other, and many programs will work directly with firms to develop courses addressing individual concerns and topics.
A traditional MBA or Masters course requires you to commit a large amount of money and time for qualification. In a full-time postgraduate course, students attend classes, workshops, and seminars through the day. In a sense, executive education requires a lot of commitment and dedication as you would be juggling between job responsibilities, family commitments, and executive education program deadlines.
The students in an executive education course are older with a wider range of experience. The same cannot be said about the full-time masters’ degree students.
Top 10 Reasons Why a Professional Should Consider the Executive Education Program?
1. Simply put, it adds to your CV.
Add a badge to your name that carries the glory of international education. Your CV will attract the kind of employers you seek, once you have an international executive education under your belt.
2. It will help you develop as a business leader, entrepreneur, or a strategist.
Not just for decorating your resume, an executive education course opens your breadth of knowledge and vision. Interacting with the best brains in the world, and working in close collaboration with a set of peers from across various continents can add clarity to your dimensions.
3. You get global exposure.
Does China solve its economic problems the same way as India does? Do the farmers in Peru face the same environmental threats that those in Cambodia? Learn how the world works. Broaden your vision to think global.
4. You learn from the best teachers from around the world.
You get to interact with Nobel Prize winners, industry thought leaders and movers and shakers of the industry. The vision and wisdom they can impart can impact your life.
5. It’s a good return on your time and money investments.
Compared to a full-time program abroad, with the costs of tuition and living thrown in, the executive education program is lighter on your pocket. Moreover, you can continue earning while studying. The only real investment you will have to make in an executive education course is time. If you are a good time manager, this program will work for you.
6. You don’t have to take a break in your career to complete your education.
Neither will you miss out on earning your paycheck nor will you lose touch with the industry as you study while you work. Also, your company will value the lessons you bring to the table and appreciate your efforts.
7. You build a network of global managers and business leaders who are your classmates.
Network-building is one of the reasons most often cited for pursuing executive education, as reflected in research by the International University Consortium for Executive Education. With an expanded network of talented peers, you can leverage your career goals to take you to the next level.
8. An executive education gives you immediate business insights as you apply your knowledge in real-life cases.
Unlike a traditional Masters’ degree course, where a student picks up theoretical knowledge without practical applications, the executive education program gives its students an opportunity to apply concepts in real-life scenarios. The immediacy of feedback from the environment is a great enabler for deeper learning.
9. You pick up high-value skills that put you in a growth trajectory.
According to the Executive MBA Council 2013 Student Exit Benchmarking Survey, the average salary and bonus for EMBA graduates increased by 14 per cent from the time they started classes until they graduated. Many students found that the program was remunerative, not just monetarily but also from the standpoint of career development.
10. Many cohorts offer in-class education coupled with campus visit to foreign schools.
These programs have moved from the model of being providers to partners. Many top-ranking business schools have tied up with local institutes to offer a holistic experience to professionals who seek specialized skills. You can sign up for a modular, face to face or online mode of coaching. In addition, you can also visit campuses abroad to enhance your learning and interact with the faculty and students on campus.
Executive education, as one industry professional puts it, ‘is the true rigour of education’ as the executives have to juggle time to balance many responsibilities. If done well, an executive education program is an ideal fit for any professional looking to sharpen his tools of the trade.
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