Business school heads vow to fight axing of MBA apprenticeship
The heads of top British business universities have vowed to thwart government strategies to axe the MBA apprenticeship by splitting the research into two, with the the vast majority nonetheless being covered by the coaching programme.
Apprenticeships for senior executives have mushroomed subsequent government reforms to capabilities funding that forced employers with once-a-year payrolls larger than £3m to set apart an equal to .5 per cent of this sum for shelling out on workplace coaching schemes.
Unhappiness that levy resources have been being put in in this way, on programmes costing up to £18,000, prompted schooling secretary Gavin Williamson to request a critique into the MBA apprenticeship with an eye to eradicating it from the levy method.
The Office for Training has not nonetheless formally scrapped the MBA apprenticeship. But in the newest checklist of apprenticeship requirements issued by the administering agency, the need to obtain an MBA or other masters diploma to comprehensive a senior chief qualification has been reduce.
Even so, David Oglethorpe, dean of Cranfield university’s college of management, informed the Economic Instances that his establishment would go on to offer you an MBA regardless of what the consequence of the critique.
Less than Mr Oglethorpe’s proposal, students would comprehensive a senior chief apprenticeship and then undertake an excess piece of coursework and spend an more charge to obtain an MBA. Some students might have to spend this cost, which could be up to £9,000, themselves but it would nonetheless only be a portion of the total charge.
“I have been fighting tooth and nail to say depart it as it is, but this usually means we could nonetheless offer you the qualification,” Mr Oglethorpe stated.
“The suggestions we get from employers is that it assists them appeal to and keep essential team. A fifth of our consumption occur from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds and 15 per cent had in no way been to college prior to starting the programme.”
“The senior chief apprenticeship standard has been mapped on to an MBA curriculum, producing it effortless for us to offer you an MBA for these that would like a person,” Mr Oglethorpe stated. “We would have to demarcate the two qualifications but that is somewhat straightforward to do.”
This way of funding an MBA has rewards, Mr Oglethorpe added. “Whilst the qualification continues to be component of an apprenticeship standard, you are not able to ask workers to contribute to the expense. If you could, it would necessarily mean they would have skin in the match.”
Other business college heads stated they have been thinking of equivalent arrangements if the government resolved to clear away the MBA from apprenticeships.
“The MBA is viewed as a considerable matter on a CV so there will normally be an incentive to offer you a route to receiving this through the apprenticeship,” John Board, dean of Henley Enterprise College.
“The greater risk is that the government cuts the rate employers should spend for the apprenticeship, which would no more time make it feasible for universities like us to offer you our class. You would then be still left with suppliers who only spend lip provider to the requirements essential for substantial-top quality management coaching.”
The plan of presenting an MBA separately to the apprenticeship also received the backing of the Chartered Management Institute, the accreditation body for management schooling in the British isles.
“It would set a unusual precedent if the government stated that employers are not able to spend for their workers to research for this qualification if that is what they want to do,” Daisy Hooper, the CMI’s head of policy and community affairs, stated.
“The apprenticeship levy has broadened access to the MBA. Limiting this will shift it again to turning into an elitist qualification.”
The Office for Training stated: “The schooling secretary requested the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technological Training to critique the senior chief apprenticeships standard to ensure it is meeting its aims and presents value for money. The critique is ongoing.”