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The popularity of online degrees continues to
escalate. However some degree majors are clearly more in demand
than others.
GetEducated.com, LLC, a consumer-oriented, online
degree clearinghouse, has uncovered the following trends among
learners seeking graduate degrees online:
Top 10 Online Business Degree Majors:
1) Business Administration
2) Management
3) Leadership
4) Project Management
5) Information Systems Management
6) Finance
7) Technology Management
8) Entrepreneurship
9) Human Resources
10) International/Global Business
Most Popular Online Graduate Degree: The Master’s
of Business Administration (MBA)
Not only is the MBA the most popular online
degree, it holds this distinction by an impressive margin. The
second most popular online graduate degree, the Master’s in
Management, is only half as popular as the MBA. The third most
popular online degree choice, Leadership, is only one-quarter as
popular as the MBA.
"What we see in these trends is a mirror of
the trends in the national business environment," comments
GetEducated.com’s CEO Vicky Phillips, who has been tracking
online degrees since 1989.
"The Leadership degree, a type of degree
virtually unheard of a decade ago, is experiencing a tremendous
surge in popularity as corporations look toward the next
generation of CEOs to excel in the softer side of
business-building. Leadership degrees emphasize communication,
problem-solving, and teamwork. These skills transfer across all
business specialties, and have come to be as important in the
business world today as finance skills were in 1980s when the MBA
surged ahead in popularity in American culture."
Dropping out of this year’s Top 10 List are
majors in Internet and E-commerce (ranked 12th) and
majors in traditional core fields such as Marketing (ranked 13th).
Technology management remains a solid major,
largely, says Phillips, because it appeals to professionals in a
number of career niches, including engineering as well as
information services. "A strong market exists for individuals
who have bachelor’s in technology areas, such as computer
programming, who can demonstrate broader managerial skills."
For this same reason Project Management remains a strong favorite
among online learners.
The results of this study are based on surveys of
online users of GetEducated.com’s free downloadable college
guidebook, Best Distance Learning Graduate Schools, Business &
Management 2004. The survey covers a three month period of
February 15-May 15, 2004.
GetEducated.com’s Best Distance Learning
Graduate Schools, Business & Management, is a free
downloadable college guidebook to 170+ graduate schools (USA) that
offer online business degrees, including 120 distance-learning
MBAs. The guidebook is available FREE for download at: http://www.geteducated.com/bdlgs_bm.htm
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