MBA academic performance and type of undergraduate degree possessed

College Student Journal, Sept, 2006 by Andrew W. Braunstein

Some researchers have found that students who have obtained undergraduate degrees in business perform worse in MBA programs than do students without undergraduate business degrees. This study splits a sample of MBA graduates into two groups--those with and without BBA degrees. Separate regressions are run for each group to determine which factors are most closely related to academic success (measured by overall grade point average) in the graduate program. Some clear differences between the subsets are found in terms of variables of statistical significance. Gender is a significant variable for the BBA group, but not for the non-BBA group. Years of life and work experience since receipt of the undergraduate degree is not significant for the BBA group, but is the variable of greatest statistical significance for the non-BBA group. Possible implications for admissions decisions are discussed.

Introduction

A number of recent studies examining the determinants of the academic performance of MBA students have included in the analysis a factor representing the type of undergraduate degree obtained. Of specific interest to this paper are those studies which have examined the relationship between MBA grades and the possession of an undergraduate business degree. For instance, in their MBA grades research based on the use of neural networks, Naik et al. (2004) employed a variable which allowed them to distinguish between those MBA students with undergraduate business/economics degrees and those with all other types of undergraduate degrees. In their study of a non-traditional MBA program, Carver and King (1994) found that undergraduate major (business or non-business) had little unique impact on MBA student performance. Truitt (2002) used a sample of MBA students at a private Midwestern university. He found that students with undergraduate business degrees performed no better than those without business degrees. He did find, however, that for certain age groups, having a quantitative undergraduate major had a positive impact on MBA academic performance. Several studies have found that students with undergraduate business degrees actually fared worse in MBA programs than did their non-business degree counterparts. In their study of graduates from an urban university's MBA program, Adams and Hancock (2000) found a negative correlation between graduate grade point average and the holding of an undergraduate business degree. Braunstein (2002) found similar results in his study of MBA students at a private college in the Northeast. Gump (2003) examined the performance of MBA students in a school in the United Kingdom. He found that those with undergraduate backgrounds in areas other than business were more likely to be the highest academic performers in the graduate program.

It is possible that the studies above which found a negative correlation between MBA grades and possession of an undergraduate business degree may have actually underestimated the strength of the negative relationship. After all, those with BBA degrees often receive waivers from a number of MBA core courses (depending upon grades received in the undergraduate course counterparts, amount of time elapsed since the undergraduate courses were taken, etc.). The average grade for a core MBA course is typically lower than that for a major course. So in terms of achieving high grades, those with non-business degrees may have a more difficult graduate course of study compared to those with business degrees. In any event, it is clear that those with non-business degrees often enter an MBA program lacking confidence and feeling at a competitive disadvantage. Gump (2003) in fact suggested that those without a business academic background may work harder to compensate for their lack of undergraduate preparation, which would provide at least a partial explanation for the negative correlations found in the research.

The current study divides a group of nearly 300 MBA graduates (from the late 1990's to the early 2000's) from a private college in the Northeast into two sub-samples; those with and without undergraduate business degrees. The question to be answered is whether the factors most closely related to performance in the MBA program differ between the two subsets of students. Given the results of the studies cited above showing a relationship between MBA academic performance and the type of undergraduate degree obtained, it is highly plausible that the nature of the relationship between MBA academic performance and a set of relevant independent variables differs between the two groups of students.

Empirical Results and Discussion

The dependent variable used in the study is overall grade point average upon graduation from the MBA program. The independent variables used in the analysis include gender, life and work experience since receipt of the undergraduate degree, undergraduate institution (same as graduate or other), GMAT scores, and undergraduate grade point average. Separate regression equations are estimated for those with and without BBA degrees (approximately 60% of the graduate students possessed BBA degrees). Tables 1 and 2 display the regression results.