Time is the best asset for an open and distance learning student.
GIVEN enough time, anything can be achieved, and time is the best asset an open and distance learning (ODL) student has.
When pursuing the Master of Business Administration (MBA) at UOW Malaysia KDU, ODL students are accorded the ultimate degree of flexibility as they grapple with the higher lures of business at their own pace.
"We offer flexible learning experiences that suit each student individually – a combination of self-learning, optional online lectures, and a deep, personal journey to earn your MBA," said UOW Malaysia KDU Business School head Assoc Prof Dr Brian Wong.
The MBA ODL option, he added, additionally gives students the best alternative in terms of cost. The programme fee is around RM25,000 – 32% more cost-effective than a conventional MBA programme.
Those who sign up for the current intake now at UOW Malaysia KDU are also entitled to free online lectures for seven weeks, on top of the wealth of self-learning materials provided.
Stay disciplined
"Your assignments will be done on a solo basis, which will make it possible to perform at your best on your own time and own pace," Wong added.
In a conventional study arrangement, course assignments tend to be dished out to groups to encourage exchange and a flow of ideas, but Wong points out this can lead to freeloaders.
"Students who are pursuing careers will find it hard to synchronise their schedules to work on assignments together. Eventually, some group members tend to slack and then get a free ride," he points out.
It is for this reason that MBA ODL students get to be “lone wolves”. But while they will have the freedom to work alone, Wong stresses that they need a high level of discipline.
"Your lecturers will accord all flexibility to you and so you yourself must dig your heels in and do what needs to be done," he advised.
Choose your specialisation
All UOW Malaysia KDU MBA ODL students must run through a gauntlet of business courses and successfully complete their MBA Research Project and Dissertation to prove their mettle.
To bolster their know-how, these students get to choose from one of three elective courses – Contemporary Challenges, Enterprise Governance and Managing Business Growth.
That is not all. UOW Malaysia KDU offers five more courses in its MBA ODL programme to give students three streams of specialisation to choose from.
In the Hospitality and Tourism Management stream, students will study Corporate Digital Communication, Global Marketing Decisions, International Hospitality Entrepreneurship, Hospitality and Tourism Operations Development and Managing Operations in Hospitality Businesses.
Those who choose the Marketing Leadership stream will study Corporate Digital Communication, Global Marketing Decisions, Creating Entrepreneurial Change, Contemporary Challenges and Leading Change.
Students can also choose the General Management stream and be at liberty to pick any of the subjects in the above to streams for a unique combination.
Wong said this MBA ODL programme is designed with linkage to professional bodies in mind. For example, the Marketing Leadership courses are in line with the professional courses of Chartered Institute of Marketing.
It comes with a dual award from International Management Institute Switzerland, a renowned Swiss school that sets global benchmarks in hospitality and tourism, for students specialising in Hospitality and Tourism Management.
"Relatively few people in the world have the privilege to pursue their master's degrees right after earning the bachelor's degrees.Those who go out and work and then pursue their master's degree part-time can find the challenge daunting, even almost impossible to complete.
"But yet this can make the learning even more enriching, because as you pursue your career, you will find that whatever you learn at the master's level might become immediately applicable. That in itself is the reward," Wong said.
To learn more about UOW Malaysia KDU's MBA ODL programme's inaugural intake, send a WhatsApp message to 012-236 3602 (Selangor) or 018-916 0368 (Penang) or go to https://www.uowmkdu.edu.my/
