FEATURED ARTICLE:
Online College Programs – Getting A Green MBA Is Great For You And The Planet!
Those who are interested in getting their MBA degree are discovering a new possibility besides such standard fare as Accounting and Economics. It’s an MBA in a discipline called Sustainability; i.e. examining the economic aspects of investing in replenishable resources and green technology. A number of universities, both online and on campus, have programs devoted to it, and it is growing.
In many ways, it makes sense. Since President Obama made a commitment towards a green economy as part of his election, one should expect actual economists would want to study it. As such, an MBA in Sustainability the positives and negatives of transitioning our current economy out of non-replenishable resources, cleaning up the planet and tackling such issues as overpopulation.
Sustainability is built around a system called “the Triple Bottom Line.” It’s a method of dividing problems into three different categories; economic, environmental, and social sustainability. For example, transitioning from an oil-based to wind or solar power is considered an economic issue. Global warming, if it really does exist, is environmental. Something much more definite, overpopulation, falls into the sustainability category.
Like any new philosophical approach, there are those who disparage Sustainability. The program has been nicknamed the “Green MBA,” and how the color is treated is similar to how one feels about environmental matters. At the same time, if one wants to pursue this field, you’ll still have to have a Bachelor’s in something like Accounting or Economics, then pass one’s GMAT just like any other MBA candidate.
Therefore, one should do their own share of research before enrolling in a school offering the program. Not only should they drill career counselors about the program, but do actual research on the school and check for referrals, too. No doubt there are legitimate programs out there but, as with any new program, the buyer should be wary.
One thing one will do if taking the course is expect a number of post-grad courses in such standard classes as accounting, auditing, marketing and traditional business curricula. They should also be ready to take courses in the environmental sciences and their economic implications. One should also be aware that on the technical side there is a degree called Environmental Economics, but this is a STEM-related course load, not business.
It should be noted that Green MBAs are also not approved by everyone in the business community. More traditional MBA schools feel that a true businessman is only concerned with the business of business, not in saving the world. Of course, this argument that if the planet’s ecology isn’t addressed soon, there isn’t going to be much of a world left to do business in.
Then again, one could say if we the world’s resources end up depleted beyond repair, then its economy will end up equally destroyed. While the concept of a Green MBA sounds a bit strange, courses online programs are making it possible. No matter what your field of interesting, if you’re looking at that MBA or at online master’s degree in English options, look to the future.
