MBA Standards Board is an independent standards and credentialing body that offers flexible MBA-level credentials for working professionals. Instead of requiring a traditional full-time MBA, we recognize your existing business experience, professional certifications, and completed courses, and help you assemble them into rigorous credentials such as the Certified MBA™, MBA+™, and MBAe™.
Our process starts with what you have already achieved. We evaluate your background against our MBA competency framework, identify any gaps, and then guide you to low-cost, high-quality learning options from accredited providers, including universities such as Harvard and Boston University. When you have met the required standards, we award an appropriate credential that reflects your MBA-level learning and skills.
MBA Standards Board is a standards and credentialing organization that recognizes and validates MBA-level knowledge and skills gained through a combination of professional experience, accredited courses, and professional certifications. We provide structured pathways to credentials like the Certified MBA™, MBA+™, and MBAe™ for professionals who want MBA-level credibility without a traditional residential program.
We begin by reviewing your existing experience and education. This can include your work history, management responsibilities, prior degrees, online courses, university certificates, and professional certifications. We then map these against our standards to determine which MBA-level competencies you have already met and which ones are still missing. Finally, we recommend specific courses or learning experiences to close those gaps so you can qualify for one of our credentials.
The Certified MBA™ validates that you have achieved core MBA-level competencies in areas such as strategy, finance, marketing, leadership, and operations. MBA+™ extends this foundation with advanced or specialized learning, often in high-demand domains like AI, Fintech, or Cybersecurity. MBAe™ is oriented toward entrepreneurs and innovators, highlighting your ability to design, launch, and grow real ventures.
Our credentials are designed for professionals who want the benefits of an MBA without the traditional barriers of time, cost, and relocation. This includes mid-career managers, professionals seeking to switch careers, technical experts who need business skills, entrepreneurs, and individuals who have already invested in substantial self-directed learning and want an organized, standards-based way to validate it.
MBA Standards Board is not a residential university and does not replace accredited degree programs. Instead, we focus on standards, evaluation, and credentialing. We help you make strategic use of courses and programs from accredited universities and reputable online platforms to meet our standards and earn our credentials.
A traditional MBA is typically a fixed, cohort-based program at one institution with a set curriculum and high tuition. MBA Standards Board offers a modular, flexible pathway that builds upon what you already know. You can study part-time, online, and often at significantly lower cost by combining targeted learning experiences from multiple high-quality providers under one coherent set of standards.
Our credentials can support promotions, career transitions, and entrepreneurial ambitions by signaling that you operate at an MBA level. Because our model is flexible and cost-efficient, it can also reduce financial risk and opportunity cost compared with a traditional MBA. Many participants value the ability to specialize, demonstrate continuous learning, and connect with a global community of professionals through our MBA Connect™ network.
We do not issue degrees from these institutions. Instead, we help you identify and complete relevant courses from leading universities and platforms that align with our standards. These courses can then be counted toward your MBA Standards Board credential, alongside your professional experience and other recognized learning.
Because our approach is personalized, your total time and investment depend on your starting point. Some professionals need only a few targeted courses to meet our standards, while others complete a more extended plan. In most cases, the overall cost and time commitment are significantly lower than a full-time residential MBA, while still requiring you to master the core competencies that matter in the market.
Employers increasingly recognize that skills and outcomes matter more than where you sat in a classroom. Our credentials make your learning transparent and standards-based, giving employers a clear signal of your capabilities. We encourage learners to pair our credentials with a strong track record of projects, impact, and leadership so employers can see both your skills and your real-world results.
Our framework is designed to help you pivot. For example, you might combine core MBA competencies with focused learning in areas like AI, Fintech, or Cybersecurity to make a career shift or reposition yourself in your current industry. By recognizing your past learning and experience, we help you avoid starting from scratch and instead build a targeted, future-focused plan.
To begin, complete our initial application or profile, sharing your career history, education, certifications, and major learning experiences. We will review your background, suggest an appropriate credential pathway, and outline any additional learning steps required. From there, you can decide how and when to move forward, at a pace that fits your life and goals.