Low fee, no CAT, flexible learning: Why DU’s distance MBA is popular

NEW DELHI: For working professionals like Rohan Kumar and Sudhanshu Gupta, pursuing an MBA at Delhi University’s School of Open Learning (DU-SOL) is more than just an academic milestone — it's a strategic career move.

Both Kumar and Gupta believe MBA is a “valuable qualification” that can accelerate their chances of career growth within their respective companies.

“I work as a software developer in a private firm in Delhi,” said Kumar. “I have noticed that colleagues with MBA degrees hold higher positions. An MBA is a vital qualification for advancing in private sector jobs. I believe this degree from SOL will pave the way for promotions and higher salaries.”

DU introduced the MBA programme in distance mode under its School of Open Learning in the 2022-23 academic year. The SOL operates under the Department of Distance and Continuing Education (DDCE). The programme’s annual fee is a highly-competitive Rs 52,570.

For Karanjeet Singh, who enrolled recently, this combination of DU’s brand value and the affordability of the programme made it an easy choice. “I got in based on my graduation [score] and work experience and I’m looking forward to quality education,” he said.

Admissions for the 2024-25 academic session began on June 3 with DU-SOL releasing its fourth merit list in late September. “Our goal is to enroll between 2,500 and 3,000 students annually, but we often surpass that number,” said professor Payal Mago, director of SOL, DDCE. “This year, we’ve confirmed about 3,100 admissions, and we may even exceed 4,000.”

Low fees, relaxed admission criteria, the prestige of holding a central university MBA degree and working professionals looking to advance their careers are key factors that draw students to this programme.

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Despite these advantages, some students have reported administrative challenges, particularly around examinations and internal assessments.

The distance MBA: Fees, admission

In 2022, the DDCE launched six new professional courses, including MBA for those employed or unable to attend regular college.

“After joining SOL in December 2022, I noticed many DU students seeking letters of recommendation to pursue MBAs abroad or in private institutions in India, often paying between Rs 7-30 lakh for their degrees,” said Mago. “This prompted me to start an affordable MBA programme. With approvals from Delhi University, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and University Grants Commission (UGC), we began offering the course. My goal is to provide students with an MBA at the lowest possible cost.”

For admission, a candidate must have graduated with at least 50% marks from a recognised university, in any discipline. While most management colleges admit on the basis of exams and interviews, SOL gives 80% weightage to graduation marks and 20% to work experience. Candidates without work experience are also eligible, but their merit will be based solely on their graduation marks.

After completing B.Com from DU’s Janki Devi Memorial College, Kashish Kumari is pursuing MBA at DU SOL. “After my B.Com, I wanted to pursue MBA. I had written the CAT exam but was getting admission in private MBA colleges where I could not afford the fees. So, I went for an MBA in DU’s SOL.”

Kumari is currently interning in the HR team of a private company. “At SOL, I am acquiring the skills that are needed for working in private companies.”

In his message to this year's incoming students, DU vice-chancellor Yogesh Singh said, “The MBA programme through distance learning enables you to enhance your skill set and gain a valuable qualification without compromising your existing responsibilities.”

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With no attendance requirements, SOL is ideal for working professionals unable to attend regular classes.

Sudhandhu Gupta graduated from SOL and is now working in a private company while studying. “The brand value of DU, updated course curriculum and flexibility of pursuing the course while working are the major reasons why I joined MBA at SOL. It is easy to manage MBA studies with a job,” he said.

DU SOL MBA curriculum

In the first year of the MBA programme at SOL, students focus on business fundamentals through compulsory courses in areas like economics, finance, and marketing.

After the first two semesters, non-working students must undergo summer training in an organisation before the third semester starts in the second year. The second year offers a range of electives, allowing students to tailor their studies to their specific career interests.

“There is no problem of exposure for those who are already working. Fresh graduates who are not working are very few in number and they go for internships. The ratio of working to non-working students is around 65:35,” Mago said.

SOL provides study material at the beginning of the academic session. Teachers take online classes from Monday to Saturday from 7 pm to 9 pm and physical classes are held on Sundays at SOL centres. Videos of these lectures are uploaded on the SOL portal.

“We follow the same curriculum of two-year full-time MBA offered in DU’s Faculty of Management Studies (FMS). Students can choose their elective courses according to their needs. We offer specialisations in marketing, finance, organisation behaviour and human resource management (OB and HRM), operation management and decision sciences, and strategy. We have five permanent faculties from management, one from economics, three from financial studies and two from psychology. We also call faculties and experts from colleges in and around Delhi,” Mago said.

Minaz, who in her fourth semester of MBA has opted for OB and HRM, said “I am able to gain a lot of skills. Whenever I have any queries, I get it resolved from faculties.” She completed her Bachelors in Business Administration (BBA) at Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi, and is currently working as a HR manager in a private company.

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Exam and placements

The minimum duration of the programme is two years and the maximum duration is four. Each year consists of two semesters and each semester has eight compulsory papers. Each exam paper is of 100 marks with 50 marks allocated for semester-end examination and 50 marks for internal assessment.

“The passing mark for each semester shall be 45% in aggregate and a minimum of 40% marks in each paper in the semester-end examination,” SOL said in its MBA admission brochure.

But Minaz said students face problems during the examinations.

“It seems they are still structuring the management of the course. Students faced a lot of problems in submitting their internal examination assignments because of a glitch in the portal. There were also discrepancies in the semester exam results. However, the administration resolved the issues after students raised concerns,” she said. “There are also no gaps in between the exam papers and they make changes in the exam schedule at the last minute.”

Mago said the SOL administration has a “very limited time” for exams and any student can repeat any paper of any semester.

“We hold examinations for eight papers per semester and 32 in total. We have to see that the exam dates for these 32 papers do not overlap with each other. Hence, sometimes we are not able to give a gap between papers. This is the only course at SOL where you can repeat any exam of any paper of any semester. In other courses, students are allowed to repeat odd semester exam papers in odd semester and even semester exam in even semester. We share the schedule of classes, internal exams and semester exams at the start of the course,” she said.

Mago said that the first batch of MBA has graduated this year and the course is being run smoothly.

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MBA placements

The SOL established its placement cell in September 2018. “In February 2024, 87 of 134 students were placed with Axis Bank, and in March 2024, 25 candidates bagged positions in Black Tie Legal Services LLP,” SOL said in its MBA admission brochure.

“But very few MBA graduates from SOL sit for campus placement drives,” said Mago. “The reason may be that most of them are already working and some also want an MBA degree for promotions. Whoever sat for placements got jobs. Another challenge is attracting companies that can offer better packages than the students are already getting. Hopefully, this will improve.”