A Master's in Business Administration, or MBA, is a degree program that gives current or aspiring business professionals experience in the financial and organizational management of businesses. Students learn about finance, accounting, and economics, while at the same time studying organization topics such as human resources and team management. These concepts give students a wide range of opportunities after graduating, as they become prepared to fill key roles in a number of different departments. Students will develop the necessary skills to become entrepreneurs and bring their own business ventures into their passion areas or sectors of the economy they feel have a lot of untapped potential. Speaking of untapped potential, there are few better examples than the state of New Hampshire! Thanks to its tourism, smart manufacturing sectors, and natural resources it is one of the best-kept secrets in business. The state motto is "Live Free or Die," and New Hampshire takes business growth just as seriously as they take their freedom. Let's take a look at the 5 Best Online MBAs in New Hampshire!
FINDING AN MBA DEGREE
MBA programs are easy to bunch together or to make seem interchangeable. Because programs cover such a wide range of subject matter, courses with similar names or programs with similar learning objectives can seem to run together. But in fact, MBA programs can vary widely in their intended audiences, their learning objectives, and in the formal mechanics of how they deliver their program. These decisions can make a substantial difference when it comes to how students are able to learn, as different styles or program structures change outcomes for different students. There are programs that require students to bring in full-time work experience and then there are Executive MBA programs that require around 10 years of full-time management experience. Others are more geared toward getting students in on the ground floor, and might even include prerequisite coursework in business so that students from diverse disciplines can pursue an MBA.
The variation in program structures and focuses also allows for a wide range of post-graduation career options, including the ability to choose the field that they wish to pursue. It can be something general such as Human Resources or Accounting, or more specific, such as Sports Management or Healthcare Management. In fact, New Hampshire has actually become a hub for biotech and medical research thanks to the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and 10 other major hospitals throughout the state. Medical and Health Service Managers make just shy of $100,000 per year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and that market is projected to grow by 20 percent in the coming decade. This means more than 70,000 new jobs for MBA graduates, especially those with a healthcare focus, would be well-qualified to fill. Online programs also give students exposure to the digital environment that supports much of the modern business world.
RANKING THE 5 BEST ONLINE MBA DEGREES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE
Online MBA Today uses eight metrics to grade each school: Quality of Online Programs from U.S. News, Mid Career Pay from Payscale, Student Review Score from Rate My Professor, aggregate reputation score from other ranking sites, and Percentage of Online Programs, SAT Scores, Average Net Price, and Retention Rate from the National Center for Education Statistics. For a comprehensive breakdown of how we categorize and source data, please visit our methodology page.
#1. University of New Hampshire
The University of New Hampshire is a proud public university located in Durham, NH. UNH has a Master of Business Administration program which can be taken either in a part-time residential format or a fully online format. The degree program includes nine core courses and seven elective courses, finishing with the Creating Winning Strategies capstone course. Students complete 48 credits, which often takes between two to three and a half years to complete. Core courses include Marketing/Building Customer Value and Economics of Competition. The UNH program also includes an option for students to pick a specialization to pursue through their elective coursework. Some of the available options include Finance and Information Systems & Business Analytics.
Applicants to the program are required to have a minimum of two years of experience to apply to the program. Students usually bring in an average of 10 years of experience to the program. There is a requirement to submit GMAT test scores; however, students with a previous Master's degree or more than five years of management or supervisory experience may have this requirement waived. Admissions dates are available for fall, spring, and summer sessions. UNH's Online MBA is the only online MBA ranked in the top 100 programs by U.S. News & World Report. Additional emphases available in the program include Marketing, Global Business, Growth & Innovation, and Hospitality Management.
Format: Online
#2. New England College
New England College is a private liberal arts college located in Henniker, NH. NEC has a Master of Business Administration program. The program includes a number of different specialization options, available in either online or hybrid formats. It is a 40 credit program that can be completed in 20 months. The core curriculum is comprised of seven courses such as Managerial Accounting, Organizational Leadership and Change, and Strategic Planning and Policy. The core is finished with a capstone project, which students complete in their final semester. NEC offers students eight different concentrations to choose from, which helps to build expertise in a student's professional area of interest. Concentration options include Human Resource Management, Nonprofit Leadership, and Sports and Recreation Management.
The program is designed for working professionals; however, there is no minimum amount of work experience required to apply or enter. Each of the MBA programs requires students to submit an official transcript and a resume, but students are not required to submit letters of recommendation or a personal essay. In addition to those listed above, students may also pursue specializations in Project Management, Digital Marketing, and Health Informatics. Specializations are generally made up of three courses of study. Some specializations, such as Health Informatics or Executive Computer Information Systems, are only available through the hybrid format. Others, such as Healthcare Management, are available only through the online format.
Format: Online
#3. Franklin Pierce University
Franklin Pierce University is a private university located in Rindge, NH. Franklin Pierce has six different Master of Business Administration programs available, each of which focuses on a specific industry or area of interest. Each program includes 13 courses made up of 12 core courses and 1 elective course. Introductory courses build on core competencies through offerings such as Economics for Managers, Financial Management, and Organizational Behavior. The program is designed for working professionals and is delivered through a hybrid format that combines online learning with full-time or part-time study through the course of four academic terms. The available MBA focuses offered by FPU include Energy and Sustainability Studies, Healthcare Administration, Human Resource Management, Information Technology, Leadership, and Sports Management.
Students entering the MBA program are expected to possess competencies in accounting, statistics, and computer skills. Applicants should have a minimum GPA of 2.8 or greater on a 4.0 scale. In addition to its stand-alone MBA programs, FPU also had a joint degree program where students may earn a Master of Science in Nursing along with their Master of Business Administration. The dual degree program is an on-campus/residency program. Students interested in fully-online opportunities can consider one of Franklin Pierce's online certificate programs which include a number of shared courses with the MBA curriculum. And certificate students who are admitted to the MBA program at a later date may have their certificate-level coursework credited toward their MBA degree completion.
Format: Hybrid
#4. Southern New Hampshire University
Southern New Hampshire University is a private university located in Manchester, NH. SNHU has a Master of Business Administration program that includes the completion of 12 courses. Students choose between taking either an elective course route, where they are free to pursue a wide range of different elective course options, or they may choose to pursue one of the more than 20 career-focused MBA concentration options. Some of these options include Business Intelligence, Community Economic Development, Economics, and Criminal Justice. During their program, students may take courses such as Human Behavior in Organizations, Marketing and Strategy, Business Law, as well as Ethics, Corporate Culture, and Social Responsibility.
Students who do not have a business background are welcome to apply to the program. Those accepted may be required to complete foundation courses before beginning the MBA curriculum. Students who are required to complete these courses often choose to pursue the elective version of the degree program, as some of their foundation courses may count as electives. Other available concentration options for the MBA program include focuses in Six Sigma, Sports Management, Music Business, Internet Marketing, and Forensic Accounting. Students may also elect to take some of their core course requirements on campus while completing their elective or concentration courses online. SNHU makes admission decisions on a rolling basis, and they have five graduate terms available throughout the year.
Format: Online
#5. Plymouth State University
Plymouth State University is a public university located in Plymouth, NH. Plymouth State has a Master of Business Administration program that can be completed fully online and is intended for non-business majors who wish to add business and management skills to their undergraduate education. Their program is specifically referred to as a Master of Business Administration in General Management and requires 36 credit hours of study. The program begins with 24 credits of functional core courses including Operations Management, The Legal Environment of Business, and Economic Analysis. The final functional core course is a Seminar in Executive Management, which focuses on using case studies and group projects to give students a real-world look at middle and upper-level managerial responsibilities.
Students who are interested in specifying their learning into a particular concentration area can pursue one of the graduate certificates that have been developed alongside the MBA program itself. The program offers four certificate programs covering the following topics: Accounting, Healthcare Administration, International Business, and Strategic Marketing Management. Each certificate program generally includes 12 credit hours of required coursework, with two core courses and two elective courses. In addition to the online version of the program, Plymouth State also has a one-year cohort version of the program which students complete on campus. Applicants to the MBA program are expected to have a GPA of 3.0 or better in undergraduate coursework. Students must also submit three professional recommendations, a current resume, and a statement of interest.
Format: Online
