If you are considering going back to school to get a graduate business degree, you wonder what difference there is between a Professional MBA and an Executive MBA. Both are degrees intended for people who want to continue to work while they study, but there is a distinct difference between the two programs.

Professional MBA

The main difference between the programs, according to the U.S. News and World Report, is the job status and the structure of the programs. Most of the Professional MBA students are early-career professionals in their late twenties of thirties. They have an average of five years of job experience in their positions, but aspire to “rise in the ranks.” A Professional MBA is a traditional Master of Business Administration that is delivered part-time. It still offers a broad education in finance and accounting courses but it is structured to allow young professionals to keep their current employment and earn the degree. Classes are offered two nights a week in the evenings. One advantage of the program is that people in this degree path compete against other time-crunched student earning the degree and not against those who can devote huge blocks of time to study. The curriculum in the Professional MBA is similar to a traditional MBA, focusing on skills in things like finance and accounting. Executives who take this tack may make alliances with other young professionals and that networking may result in later entrepreneur partnerships. The Professional MBA costs more than a traditional MBA but less than an Executive MBA.

The Executive MBA

People who enroll in the Executive MBA programs have usually been flagged by their employers as top-performers. These are mid-career professionals, with an average of 13 years of experience, who have the potential to become top management personnel. According to Global Post, most employers will cover some or all of the costs of these programs and allow the employee to work extra hours in the early week to make up for time spent in class. Executive MBA programs are usually held all day on Fridays and Saturdays, which means professionals can often schedule business trips and make it back in time for class. Some schools will allow students in these programs to complete five-day blocks of full-time study once a month. The curriculum content is heavy on leadership and human resource management. At one time, the Executive MBA programs were considered to be inferior, often referred to as “Lite-MBA, ” but they are now considered as good or even superior to, the traditional MBAs. Fewer Executive MBA students are accepted for financial aid, since usually their employees cover their costs. The programs are faster because these students have already risen to management without the degree and have mastered the basic management skills so they can advance to the higher-level classes. That makes the programs less expensive than typical MBA programs.

The Bottom Line

MBA programs will cost $50,000 to $100,000, but the majority of employers assume some or all of the cost, counting on a high ROI with the loyalty and commitment of the graduate from the program. Some programs even require corporate sponsorship. Most MBA programs require students to have a “common body of knowledge,” in addition to university requisites. Applicants must submit GRE or GMAT scores to the school with their admission applications. This is not necessarily true of students applying to the Executive MBA, because they have had far more career experience and it is assumed the life experience has given them this knowledge.

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The programs are similar and both deliver MBA training, but the Professional MBA stresses the technical skills more than the Executive MBA. The differences in the Executive MBA and the Professional MBA stem from the students upon whom they focus.