What is an Executive MBA and who is it for?

An Executive MBA belongs to the family of qualification programmes known as “executive” programmes, designed for executives and senior leaders already in post. Like a master's, it sits at level 7 of the qualifications framework, the level of Bac+5. It is aimed at professionals who want to develop their leadership and move into senior management roles, by studying without interrupting their professional activity.

What an Executive MBA is

If you are looking for an Executive MBA, first be clear about where it sits: it is a qualification for senior leaders, belonging to the same family as the Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA) and certain specialised Master of Science (MSc) programmes, all designed for profiles that already have experience. Their level differs, however: like a master's, an MBA corresponds to Bac+5 (level 7 qualifications), whereas a DBA sits at level 8, the level of the doctorate.

In this worldwide market for executive programmes, a British body, AMBA (Association of MBAs), assesses the quality of the MBA, Master and DBA programmes offered by management schools. Excelia Business School, for its part, has an Executive Education Centre dedicated to professionals in post, which puts the expertise of a management Grande École at their service.

Who executive programmes are for

Excelia Business School's continuing education is aimed at executives and managers who want to develop their leadership, steer their team's performance and move into senior management roles. It is also aimed at experienced professionals who prefer to specialise or to have what they have already learned in the field recognised by a qualification. If your goal is to change direction rather than to take a step up, the question is a different one: find out how to change career into management.

This offer ranges from short, certifying programmes to qualification programmes, open to employees in post and individuals alike. A qualification pathway requires significant professional experience and a level of qualification: a route through validation of professional achievements can bridge the gap between your profile and these requirements. Funding, for its part, is settled case by case, depending on your status, with the Executive Education Centre. Are your experience and your qualification enough, in your particular situation? No standard application can answer that question for you. You can put the question directly to an adviser, before any application.

Excelia Business School's executive qualification programmes

Excelia Business School does not offer a programme called “Executive MBA”: the Executive Education Centre offers two qualification programmes, the Executive Master Grande École and the Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA). The Executive Master Grande École is the one that plays the closest role. The first is aimed at profiles in work or in career change:

  • business owners
  • executives and managers
  • entrepreneurs
  • consultants

This pathway leads to a Grade de Master and is followed in a hybrid format, combining campus classes and distance learning, without you having to interrupt your professional activity. Its common thread is a strategic end-of-programme project, carried out on a real issue in your company and supervised by an academic tutor. Discover the Executive Master Grande École programme.

The second pathway, the DBA, is aimed at a different audience: professionals who already hold a master's, who develop over three years a thesis applied to their professional practice, supported by a senior professor and without interrupting their professional activity. Discover the Doctorate in Business Administration.