Master of Business Administration

UMass Lowell’s online MBA has a 30-credit advanced route, with up to 12 foundation credits for applicants who need them. Compare the required business breadth and your assessed preparation before treating the 30-credit route as a personal completion or cost plan.

What should the MBA add to your experience?

The official plan combines a required business core with electives or an option. Start with the management decisions you want to make across functions, then identify required assignments that build those capabilities. Read the whole core before choosing by a specialization label. An option can add useful focus without replacing the degree’s broader business purpose.

If you mainly want sustained depth in finance or business analytics, compare those specialized master’s routes at the university or elsewhere. If you need to connect people, operations, investment and organizational decisions, an MBA may deserve closer investigation. A useful comparison explains what the degree adds beyond your existing learning rather than assuming the larger or more familiar credential is always better.

How do foundations change the route?

Applicants need an accredited bachelor’s degree and the required application materials. The current online business guide says GMAT and GRE are not required. The curriculum also identifies six two-credit foundation courses for preparation that has not been accepted as equivalent. The university’s assessment determines whether some or all of that additional work applies.

Keep up to 12 foundation credits in the scenario until your transcript has been reviewed. A business degree or years of experience may be relevant evidence, but this directory cannot award a waiver. Ask how foundations affect the sequence and when you can begin advanced courses. Confirm academic, English-proficiency and official-record requirements for your circumstances rather than relying on one summary line.

How should you test the online schedule?

Ask which classes, examinations, group meetings and presentations require fixed attendance. Find out how teams coordinate across time zones and how optional support differs from compulsory participation. An online route can be flexible while still requiring regular work at particular points in the week.

Compare the calendar with busy seasons, travel and family commitments. Plan time for reading, analysis, writing and team revision rather than counting lecture hours alone. If you hope to use an employer case, clarify confidentiality and permission before sharing records. A permitted public or synthetic case may be more feasible than an internal project with unclear access.

What price assumptions belong in the comparison?

At the Spring 2027 business rate of $655 per credit, the 30-credit advanced route gives $19,650 in tuition. Six term registration charges of $30 and the listed $75 business application charge give a scoped tuition-and-fee scenario of $19,905. That scenario assumes accepted foundations, six registrations, the listed course rates and no future increase; it is not the price for every entrant.

If foundations apply, add their actual tuition and any effect on registration terms. Confirm the full plan, fees and other required expenses before relying on an under-$20,000 comparison. Manning’s official catalog states its degree programs have AACSB accreditation, separate from the university’s institutional NECHE accreditation. Neither statement promises a promotion, salary increase or admission to another program.

Questions to resolve before choosing

• Which foundation courses has the university actually waived for my record?
• What required assignments address the cross-functional decisions I want to learn?
• Which option courses are available in a sustainable sequence?
• What live meetings and team obligations must fit my working week?
• What total price follows from my actual foundations, terms and course rates?

Official sources and next steps

• University of Massachusetts-Lowell: Master of Business Administration
• Manning School of Business graduate catalog and accreditation
• UMass Lowell graduate semester credit policy
• UMass Lowell accreditation
• UMass Lowell Spring 2027 online tuition and fees
• UMass Lowell online business degree and test-policy guide