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The Africans at Microsoft diversity group recently assembled a panel of experts to talk about earning and making the best of an MBA degree. The panel is a candid discussion with business school admissions and career services people, current students and MBA graduates on a range of topics. Speakers included representatives from some of the best schools in the country, including Harvard Business School; Sloan School of Management at MIT; UC Berkeley; University of Washington; Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern and Wharton, among others. The panel, hosted at Microsoft’s corporate headquarters in Redmond, WA, had over 200 attendees from around the world including employees of Microsoft, Boeing, and Coastal Carolina University. Listen in as we bring the event to you.

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Think you need to quit your job and relocate in order to pursue an MBA? Think again. Many top-flight business schools are offering fully-accredited MBA programs either partially or completely online. These programs offer management professionals the chance to continue their career development while earning an MBA. The online and “hybrid” MBA degree programs we look at in this podcast require varying amounts of team-based, online work and actual face time with fellow students and program faculty. On today’s show, four representatives from four very different online or “hybrid” MBA programs talk about how their programs are designed, and what kinds of people make up the student body.

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Online MBA programs are popping up from coast to coast, catering to professionals who want to get an MBA degree on their own time. These online MBAs have sparked a significant amount of discussion and dialogue about the quality of the online education and the acceptance of such degrees among businesses today. Join us as we talk with the experts to explore the educational value of an online MBA, the criteria by which to judge online MBA programs and the reception among recruiters.

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Back to school after years on the job means lectures, homework and exams while also juggling campus activities and a job search. For those students who are starting their MBA shortly after getting their undergraduate degree they may not have enough “real-world” experience to hit the ground running in their first year. We’ll give you tips how to navigate through your first year successfully; from refreshing your quantitative skills to getting an internship and setting the course for a successful graduation.

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Ever dreamed of studying under the business experts whose names you read in the papers and see on the news? Lots of MBA programs have “star professors” on their staff rosters. But what’s it like to work with them in the classroom? On this edition of MBA Podcaster, you’ll learn what to look for in MBA faculty. Most MBA applicants do not put a high priority on researching the faculty at schools where they are applying. A bit of homework in this area can pay off with a match to a school that’s a great fit for you.

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Interested in a career abroad? An MBA in international management could be your best bet. You’ll gain foreign language skills, be exposed to a culturally broad curriculum and make worldwide contacts. We’ll explore some global career opportunities and look into a U.S.-based global MBA programs.

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All reputable admission consultants claim to be mentors and coaches to applicants rather than essay-writers who will write & complete your application from start to finish. But how do you determine if a consultant is right for you and your application needs? How do you differentiate between the many consultants in the marketplace and the various services they offer? Can a consultant really help you? Based on listener questions and feedback, we are reviewing four admission consulting companies to give you an idea of the range of costs, services and objectives you can expect. If you’re thinking about using an admission consultant or coach, listen as we ask the questions you’ll want to ask before spending the money.

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For most MBA programs, being granted an interview is your first step toward acceptance into business school. It’s the opportunity for you to make yourself come alive to the admissions committee and show them why you should be included in their upcoming class. It’s also a time that many candidates have a hard time setting themselves apart from all the other candidates and verbalizing their individual value proposition. Listen in as we discuss the business school interviews with the admission’s directors of various MBA programs and see what they recommend in order to ace your interview.

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Want to use an MBA to change careers? You won’t be alone. Top business schools report that between 75% and 90% of their students do intend to leverage their MBA to move into a new industry, or a new job within their industry.

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The number of underrepresented minorities and women in business school is significantly low compared to other professional degree programs such as medical and law schools. Join us as we learn what schools are doing to attract more minority students, why more aren’t pursuing MBAs, why recruiters are looking to hire minority MBAs, and hear about the various scholarships available.

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Everywhere you look you can find a new set of MBA rankings. Some offer ratings of full-time, part-time and executive programs, others rank schools based on their ROI and average salaries while others focus on specialties such as finance, marketing and entrepreneurship. We’ll dig into the ratings and find out which ratings list is most appropriate for each set of criteria and which schools top the different lists.

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Listen in on an Admission Panel with top business schools around the country. Admissions Directors from NYU Stern, Columbia and Wharton will field questions on a range of topics, all with one goal in mind: how you can beat the odds and gain admittance to their schools.

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When considering the pursuit of an MBA, one of the first options you’re likely weighing is going back full-time versus part-time. Historically it has been deemed that for graduate students in business, the decision to attend school full-time vs. part-time largely depends on whether you want to continue on a pre-established career path or alternatively change careers or industries. However with the recent recession and unemployment trends, more prospective MBA candidates are trying to maintain their current jobs, pursue a part-time MBA and in some cases use their new network of schoolmates, or career placement offices on campus, to parlay into a new career. Today, only 20% of business school students are enrolled in a full-time, two-year program. Part-time, evening and weekend programs account for half of current students and the rest are enrolled in executive, distance-learning and other smaller programs.

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If you’re on your way to enrolling in an MBA program, or already there now, chances are you would like words of advice on from those who’ve been there, done it and went on to succeed. Listen in as we get advice from our varied guests on everything from getting in, thriving while on campus and success beyond graduation.

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You’ve been working hard, moving up the ranks and you’re making a good salary. At this point do you need take time out of your career and spend a significant amount of money to get your MBA? Or maybe you are being recruited for positions that are typically held by MBAs and the job offer is lucrative. Are you hurting your long-term career objectives by taking the job before you have your master’s degree? We’ll pose these questions and more to recruiters, experts and others.