Online and hybrid learning have taken the world of higher education by storm. Each year, more and more students are eager to advance their education and careers while not having to put their lives on hold. The world of online education offers students unprecedented flexibility that was unimaginable to earlier generations.
But what about students who desire the flexibility of online learning yet can’t help but wonder if they might be missing out on crucial in-person learning opportunities? The Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley addresses this need with its Evening and Weekend Flex MBA program, which blends online and in-person learning options for those eager for a flexible hybrid experience.
With this option, students can create a custom learning experience by taking their elective courses either online, in-person, or through a combination of both. These in-person offerings can provide huge advantages to students while still maintaining the flexibility of an online MBA.
Let’s take a closer look at this hybrid approach and hear from some students about their experiences.
Flex is for flexibility
All students pursuing the Flex MBA option begin their journey with an in-person immersive weekend called WELaunch. This allows students to meet the classmates in their cohort, network with professors, and hit the ground running. After this kick-off event, students spend the rest of their first year taking their core courses online and attending virtual meetings with classmates and professors.
During their second and third years, students take elective courses in addition to their core courses and immersive experiences. This is where they are able to take full advantage of the “choose your own adventure” hybrid format and craft a custom learning plan that is best tailored to their needs. Students desiring the maximum amount of flexibility can continue to take all of their elective courses online. But students can also choose to take one or more of their elective courses on campus.
A key feature of the program is the variety of available elective formats. In addition to being able to choose to take each elective online or in person, students can also choose to take electives as short intensives or in a traditional semester-long format. Students have these four options for every single elective.
That means a distance student could come to campus for one week and have the benefits of completing an in-person course without disturbing the rest of their lives for an entire semester. It also means that local students can choose to come to campus for a semester-long course that fits in with their work schedule. And it means that students unable to come to campus at all can opt for either an intensive online elective or traditional online elective.
The Flex option is truly designed to meet the diverse needs and preferences of students.
The benefits of in-person electives
Some may wonder, ‘With the option to take electives online, why would anyone want to take the time to come to campus? Doesn’t the inconvenience outweigh any benefits?’ For some students, that certainly might be the case. However, there are also distinct benefits for students who choose in-person electives.
Harnessing the power of networking opportunities is the most significant benefit of these in-person courses. Attending campus-based electives helps students strengthen and expand their connections. In addition to reconnecting with fellow cohort members who are on campus, students can also network with professors, staff members, and meet students from different cohorts or program options. This can dramatically expand a student’s network and provide transformational relationships for many years to come.
Another distinct benefit of an on-campus elective is the ability to take full advantage of Berkeley’s prolific collection of campus resources.
Student experiences
As with any good idea, however, the proof is in the pudding. Have the students in the Flex option experienced these benefits? Have they found value in having extra in-person experiences while still having online flexibility?
My network ballooned when I started the in-person electives. It was a huge opportunity to meet folks I wouldn’t have otherwise."
Third year student Mei Headley, MBA 25, shares the reason she decided to pursue an in-person elective. “I chose to take an in-person elective because it struck the perfect balance between my desire for face-to-face learning and my professional commitments. The elective, spanning just two Sundays in April, is conveniently accessible with just an hour's flight from where I live.”
Although she typically cannot attend regular in-person sessions due to work, this unique opportunity provided her with “an ideal solution” that allowed her to enrich her educational experience without upending her schedule. “This minimal time investment for the invaluable opportunity to engage directly with the professors and absorb the material in a live setting was too good to pass up.”
Another third year student, Bryce Powerman, MBA 25, lives in the area and has taken half of his electives remotely and half as on-campus courses. While he acknowledges the benefits of both formats, he has found immense value in the social aspect of the on-campus experiences.
“It allows you to meet really interesting people on a different level, and collaboration becomes easier when you have that in-person time.” He also has found huge value in being able to get to know students from other cohorts. “My network ballooned when I started the in-person electives. It was a huge opportunity to meet folks I wouldn’t have otherwise.”
Local San Francisco student and fellow third-year Nour Abi Samra, MBA 25, decided to take in-person electives because she “wanted to take the opportunity to be more engaged on campus” as her schedule allows. She has found the experience “invigorating” and also appreciates the chance to meet students from different cohorts and classes and engage in in-person conversations.
For all three of these students, the ability to engage with classmates during an on-campus elective has provided deeper connections, valuable learning opportunities, and an overall enriched MBA experience.
Maximizing the hybrid format
With so many different options available in the Flex program, it’s easy to wonder if students ever experience “decision paralysis” when choosing between online and in-person classes or between a traditional or intensive format.
Bryce experimented with the different elective formats to discover what works best for him and advises future students to do the same—to choose a path that is tailored to their particular learning style.
“I think it comes down to learning your preferences,” he says. “My first semester of electives I tried out a lot of different structures and formats and found the ones that I preferred and then just generally tried to trend toward that when taking electives. I think everyone learns differently. So if you hate the screen, it doesn’t make sense to do a five day intensive online. But if you like flexibility, then maybe doing a once-a-week virtual class would be just fine.”
With the generous flexibility of the program, students are truly able to create a custom learning plan that is perfectly crafted to maximize their learning while taking into account their preferences, work, and lifestyle.
A one-of-a-kind online MBA
In the ever-evolving world of online higher education, Berkeley Haas continues to be on the front lines of innovative ideas that enable all students to thrive. Bryce emphasized that there is no other program quite like the top-ranked Evening and Weekend MBA Program’s Flex option.
In this program, one student could live thousands of miles away and take an elective course over an entire semester while a local student completes that same course in a week-long intensive—with both students receiving the same unmatched Berkeley education and network of resources.
Haas has always prioritized the student experience, and Flex is a shining example of this commitment. The stories of Mei, Bryce, and Nour illustrate the innovative ways the school makes this commitment come to life—offering the flexibility and diverse options necessary to forge their own unique paths.
