Welcome and Introduction

As the first post to this blog, I would like to briefly introduce myself, describe the Kelley Direct program, and state what I hope this blog will accomplish.

About Me
I am from Virginia, and I work as an accountant in the government sector. I also own a small accounting firm working with small business and political campaigns. I am working on obtaining a CPA and CMA license. I have a Masters of Science in Accounting and a Bachelors of Science in Computer Science.

Kelley Direct
The Kelley Direct program offers an MBA (as well as MS in Finance, Global Supply Chain Management, and Strategic Management) through Indiana University's Kelley School of Business. The program is offered almost entirely online, with a 1 week in-residence in Bloomington, IN at the beginning of each Fall semester.

What I Hope to Accomplish
I have started this blog in an attempt to chronicle my time in the Kelley Direct program. There are many MBA blogs started each year from those attending top-ranked business schools, however I feel this blog is unique as it chronicles a top-ranked MBA program that is offered online. There are currently only a handful of what I would consider top-ranked business schools that offer such a degree online.

There seems to be a lot of confusion among students, companies, and recruiters on exactly how to treat a degree earned online. The normal thought is of those for-profit schools that advertise relentlessly on TV, radio, print, etc offering people "degrees you can earn in your pajamas". These degrees, because of the prevelance of their advertising and stereotype of the degrees themselves, get lumped into other online degrees. However, as more great schools, such as Indiana, Penn State, & Arizona State begin to offer MBA degrees online, how will companies view these? What troubles will students have explaining to recruiters why their MBA should be equivalent to others earned at the institution?

As I am just beginning on this road, I do not know the answers. I expect I will encounter many who will lump this degree with those aforementioned cracker-jack degrees. However, I also hope to encounter those who see the possibilities of having schools with great reputations offer MBAs online, and having those degrees carry the same weight as those earned in-residence. It is my hope that through this blog, and the abilities of those who earn this degree, that we are able to break down any of these preconceived perceptions.

There is significantly more to say on this issue, however, as this is only an introduction, hopefully it has provided you an overview on what to expect going forward.

-b