Here’s an interesting statistic from the India Skill Report – less than half of students with an MBA degree have the skills to be hired. While there are many takers for the MBA, a few points need to be considered:

a) From where are you doing your MBA – A top-ranked MBA college will surely afford you a good job and salary package. But statistically, getting into any one of them is extremely hard.

b) How will it help you – Traditionally, an MBA helps you break into middle management in big organizations. This is possible if you do the MBA from a recognized college.

c) Return on Investment – An MBA isn’t cheap. And if you’re paying good money, it better be worth it. You should earn well enough to pay off your education loan reasonably quickly, otherwise, it’s pointless.

Now, the statement with which we started this piece starts to add up:

Low-grade MBA courses + high fees = not great employability prospects.

For the longest time, an MBA was seen as a safe haven – have an MBA, get a job. This led to a dilution of the degree and it became commonplace. But prospective employers, especially startups, aren’t looking for a sheet of paper; they’re looking for demonstrable skills. Add to this the growth of the startup ecosystem and the talent crunch becomes even more acute. While there is no shortage of online courses, even they suffer from the same problem – lack of credibility. You can spend hours listening to someone speak but how much have you learned at the end of it?

The stoaMBA aims to bridge the talent crunch faced by startups. It’s an intense six-month transformational program that gives you the relevant skillsets to thrive at work and in life. It focuses on peer-to-peer learning and the program material covers business frameworks, design and product management, communication skills, sales, finance, marketing and an opportunity to find one’s area of unique expertise. By virtue of being entirely online, the cohorts are made up of people from diverse backgrounds and work experience and this ensures that you don’t get locked into a set way of thinking.

But how is the stoaMBA different from a regular online course? The learning happens through intense interactive sessions and case competitions where teams solve real problems faced by startups. The faculty consists of some of the best minds from the startup world, entrepreneurs, and even ICF certified coaches. Ankur Warikoo, Richa Kar and Nithin Kamath are some of the well-regarded people who have taught sessions at the stoaMBA. The program also has a career success component that includes resume curation and interview preparation. You can opt for one-on-one mentorship with industry professionals (ICF-ACC certified coaches) to guide you in the areas of soft skills and confidence building.

Finally, let’s talk about the cost. The program fee is Rs. 2,95,000 (inclusive of GST). This is approximately 1/10th of the price of a regular MBA. Without having to worry about maintaining a physical campus, the stoaMBA can focus all its energies on delivering a fantastic learning experience. You can also opt to pay your fees via EMI, making it easier to pursue the program.

The focus of the stoaMBA is to give you the skills that startups are looking for. This has resulted in an 85% placement rate across 150+ hiring partners. The admissions process is another area where the stoaMBA breaks ground with the old. Shortlisted candidates are sent an aptitude test invite, and selected candidates are offered admission into the program. This involves video submissions and filling up a short form to understand your motivation better.

If you’re looking for a cost-effective MBA that gives you the skillsets that startups are looking for, then doing the stoaMBA is common sense.