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online competency-based mba degree

Master of Business Administration (Competency Based-CB)

Complete your degree in less than 12 months and for under $10K

Businesses today face unprecedented challenges that can only be solved by the professionals who are on the ground, dealing with them. Which is why our new competency-based MBA equips you with advanced business skills in under 12 months. This program is designed for professionals with a business degree and experience working in that field. 

Ignite Your Passion

Start when you're ready

Courses

Browse courses for your online MBA degree

Education should hold practical value. That’s why our courses meet rigorous academic standards and provide you with skills and knowledge immediately applicable to your career.

Skills-aligned program icon

Look for this icon to see which skills you’ll learn in a course.

Requirements: 33 credits

In a competency-based program, you earn credit by demonstrating your knowledge of a core skill, or competency. Since there are 33 credits in this program, one competency equals one credit.

  • An undergraduate degree, or higher, in business or business management
  • A cumulative GPA of 2.5
  • Three years of experience within the past 10 years in a business environment

11 Core Courses

Here’s where you’ll pick up the bulk of your program-specific knowledge. By the time you finish these courses, you should have the confidence and skills needed in this field.

11 Core Courses

4 courses at a time

16 weeks per course

11 courses per year

Schedule

Your academic counselor will help schedule your courses for a Master of Business Administration (Competency-Based).

Skills-aligned program icon

Earn career-relevant skills in weeks – not years.

Learning shouldn’t take years to put into practice. That’s why we’re empowering you to build career-relevant skills with every course.

We’ve worked with the labor market researcher Lightcast to identify in-demand skills for occupations and mapped those to our related associate, bachelor’s and master’s degree programs.

Skills-aligned program icon

Earn career-relevant skills in weeks – not years.

Learning shouldn’t take years to put into practice. That’s why we’re empowering you to build career-relevant skills with every course.

We’ve worked with the labor market researcher Lightcast to identify in-demand skills for occupations and mapped those to our related associate, bachelor’s and master’s degree programs.

Tuition

Affordable, fixed tuition

Keep the same fixed, affordable tuition from start to finish of your degree program, even if it takes longer than you planned. That’s our promise: no matter what surprises life brings, you can count on us. That's your Tuition Guarantee.

Tuition Guarantee

Lock-in Tuition

$300

Cost per credit

$300

Financial aid

You may have options when it comes to paying for college tuition and expenses, such as federal grants and loans. Our finance advisors can answer your questions about financial aid and can help guide you through the process.

Federal Student Loan Basics

Careers & Outcomes

What can you do with a Master of Business Administration degree (Competency-Based)?

Discover where your degree might take you and make informed choices about your future.

A competency-based MBA can help prepare you to be a:

  • Business Manager
  • General Manager (GM)
  • Operations Director
  • Administrative Director

Top skills learned in this program:

  • Communication

  • Leadership

  • Management

  • Strategic planning

  • Decision making

Ready to get started?

Start your application for free or request additional information.

What you’ll learn

When you earn your Master of Business Administration (Competency-Based), you’ll be equipped with a concrete set of skills you can apply on the job. You’ll learn how to:

  • Integrate decision-making skills to deliver organizational value in dynamic environments.
  • Create strategies for sustainable organizational success that integrates the organization’s mission and vision with societal values.
  • Synthesize leadership skills to foster innovation and facilitate change in a dynamic business environment.
  • Evaluate the global environment to sustain an organization’s competitive advantage.
  • Integrate managerial skills to support strategic execution in a rapidly changing business environment.

5% Growth

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, job growth for general managers is projected to be as fast as average between 2022 and 2032.

The BLS Projected Growth for 2022-2032 is published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. This data reflects the BLS’ projections of national (not local) conditions. These data points are not specific to University of Phoenix students or graduates.

Admissions

Apply for free – no application fee, no obligation.

Starting your degree is a big decision — and we want you to feel great about it. That’s why we remove obstacles from your application.

  • No cost to request prior transcripts
  • No GMAT
  • No essay required

Receive 1-on-1 support

You have a support team of real people you can lean on. And our academic counselors, who are with you every step of the way, have earned a 5-star rating from 90% of our surveyed students.[1] Start a conversation with an enrollment representative today.

[1] Transactional Survey, August 2021-22 (18,645 respondents)

Gabriel G., Enrollment Representative

Call or chat with us 7 days a week.

G. Galindo - Enrollment Representative

Gabriel G., Enrollment Rep

Receive 1-on-1 support

You have a support team of real people you can lean on. And our academic counselors, who are with you every step of the way, have earned a 5-star rating from 85% of our surveyed students.[1]

[1] Transactional Survey, September 2022-August 2023 (23,739 respondents)

Start a conversation with an enrollment representative today.

Call us at 844-937-8679 or chat with us 7 days a week.

Competency Based Education (CB)

What is competency-based education?

Stand out with an in-demand business degree

×
00:57 fact many are programmatically 00:59 accredited and courses are taught by 01:01 accomplished professionals in business 01:03 enrolling is easy there's no application 01:06 fee no sat or gmat test requirements and 01:10 no out-of-pocket costs for transcripts 01:12 we request them for you if you have 01:14 eligible transfer credits we'll work 01:16 with you to get the credit you deserve 01:18 this means you could save up to 75 on 01:21 your bachelor's degree to help you 01:22 graduate in as little as a year plus 01:25 with up to 18 opportunities to start you 01:27 can begin your degree when you're ready 01:29 stay competitive now and in the future 01:32 with an online business degree 01:35 [Music] 01:42 you

If you have previous experience, prefer to work more independently and want to control how fast or slow you complete courses, a Competency-Based program may be ideal for you.

Is CB right for you?

Take the Learning Style Quiz and find out.

How do you like to learn?

Which pace best suits your learning style?

How do you manage your time?

How long have you worked in the field of study you are looking to get a degree in?

I have an undergraduate degree in the same field I'd like to earn my degree in.

Still have questions about your learning style? Request info for a follow-up call.

Student Experience

An education that fits your busy life

Balancing family, work and school

Work toward your degree without giving up what matters most. Start your degree year-round and take one class at a time.

Online learning

Enroll in online classes and attend class whenever it fits your life, day or night.

Around-the-clock support and resources

You have a support team available up to 14 hours a day, 5 days a week. 

Computer requirements for courses

Many course assignments will require you to use a computer to complete and submit your assignment. 

Phoenix provides support and resources for busy students

Faculty Spotlight

Professionals dedicated to you

Your success is a top priority for our deans and faculty members. They bring an average of 26 years of experience and hands-on perspective to the classroom, and help bridge the gap between academics and industry knowledge.

Kathryn Uhles

I’m dedicated to equipping students with the knowledge, skills and abilities to meet their career goals.

Kathryn Uhles
Dean, College of Business and IT, University of Phoenix

I’m dedicated to equipping students with the knowledge, skills and abilities to meet their career goals.

Accreditation

Count on the quality of your education

programmatic accreditation

Our MBA has been reaffirmed for accreditation until 2027 by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP), ensuring the quality of your education.

What does that mean in real life? ACBSP-accredited business programs are committed to quality standards. The quality of the program is regularly benchmarked against specific criteria that prepare students for the business industry. Accreditation occurs on a 10-year cycle with regular quality reviews.

View the completion and first-year persistence rates for the University of Phoenix ACBSP-accredited business and accounting programs.

A C B S P accredited

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Frequently asked questions about this MBA

With a competency-based MBA, you can set your own pace within each 16-week term and control how fast or slow you move through the curriculum. You can leverage prior experience and demonstrate your mastery of subject matter you already know and spend more time on unfamiliar topics. A CB MBA program may be an ideal fit for you if you have previous work experience and prefer more flexible, independent learning than a traditional program. 

Our competency-based Master of Business Administration (CB MBA) program equips you with advanced business skills in a shorter time. You can complete a CB MBA program in less than 12 months and for under $10,000.

It’s designed for professionals who already have a business degree and want to leverage their experience in the field to complete a degree faster. You can learn in-demand skills like strategic planning, decision-making, capital budgeting and more, to enhance your marketability as a business professional and increase the quality of your future job opportunities.

Our competency-based Master of Business Administration (CB MBA) program enables you to consume content faster around your own schedule. You can enjoy a flexible learning experience with faculty guidance to prepare for competency assessments. This allows you to complete your degree faster and in a manner that may fit your demanding work and life commitments better.

Traditional MBA programs can take one to two years to complete, but you can finish in less than a year with a CB MBA program. In a CB MBA program, you can enroll in up to four courses concurrently rather than taking one course at a time in our traditional MBA program. CB MBA programs require more self-discipline than the traditional model because you have more autonomy while learning. To enroll in a CB MBA program, you must meet specific work experience and eligibility requirements.

While widely available, not all programs are available to residents of all states. Please check with a University Enrollment Representative.