MBA vs. Master

Balancing work, family and an international MBA degree. Is that even possible? Sascha Baae, an executive at a globally active IT company, is currently a participant in the MBA program at Opresnik Business School (OBS) and talks to Prof. Dr. Marc Oliver Opresnik about his experiences, challenges and findings from his studies.

The MBA program not only offers in-depth business knowledge, but also opens up new career opportunities. Many graduates report noticeable salary increases after graduation — particularly in management positions or when changing industries.

The MBA program is not only reserved for experienced professionals with an academic degree. The Opresnik Business School (OBS) enables flexible, 100% online studies in cooperation with British universities — and that even without a traditional educational path. This is made possible by a practical admission process and clear qualification standards.

While traditional master's programs are often focused on a specific subject area, an MBA program is specifically aimed at leadership skills, strategic thinking, and management know-how. The Opresnik Business School (OBS) offers a part-time, 100% online MBA program — ideal for anyone who is already in working life and wants to develop in a practical way.

The MBA is no longer just academic training for individuals — it is increasingly becoming a strategic tool for HR departments. The Opresnik Business School (OBS) offers a practice-oriented, 100% online MBA program that companies can use specifically for employee development and long-term retention.

Modern MBA programs today offer much more than just basic management knowledge. Through targeted specializations, students can develop in areas that are particularly relevant to their professional practice — such as digitization, sustainability or strategic marketing. This is how the MBA becomes tailor-made continuing education.

Professional decisions rarely arise from a single moment. They develop gradually, often unnoticed, embedded in everyday life from responsibility, routines and expectations. The decision to take up an MBA program almost always follows this pattern. It is not so much a spontaneous decision as the result of a lengthy internal process. Many managers report that they did not initially formulate this idea in concrete terms. It appears more as a quiet restlessness than the feeling that known solutions continue to work but are losing depth. Decisions are made, projects are managed, teams are led — but there is a growing desire to reflect on one's own actions more closely and to classify them more consciously.

Experience accumulates faster than it is organized

Professional experience does not grow linearly. It is created in projects, decisions, conflicts and successes, often in parallel and under time pressure. Knowledge accumulates over the years that is effective but is rarely consciously structured. Many managers function excellently in this situation. They solve problems, make decisions, take responsibility. At the same time, there is little room left to systematically classify one's own experience.

The idea of studying an MBA often originates at this point. Not out of a lack, but out of a desire for order. Experience is there, but it is fragmented. The MBA starts here without replacing anything. It provides a framework in which existing knowledge is sorted, mirrored and placed in a larger context.

A familiar degree within a different academic framework

For many students from Germany, studying an MBA in England is not an exotic step, but a conscious decision for a different academic system. The degree is internationally established, the language is familiar, and yet everyday student life differs in important ways from what many people know from the German university context.

These differences are often not experienced as a hurdle, but as a structure that provides orientation. For professionals in particular, this creates a study environment that is clearly timed and remains focused on results.