What is the difference between MBA and PGDM? Which one is worthy to choose...!!!

• When PGDM? For people who wish to learn more practicalities, technical skills, oratory skills etc. must prefer PGDM. In case of people who have already learnt basics of management in other courses like CA, CMA, etc. they should prefer an PGDM. This is because for them degree is not important, learning the skills is important.
• When MBA? When the person has no background degrees like CA, CMA etc. he should learn the theoretical concepts as well. Also when person does not have a recognition/degree before this course, say people who have completed only graduation (any variant), they should go for MBA. They can go for PGDM as well, but chances are that they will find PGDM difficult, since they don't have a great background for it.
• If you are looking at joining a good b-school (https://www.welingkaronline.org/) , the below is something you should expect from the college as a bare minimum:
  1. Exposure
  2. Internships & Final Placements
  3. Infrastructure
  4. 
     
     1. Physical
     2. Tech
     3. Knowledge
  5. Curriculum / Course Options
  6. Intellectual Capital
  7. Brand Name
  8. Fees vs Package
  9. Alumni
  10. Rankings
  11. Other opportunities / facilities

Hi Lakshmi,

The answer is simple, an “MBA” is Management of Business Administration and “PGDM” is Post Graduate Diploma in Management. Only difference between them is their names and nothing else. MBA or PGDMs are not treated differently by corporates. A B-School should be chosen on its ranking, curriculum or placements rather than by the degree or diploma they offer. An MBA is a degree offered by Government or private universities and the colleges affiliated with them. A PGDM is a diploma offered by colleges recognised by government of India’s nodal body for technical education called All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).

Even the country’s top most institutes such as IIMs and IIMs offer Post Graduate Program in Management and not MBA as they are neither a university nor affiliated to one. But after the passing of IIM Bill 2017, they offer MBA degree. The colleges that offer PGDM are at par with MBA offering colleges.  Many top PGDM B-schools have received MBA Equivalence from Government body AIU, and their PGDM is treated at par with MBA when it comes for higher studies like M.Phil. or Ph.D.

Below are some top reasons to choose an MBA program,

Good MBA programs offered by top government or private universities such as FMS Delhi, IIFT, JBIMS, XIMB, NMIMS, SIBM are the most sought-after management courses and the PGDM offered by other top B-Schools and IIMs are at par with each other. MBA and PGDM are more similar in nature but there are some differences such as,

1. An AIU equivalence certificate is needed with PGDM whereas, it is not required to be accompanied with any MBA degree
2. MBA is a globally recognised degree and is acceptable by top recruiters around the globe. Top B-Schools around the world offer MBA degree and not PGDM diploma
3. Foreign universities need MBA degree instead of diploma to offer admission in Ph.D. or Doctoral program
4. MBA colleges have created a huge alumni base as compared to the PGDM colleges mostly because these MBA colleges have a very old history as compared to the PGDM colleges

Reasons to choose PGDM program are,

1. The course structure for these PGDM colleges is more industry oriented. This is done so to keep the curriculum in accordance with the latest industry developments.
2. Many reputed colleges in India as well as abroad give more preference to PGDM over MBA as PGDM offers more practical insights than an MBA does and hence gives an edge provided if it’s done from a reputed college
3. Because these institutes are autonomous, they offer better placement offers than MBA
4. It is easier to get education loans if you are going to study in an institute backed by AICTE. Students can easily apply loans from a private or nationalised bank and arranging money for their fees will no longer be a burden to them

Some key differences between MBA and PGDM are also listed down in the below table,

All the very best!!

Dear Lakshmi, the basic difference is that MBA is a Post Graduation course and PGDM is a Post Graduation Diploma course. Both of them are into Management courses. A Post Graduation course will always have more value than a Post Graduation Diploma course. PGDM is like a Diploma course. PGDM is nothing less when done from a reputed Institution.