The one-year MBA is a full-time MBA program that has been compressed into an intensive three-term, 12-month experience, generally beginning with the summer term. Schools that offer the "1Y" option support particularly motivated applicants with precisely timed career paths to apply. In conjunction with team-based skills development, cost savings is another great benefit of the 1Y programs. 1Y options characteristically come at a 25- 40% discount off the two-year full-time MBA costs.

One disadvantage to take into account is that, for the grand majority of 1Y programs, the summer term does not include an internship. So, a major placement tool is not included in these programs. Therefore, potential applicants should not only be extremely driven, but also extremely confident in his or her post-MBA exit strategy.

The global MBA - executive-level MBA program of length between one and two years drawing middle- and upper-level managers from all over the world to participate. Along with team- and leadership-building work and skills refinement, this program emphasizes the teaching of global content and the sharing of global experience. The global MBA with the EMBA requires sponsorship of most, if not all, participants.

The mini MBA – a program that can be as short as a week and as long as three months and that often includes both classroom and online elements. Mini MBA program is offered by a number of schools to local professionals to enhance understanding and skills either in general management or in specific fields. This program some schools describe as a "crash course." Given the abridged format, students earning their mini-MBAs receive a certificate of completion rather than their Master's. Some of these programs are for established professionals looking to benefit from learning in a business-school-styled environment-group work with case studies is frequently employed-but who do not need a true MBA (or the associated costs) for their career advancement.

The online MBA. It’s a professional program for people looking to earn their MBAs and enhance their management skills on a personalized schedule to be followed from home. These programs may include synchronous formats, in which faculty and students communicate live through online forums; others emphasize 100% asynchronous content to give students complete control of times during which their studies will be done.