Traditionally, the MBA has been regarded as a post work-experience programme, meaning that its participants should have some relevant professional-experience as an entry requirement. Since it is debatable what should be understood as “relevant experience”, the easiest way to agree on a threshold is to take the length of the applicant’s working years. For example, EQUIS (European Quality Link) Guidelines on MBA programmes 
establish that the previous professional experience of MBA candidates should normally be at least two years. AMBA (The Association of MBAs) has a more sophisticated system since, though it requires an average two-year professional experience in a given MBA class, it allows a significant percentage of participants with less or even no experience (up to 15%).
The requirement of working experience for those who apply to an MBA programme is based on the supposition that, since MBA programmes have very interactive methodologies –e.g., case studies, role-playing- a substantial part of the learning has as its main source, fellow participants. It is often said that, when using interactive learning methods, the role of the professor resembles that of an orchestra conductor or facilitator of sessions, rather than the lecturer role typical of traditional classes.
Recently, however, the requirement of previous professional experience is under question. Many b-schools –including some of the top ranked by the Financial Times - have wondered whether professional experience could be waived if the MBA candidate has some other significant talents or in order to increase the class’ diversity, for example in terms of gender or international participants. In addition, a further vector of diversity is age itself: doesn´t it enchance the learning experience to have participants with different levels of professional experience, even belonging to different generations, in order to replicate what actually happens at work in real life? A very interesting post on this issue was published last week in this blog.
Indeed, the more diverse an MBA class is, the more enriching is the learning experience. True, sameness of participants–in terms of culture, business knowledge, experience, views of the world and age- may provide a tranquil setting that makes participants feel comfortable and achieve learning objectives in a very orderly way. However, the objective of MBA is to prepare its students to lead companies in a complex and diverse world and thus experience should prevail over the mere accumulation of knowledge.
MBA programmes are living educational offerings, and their entry requirements should change according to the evolution of circumstances. Maybe it’s time to reconsider the traditional view on the values of professional experience and allow more room for young, talented, participants with high potential.
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