  Career progression is a general concern of professional working mothers in
China. The purpose of this paper is to report a qualitative study of Chinese
professional working mothers that explored the perceptions of online Master's
of Business Administration (MBA) programmes as a tool for career progression
for working mothers balancing work and family in China. The objective was to
examine existing work-family and career progression conflicts, the perceived
usefulness of online MBA in balancing work-family and career aspirations, and
the perceived ease of use of e-learning. Using Davis's (1989) technology
acceptance model (TAM), the research drew on in-depth interviews with 10 female
part-time MBA students from a university in Wuhan. The data were analysed
through coding and transcribing. The findings showed that conflicts arose where
demanding work schedules competed with family obligations, studies, and caring
for children and the elderly. Online MBA programmes were viewed as a viable
tool for balancing work and family and studying, given its flexible time
management capabilities. However, consideration must be given to address
students' motivation issues, lack of networking, lack of face-to-face
interaction, and quality. The research findings emphasise the pragmatic need to
re-align higher education policy and practice to position higher education
e-learning as a trustable education delivery channel in China. By shedding
light on the prevailing work-family conflict experienced by women seeking
career advancement, this study suggests developing better gender-supporting
policies and innovative e-learning practices to champion online MBA programme
for this target niche.
