Melissa Koerner, Interim Dean
Michael Keene, MBATC Director
Baptiste Prevot, MBA & Graduate Program Operations Director
Brittney Todd, Graduate Business Programs Advisor
Specifically designed to meet the needs of professionals with science and engineering backgrounds, the MBATC program allows students to prepare for executive roles in technology-driven business environments without interrupting their careers. CEOs and entrepreneurs in technology-intensive industries, ranging from Aerospace and Biotechnology to Software, have played an instrumental role in the development and delivery of MBATC course modules. The program emphasizes the practical and applied aspects of commercializing innovative products and managing the businesses that develop them.
While a number of core classes are taken together with MBA students, the MBATC program focuses on the distinctive marketing, financing, management, product development, and intellectual property issues facing the technology-based firm in a global strategic context. Core requirements of the MBATC program are not directed at specialization in one area of business or technology; instead, they develop cross-functional frameworks that stress balance in using managerial skills to achieve effective leadership. The program develops skills and models that can be used for both entrepreneurial and entrepreneurial technology managers.
Program Goals
Graduate programs in the Bill and Vieve Gore School of Business prepare students for executive decision making in dynamic business environments. Students build skill in decision making through a combination of coursework, experiential requirements, and skill-building exercises and simulations. Innovative delivery of courses gives students expertise in the functional areas of business.
In addition to building expertise in the functional areas of business, students completing graduate programs in the Bill and Vieve Gore School of Business are required to demonstrate mastery in the following competency areas:
- Analyze the unique problems and opportunities facing technology-based firms, and develop plans to address those issues effectively.
- Build models to evaluate and measure market opportunities and constraints in technology-based firms.
- Select and apply tools that enable technology firms to quickly and successfully develop and deliver novel products to the market.
- Develop business models that enable firms to be leaders in technology sectors.
Program Requirements
The program requires 39 credit hours for completion. There are six program requirements: foundations, four modules, and an elective block. All core courses are delivered in a blended format, meaning that courses use a combination of classroom, online, project-based and experiential components. In the classroom, courses may use a combination of learning methods, such as: lecture, case study, or in-class projects.
In addition to the course work described below, students are required to complete the ETS MBA Major Field Test prior to graduation.
Module 1 contains courses that should be taken at the beginning of the MBATC program; courses in this module introduce the model of the entire program. While taking module 1 courses, students and their advisor work together to complete a program of study, planning out elective courses and/or graduate certificates to meet the student’s individual career goals.
Module 2 and elective courses may be taken as early as desired upon completion of prerequisites.
Module 3 courses should be taken as early as possible upon completion of module 1.
Module 4 includes final courses that serve as a capstone to the program.
MBA/MBATC International Context Tour Policy:
The MBA/ MBATC International Context Tour is required for graduation and can be taken after the student has completed at least 25 credit hours. Trip participants are required to adhere to the policies and procedures outlined in the MBA/ MBATC International Context Tour Handbook.
A maximum of 9 approved graduate hours may be transferred toward the MBATM Program from other professionally accredited institutions (AACSB or ACBSP) upon the written permission of the program director. Courses eligible for transfer are only those that contribute to, or build upon, the program goals. Courses completed at other graduate institutions must be awarded a minimum grade of B to be eligible for credit.
A grade of C is the lowest passing grade for all MBATC and graduate certificate courses. Students must take all coursework for letter grades. Please see course descriptions at the end of this catalog for details concerning course requirements and prerequisites.
Foundational Literacy Requirement
Students entering the graduate Master of Business Administration (MBA) and Master of Business Administration in Technology Commercialization ( MBATC) programs are required to demonstrate foundational literacy in the following five disciplines: (1) accounting, (2) business finance, (3) macroeconomics, (4) microeconomics, and (5) quantitative analysis and business statistics.
Each admitted graduate student will be required to complete each module and achieve a minimum score for each topic (i.e., 70%). If the student fails to achieve a minimum score for a topic, the student is then directed to complete the online module associated with that topic. Students will have two opportunities to complete a post-test, after reviewing the topical areas missed in a particular module. Students will be required to meet or exceed the minimum score requirement before they will be allowed to take the associated core class or project sequence. Students will have until the end of their first semester to complete the literacy modules. Students will have access to the course materials for up to one year so that they can use the material throughout their graduate program for future reference material. Modules are delivered online. The costs of the Literacy Workshops are not included in the cost of tuition.
Program Requirements
| Requirement Description |
Credit Hours | Prerequisites |
| I. Foundational Literacy Requirements | 0 | |
| MBA 501 Economics Foundational Literacy (0)—offered fall, spring, and summer | ||
| MBA 502 Accounting Foundational Literacy (0)—offered fall, spring, and summer | ||
| MBA 506 Quantitative Methods Foundational Literacy (0)—offered fall, spring, and summer | ||
| MBA 508 Finance Foundational Literacy (0)—offered fall, spring, and summer | ||
| See Program Requirements for information about foundational literacy courses. | ||
| II. Module I Courses | 12 | |
| MBA 600C The Language of Strategy (2)—offered fall, spring, and summer | ||
| MBA 605C Executive Development (2)—offered fall, spring, and summer | MBA 600C | |
| MBA 615C The Ethical Leader (2)—offered fall | MBA 501, 508 | |
| MBATC 631 Industry and Market Dynamics in Technology (2)—offered Block 2 | ||
| MBATC 641 Organizations, Technology and Society (2)—offered Block 1 | ||
| Students must take one of the following: | ||
| MBA 610C Data Analysis for Decision Making (2)—offered fall, spring, and summer | ||
| MBA 623E Simulation Modeling (2) | MBA 501, 502, 506, 508 | |
| III. Module II Courses | 12 | |
| MBA 625C Financial Reporting and Control (2)—offered fall, spring, and summer MBA 630C Financial Design and Analysis (2)—offered fall, spring, and summer MBA 635C Executive Financial Decision Making (2)—offered fall, spring, and summer MBA 640C Managing Processes (2)—offered fall and spring MBA 645C Value Creation and Delivery (2)—offered fall, spring, and summer MBA 650C Leading Dynamic Organizations (2)—offered fall, spring, and summer |
MBA 502, 508, 610C MBA 625C MBA 625C MBA 506, 610C605C |
|
| IV. Module III Courses | 8 | |
| MBATC 644 Intellectual Property Strategy (2)—offered Block 1 | ||
| MBATC 647 Marketing of Innovative Products (2)—offered Block 2, fall, and some summer semester | MBA 645C | |
| MBATC 651 New Product Development (2)—offered Block 1, fall, and Block 2 spring semester | MBA 645C | |
| MBATC 654 Financing New Ventures (2)—offered Block 1, fall and Block 2 spring semester | MBA 635C | |
| V. Module IV Courses | 3 | |
| MBATC 660 Technology Commercialization and Implementation (2)—offered fall and spring | MBATCMBATC 664, 651 | |
| MBATC 699 International Context Trip* (1)—offered fall and spring | MBA 655 C | |
| * The International Trip is required and can be taken after the student has completed at least 25 credit hours. See program coordinator for details. | ||
| The ETS Major Field Test for the MBA is required and is normally administered in the students’ last semester. (0) | ||
| VI. Elective Courses | 4 | |
| Elective courses are chosen with the student’s advisor to meet individual career goals. Students wishing to complete a graduate certificate may use electives to complete the requirements for the graduate certificate. | ||
| TOTAL HOURS FOR THE MBATC PROGRAM | 39 |
Recommended Plan of Study for MBATC
| Block |
Fall Semester |
Spring Semester | Summer Semester | |
| Year 1 | Block 1 | MBATC 644 MBA 600C |
MBATC 641 MBA 625C |
MBA 630C MBA 650C |
| Block 2 | MBATC 631 MBA 605C |
MBA 610C or MBA 623E MBA 615C |
||
| Year 2 | Block 1 | MBATC 651 MBA 635C |
Elective MBA 640C |
MBA 645 |
| Block 2 | MBATC 647 Elective |
MBATC 654 MBA 699C |
||
| Full Semester |
MBATC 660 | |||