Master of Business Administration (MBA)
Örn Bodvarsson, Dean
Dax Jacobson, Associate Dean
William Shiflett, Director, MBA & Graduate Business Operations
Deborah Marzano, Graduate Business Programs Coordinator
Master of Business Administration Courses
Admission to the Master of Business Administration Program
The Bill and Vieve Gore School of Business is dedicated to providing distinctive academic programs within a learner-centered environment. We are purposeful in designing and facilitating learning activities that are integrated across business and liberal arts disciplines. This integration enhances the capabilities of our graduates in written and oral communication, computing and technology, international dimensions, critical thinking, ethics, social responsibility, and team effectiveness. Most importantly, our students are prepared for a life of learning within changing social, technological and economic conditions.
Accredited by the Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP), the programs of the Gore School of Business reflect Westminster College’s continuing commitment to provide a student-oriented learning environment and innovative education of exceptional quality. Our integrated programs contribute to students’ effectiveness as citizens and agents of change, making our alumni a very significant network of influence worldwide.
The MBA program prepares students to be executive leaders in organizations. The program is designed so that students have flexibility in completing their core and elective coursework, and can pursue their career aspirations without interrupting their professional careers. Coursework provides students with a well-integrated understanding of areas of business so that graduates are prepared to be leaders at the senior level of an organization. Students complete their core courses, they can choose to focus on a particular topic area more intensively by completing a concentration.
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 skills 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:
1. Strategic and Innovative Thinking
|
|
2. Global Perspective |
|
3. Critical, Analytical, and Reflective Thinking
|
|
4. Effective Communication |
|
5. Ethics and Social Responsibility |
|
6. Leadership and Teamwork
|
|
7. Functional Integration and Application
|
|
Program Requirements
The program requires 39 credit hours for completion. Courses are completed in the following areas: Fundamentals, Analysis, Leadership, and Communication, Strategy, and Global Orientation, Electives, and Capstone. Courses are delivered in a blended format, meaning that courses may use a combination of classroom, online, competency-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. Exceptions may be considered by program chair when relocation or other conditions make completion of the test impractical.
Fundamentals courses focus on business concepts and skills that all graduate business students must master within the first series of their program. Topics covered are marketing, economics, quantitative analysis, finance, and accounting. Students who enter the MBA program with a mastery of these topics (i.e., through undergraduate coursework or work experience) may challenge between one and seven credit hours of Fundamentals courses by successfully completing one or more challenge exams. The credit that would have been earned through the completion of Fundamentals courses will be applied to students’ elective credit requirements. Students who do not have an undergraduate degree in business or extensive work experience are encouraged to complete the Fundamentals courses.
MBA Core: Analysis, Leadership & Communication, and Strategy & Global Orientation courses are the core of the program and may be taken as early as desired upon completion of prerequisites. An international context tour (i.e., Global Orientation) is required for graduation and may be taken after completing at least 20 credit hours in the program. The Global Orientation class focuses on the business environment of a specific region or country. Economic, social, financial, and demographic aspects of diverse and multicultural environments are considered. Students travel to the region studied (outside of the United States) for a 10-day period where they will analyze as a whole the aspects of doing business in a global environment. Students are encouraged to draw on the knowledge they have gained throughout their MBA studies when completing assignments.
The Capstone course is taken upon completion of all core courses and serves as the final course for the MBA program. The Capstone course is designed to provide students an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and ability to apply the concepts they have learned during their MBA program. The ETS examination is administered in conjunction with the Capstone course. For more information on the ETS exam, click here. Exceptions may be considered by program chair when relocation or other conditions make completion of the test impractical.
Elective courses may be taken as early as desired upon completion of prerequisites.
Transfer policy. A maximum of nine approved graduate hours may be transferred toward the MBA Program from other professionally accredited institutions (e.g., 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 goals of the MBA program. Courses completed at other graduate institutions must be a minimum grade of B to be eligible for credit.
Lowest passing grade. A grade of C is the lowest passing grade for all courses.
Challenge exams. Students may challenge a Fundamentals course by completing a challenge exam(s) prior to the beginning of their graduate program. Each Fundamentals course can be challenged only once. To complete a challenge exam students contact the Graduate Programs Office at least 10 days prior to the start of their program to schedule an appointment for completing the exam. Passing scores vary by course. Students who succeed in passing a challenge exam will complete an equivalent number of elective credits.
Requirement Description | Credit Hours | Prerequisites |
I. Fundamentals | 7 | |
Students are eligible to test out of Fundamental courses. Fundamental courses count toward the 39-hour degree requirement. | ||
MBA 600B Marketing Fundamentals (1) | ||
MBA 601B Survey of Economics (1) | ||
MBA 602B Business Quantitative Analysis (1) | ||
MBA 603B Financial Markets and Institutions (2) | ||
MBA 604B Financial Statement Analysis (2) | ||
II. MBA Core | 24 | |
MBA 605C Communication and teamwork (2) | ||
MBA 610C Data and Decision Analytics (2) | MBA 602B | |
MBA 615C Creating Competitive Strategies (2) | ||
MBA 620C Managerial Economics (2) | MBA 601B, 602B | |
MBA 625C Leadership and Decision Making (2) | ||
MBA 630C Managerial Accounting (2) | MBA 603B, 604B | |
MBA 635C Marketing Management (2) | MBA 600B | |
MBA 640C Executive Decision Making and Financial Performance (2) | MBA 603B, 604B | |
MBA 645C Ethics and Corporate Governance (2) | ||
MBA 650C Operations Management (2) | MBA 610C | |
MBA 655C High Performance Business Strategies (2) | MBA 615C | |
MBA 665C Competing in a Global Environment (2-3) | Completion of 20 hours | |
III. Capstone | 2 | |
MBA 670C MBA Capstone (2) | Must be taken in final semester | |
ETS Major Field Test for the MBA | Taken with MBA 670C | |
IV. MBA Electives | 6-13 | |
All completed Fundamental courses will count toward degree requirements. Students that challenge Fundamental courses will complete additional electives. Some courses in the Project-Based MBA program (i.e., online MBA courses) may be used to satisfy elective requirements. See advisor for list of approved courses. | ||
TOTAL HOURS FOR THE MBA PROGRAM | 39 |
Recommended Plan of Study for MBA
Fall Semester
|
Spring Semester
|
Summer Term
|
||
YEAR 1
|
Block 1 |
MBA 600B |
MBA 615C MBA 620C |
MBA 605C MBA 610C |
Block 2 | MBA 602B MBA 604B |
MBA 625 MBA 640C |
-- | |
Full Semester/Term | -- | -- | -- | |
YEAR 2
|
Block 1 | MBA 635C MBA Elective |
MBA 645C MBA 665C |
|
Block 2 | MBA 630C | MBA 655C MBA Elective |
||
Full semester | MBA 650C | MBA 650C |
MBA Elective |