Acquiring an MBA flavored with liberal arts education will give students an edge over others in the current and emerging markets, globally? Dr. James Sturdevant, Director of the MBA Program, Augustana University shares more insights on the same.
What are the challenges being faced today by an MBA student, especially in the post covid world or looking at 21st-century business market demands?
What a great time to be an MBA student! In our post COVID economy, there is a large demand for people with advanced business degrees in nearly all business sectors. According to the Brookings Institute (2022), a surprising number of businesses that closed during the pandemic reopened. The number of new businesses began to surge in early 2020 and reached near record levels in 2021. In North America, 86 percent of 2022 business school graduates were employed at the time of graduation, up from 80 percent in 2021, according to a survey report released by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC, 2022). Globally, after the COVID pandemic, the responding graduates of participating business schools reported a 29 percent increase in total compensation compared to compensation before the pandemic. While inflation continues to be a worldwide concern, unemployment in the Sioux Falls and the US Upper Midwest region is at near record lows, and overall wages are steadily increasing. Perhaps the largest challenge for an MBA student is to select the specific career business path.
What are the qualities of an MBA student, who is ready for the market?
Leadership character, ethics, and skills are core qualities. Decision-making skills are essential, along with skills in creating and executing strategy, data analytics, management information systems, finance, global economics, and marketing. At Augustana, we believe in the power of experience. We bring scholarly knowledge to experiential life in several ways. Each MBA student has a mentor from the business community, regularly engages with top business leaders in seminars and panel discussions, and has business internship opportunities.
How should an aspirant select a college given the confusion created by so many MBA programmes on offer? Please give 3-4 key ingredients of a good MBA programme
A good MBA program offers a leadership core, a well-rounded curriculum of business functions and skills, has faculty with experience in business leadership, and experiential learning. A good MBA program has strong relationships with a vibrant business community. Augustana is located in the heart of Sioux Falls, SD, a rapidly growing city of over 250,000 people. Sioux Falls has been consistently ranked by SmartAsset as the “Top City for Young Professionals,” and has been identified among “Best Small Metro Areas for Business and Careers” by Forbes.com.
What was the idea behind introducing a new Management and Liberal Arts course at the Augie campus?
The Augustana Strategic Plan includes a top priority goal to establish new academic programs grounded in the liberal arts that challenge the intellect while responding to the needs and interests of students. These programs will grow enrollment, diversify revenue, and address workforce priorities of the local community and region. Establishing the MBA is a key success of Phase 1 of the plan.
How do you think this course is different from other MBAs in offertoday?
Several factors sets the Augustana MBA apart from other MBA programs. One is outstanding, caring faculty with practical experience in multiple business sectors. Another is small class sizes that permit robust discussion and cross-cultural learning. The Augustana MBA Leadership Academy is another. It includes, 1) a Mentorship Program in which each MBA student has a mentor from the local business community, and 2) monthly MBA Leadership Seminars, where all MBA students engage with top business leaders from the region. Another major differentiator is the university itself. Augustana is a top-ranked regional university with more than 2,100 undergraduate and graduate students. Augustana offers more than 100 student organizations and activities, NCAA Division II athletic teams, and 20 performing arts ensembles.
With such an MBA programme at a liberal arts college, would we see students equipped to handle emerging markets. How? Please cite some examples.
In our rapidly changing world, it has never been more difficult to predict the future or what business careers will demand in the future. Students must be equipped with broad knowledge of the wider world, keen critical thinking skills, and a strong sense of social responsibility. These attributes are hallmarks of a liberal arts education. Augustana combines its foundation in the liberal arts, professional skills, advanced study, and community responsiveness. In one example, these attributes enabled Augustana to develop a new Financial Technology undergraduate major in less than an year to meet needs of the rapidly growing “fintech” industry in the Sioux Falls region.
Do you feel an MBA student with liberal arts major/s will be more successful in business? How? Support with examples,.
Yes. A liberal arts education offers an expansive intellectual grounding in all kinds of humanistic inquiry. Students with liberal arts majors address issues, ideas and methods across the humanities, the arts, the natural and social sciences. MBA students with liberal arts undergraduate majors learn and think broadly and critically. They graduate well-equipped to address unforeseen business challenges and the rapid changes in our world. Augustana MBA graduates move into such diverse business careers as health care administration, real estate development, banking, finance, marketing, manufacturing, and retail.
If an Indian student takes up the MBA programme at Augustana, how will it benefit the student and the Indian economy if he/she decides to come back to his/her homeland?
Just as Augustana MBA students graduate well-equipped to address unforeseen business challenges and the rapid changes in the U.S. and elsewhere in the world, students returning to India will be agile, creative decision-makers who will perhaps be more adaptable in the rapidly changing business environment than students coming from other types of MBA programs.
What is the difference between the 4+1 and a two-year application at Augustana?
The MBA 4+1 track provides undergraduate students with adaptability and timeliness to earn both a bachelor’s degree and an MBA in five years. The Augustana 2-Year track is designed for students who have already completed a bachelor’s degree at another university.
