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Simon School

Executive MBA Becomes More Flexible

George Andrews ’03S (MBA) knows that getting an Executive M.B.A. at the Simon School requires quite of bit of juggling on the part of students.

A graduate of the program and now the director of it, he understands that trying to balance the pressures of work, obligations to family, and the added responsibility of business school requires commitment.

So when the Simon School’s research indicated that the program could be improved by making changes recommended by students, graduates, and corporate sponsors, he listened.

“We’re trying to make this a more flexible program,” Andrews says.

Rankings

Simon Rises in Financial Times

The Simon School was ranked 38th, up from 40th in 2006, among the world’s top 100 business schools in an annual survey released by the Financial Times of London this winter.

Simon tied for 22nd among United States business schools (versus finishing 23rd in the U.S. last year). The new survey marks the 7th time that Simon has been ranked in the newspaper’s top 25 in the United States. The Simon School has been ranked in the top 30 in the U.S. by the Financial Times all nine years since the survey’s inception in 1999.

The internationally influential British newspaper also ranked Simon 4th in the world for managerial economics and 5th in the world for both finance and accounting.

In order to accomplish that, the Simon School has revamped the program, which is targeted at working professionals who want to get an M.B.A. while continuing their full-time jobs.

The most prominent change is that the program will switch to an alternating week format—meeting every other weekend (Friday and Saturday)—instead of every Friday. The change cuts the number of lost work days in half for students enrolled in the program.

Other changes include providing more options for scheduling electives and adding a business plan class as a required capstone course. Designed to be completed in 22 months, the program can be completed inĀ 19.

Andrews says some of the changes, which go into effect with the class that starts this September, bring the program into line with those offered by other top business schools. For example, very few programs in the country require students to attend class every Friday.

Changing to an every-other-week format will give business professionals, especially upper-level executives, greater flexibility to take advantage of the program, Andrews says.

The program hopes to enroll as many as 45 people this September.

For more information about the program, visit www.simon.rochester.edu/emba.