Santa Clara University

MBA Program

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

Santa Clara University’s Business School develops men and women with competence, conscience, and compassion who can provide leadership in technologically advanced and rapidly changing global environments. The development of competence is reflected in our commitment to teaching excellence and the scholarly research necessary to animate instruction and foster the creation of knowledge. The development of conscience is enhanced through an emphasis on reflective inquiry that is both professionally rigorous and ethically sound. Compassion is at the intersection of competence and conscience, and is fostered through an appreciation of multiple perspectives and recognition of the human being as part of every equation.

MISSION OF THE MBA PROGRAM

By means of its MBA programs, the Leavey School of Business seeks more specifically to accomplish the following:

The Creation of Value in Markets
Develop graduates who can make business decisions that lead to the creation of maximum value in the marketplace, who understand how markets change, and how social, political, legal, economic, and technological forces drive and influence such change.

Innovation and Technology
Develop graduates who can foster innovation in organizations, respond effectively to new circumstances, and through their actions enable organizations and society to realize the potential of new technologies.

Effective Business Management
Develop graduates with rigorous understanding of core business functions and with problem-solving skills reflecting an integration of functional perspectives. Graduates should be prepared to assume positions of leadership and contribute immediately to the improved performance of their organizations.

Business Responsibility and Ethics
Develop graduates with knowledge of the social responsibilities of business to its stakeholders, graduates who are able to identify ethical dilemmas and understand frameworks for selecting and defending a right course of action.

Management Use of Information
Develop graduates with the capability to organize, describe, and make intelligent inferences from empirical evidence. Graduates should be able to apply sophisticated statistical techniques to data; make informed forecasts of business trends; and formulate, solve, and interpret quantitative business decision models.

Human Values and Teamwork
Develop graduates who understand and value individual differences and have collaborative skills for working effectively in functionally and culturally diverse teams.

PROGRAM LEARNING GOALS

MBA students at Santa Clara University will learn to:

• Integrate science and theory developed in the business disciplines, with the perspectives of contemporary business practice, to make informed decisions
• Incorporate economic, social, and ethical considerations into the evaluation of decision alternatives
• Apply conceptual frameworks to address the impacts of rapid change, global integration, and cultural diversity on organizations
• Collaborate with and lead colleagues in teams to construct and evaluate decision alternatives
• Apply general concepts and theories to address the circumstances of specific organizations of which students have firsthand experience.

PROFESSIONAL ORIENTATION

The MBA Program at Santa Clara University was the first accredited graduate business program designed specifically to meet the needs and concerns of working professionals. To allow students to pursue their MBA degrees while continuing their careers, all course work is completed in the evening, during weekends, or both. The curriculum blends instruction in theory with practical applications, enriched by faculty engaged in state-of-the-art research and students who deal daily with real-life organizational concerns. For example, an organizational simulation (Silicon Valley Technologies) developed by Leavey School of Business faculty is used as part of the entering students’ experience in the MGMT 501 course. The simulation represents the dynamic nature of managerial work.

ACADEMIC STANDARDS

Santa Clara’s MBA Program has a reputation for quality, providing both academic rigor and practical relevance. Admission standards are selective, as the courses are demanding and the expectations from both the faculty and fellow students are high, although the atmosphere is still collegial and not competitive. While the MBA degree is considered a final professional degree, we look to admit students focused on receiving an education, not simply a piece of paper, for their time and effort. Students should be prepared for an intensive course of study encompassing all the major functional and disciplinary areas and involving both quantitative and qualitative skills.

ACCREDITATION

Santa Clara University was in the original group of MBA programs in 1961 accredited by AACSB International-the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. The AACSB is the specialized accrediting organization that conducts periodic in-depth reviews of business schools to ensure that their curricula, faculty, and students meet the highest standards of excellence. Re-accredited in 2006, Santa Clara’s program has consistently met the high standards of the AACSB. Only 40 percent of university-based MBA programs in the United States currently meet these standards. Santa Clara is also accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). Such regional accreditation is a prerequisite for the specialized program accreditation provided by AACSB.

STUDENT BODY

Approximately 1,100 students are enrolled in the MBA Program. Entering students represent a variety of undergraduate and graduate fields of study. About 16 percent have undergraduate degrees in business, 62 percent in engineering and science, 19 percent in the humanities and social sciences including economics, and 3 percent in other disciplines. Nearly 20 percent of entering MBA students already hold masters and doctoral degrees; 32 percent of the students are female. MBA students, on average, have 6.5 years of work experience at time of admission. The average grade point average of entering MBA students is 3.2, and the average GMAT score is 620. About 40 percent of the student body is originally from outside of the United States. This blend of academic backgrounds and work experience provides opportunities for enhanced learning in and out of the classroom.

Current MBA students come from more than 400 undergraduate colleges and universities throughout the United States. Over 85 percent of the MBA student body is composed of working professionals—people who work full time in local companies and take one or two courses each quarter. More than 500 organizations are represented by the student body, and this list reads like a “Who’s Who” of San Francisco Bay Area companies.

ALUMNI

Since 1961, nearly 12,000 men and women have received their MBA degrees from Santa Clara University and have achieved eminence in one of the country’s most dynamic regions. Among our University alumni are more than 1,000 company presidents and senior corporate executives, many of them leaders in global technology companies. Our graduates have gone on to be leaders in Fortune 500 firms, start-up and early growth companies, as well as in family and non-profit organizations. The high regard for the Santa Clara MBA degree is also reflected in the number of Silicon Valley and San Francisco Bay Area companies that interview on campus. Many provide tuition reimbursement plans to encourage employees to continue their professional development.

Leavey School of Business alumni are involved in networking events with fellow alumni. They serve on information panels, welcome new alumni at commencement, host local reunions, share their stories with prospective students, and participate in coaching students through the Leavey Ambassador program. More information can be found on-line at: http://www.scu.edu/business/alumni/ambassadors.

MBA alumni may participate in the Alumni Learning opportunities, like the Extended Edition Program, returning to campus to audit classes on a space-available basis for a reduced-tuition rate. A certificate of completion is issued in place of an official transcript. More information is available at http://www.scu.edu/business/alumni/learning.cfm.

Leavey School of Business Office of Alumni and External Relations is located in the Dean’s suite in Lucas Hall, phone: 408-554-4872, fax: 408-554-4548, e-mail: business-alumni@scu.edu.

WHAT SETS SANTA CLARA APART?

• Distinguished full-time faculty who are active scholars committed to excellence in teaching
• Outstanding student body, most employed full-time at leading Silicon Valley firms, who are able to contribute to class discussion based on actual business experience
• More than 450 years of Jesuit educational tradition, emphasizing analytical rigor and ethical inquiry
• Strong alumni connections—nearly 12,000 men and women have graduated from the program since 1961; more than 7,500 have remained in the Bay Area
• Evening and weekend class schedules and office hours designed to meet the needs of working professionals
• Stunningly beautiful and secure campus located in the heart of Silicon Valley—the most dynamic business region in the world
• A rigorous AACSB-accredited program that provides a solid grounding in all the major functional areas, plus exposure to the best theory, tempered by the lessons of practical experience
• Active advisory board consisting of over 40 distinguished CEOs and business leaders
• An integrated curriculum designed for the general manager, with the opportunity to customize course selection to match individual needs and aspirations.