The Mays Business School is scheduled to open a Professional MBA program in the fall of 2012. The Professional MBA program will be located in Houston in a private facility at CITYCENTRE. This location will also be the home to the highly rated Texas A&M Executive MBA program.
David Blackwell, associate dean for graduate studies in the Mays Business School, said that this program is aimed at working professionals and is structured so that where they won’t have to give up their full time jobs.
“In this economy, few people are willing to give up a job to pursue a professional degree,” Blackwell said. “In the program we’re going to launch, students meet every other Friday for four hours and every other Saturday for two hours. By doing this for about 22 months, you can get your MBA without leaving your job.”
The program is aimed at young professionals with about five years of work experience. Because of this, there are some structural differences between the Professional MBA program and Executive MBA program, which is aimed at professionals with about 17 years of work experience.
“The Executive MBA is offered in a modular format. This means that each weekend, programs are offered on different topics. These topics run somewhat independently of each other, but run together into a course,” Blackwell said. “PMBA courses are offered in a more traditional way. Students will see one professor for each course.”
Houston was chosen as the location for this program for several reasons, including the large population of A&M alumni in Houston.
Many of these Aggies, he said, want to get their professional degree from A&M, and A&M is highly regarded by the energy industry centered in Houston.
“The Houston market is strategic for A&M. Most of these kinds of programs hire part time faculty in a remote location. But we are going to use our very best College Station faculty,” Blackwell said. “So our location needs to be close enough for our faculty to drive there.”
Blackwell said he has spoken to the top members of the faculty, and many of them support the effort. John Krajicek, executive professor of communication studies, has agreed to work with the program.
“I love working with executives and young professionals,” Krajicek said. “Sometimes younger students see my subject area as secondary to finance, accounting, etc. But those who are in the working world know well that communication is one of the keys to success. I don’t need to convince them. They walk in the door on day one ready to get to work.”
Bala Shetty, executive associate dean of the Mays Business School, has also agreed to work with the PMBA program.
“As a faculty member, I learn a great deal from the students’ expertise in the industry they represent,” Shetty said. “Also, An MBA from Texas A&M University will prepare these young professionals to move up rapidly in the corporate world. They will help A&M by providing internship and job opportunities to our undergraduate students, speaking in our on-campus classes, and serving on various boards on campus that help us stay current with our educational offerings.”