Full-Time MBA

Fearless leadership is the name of the game at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. With a learning experience that is self-described as “scholarly, experiential and career-focused”, the school aims to give students a strong academic basis on which to build practical, career-based confidence in management and leadership. Being close to Washington DC (the White House is just eight miles away) is a huge advantage in this respect, as the school has been able to build networking connections with power brokers in the decision-making heart of the US. That said, there’s still very much a global outlook here, with international business acumen recognised as the core skill demanded by the modern economy.

With this approach in mind, applicants for the Smith full-time MBA programme needn’t fit a strict profile; what matters more is their passion and leadership potential. Some work experience is required, as are GMAT/GRE scores, essay question responses, undergraduate transcripts, and a letter of recommendation from a professional or academic referee. Tuition fees per year are US$56,398, though Maryland residents pay a lower rate of US$47,208. Interestingly, Smith operates a slightly different scholarship system to most other schools, in that all applicants whose applications are received by the priority deadline (an early stage-one deadline) are automatically considered for the Dean’s Award two-year scholarship, the Smith Award one-year scholarship, and the Terrapin Award US$5,000-25,000 scholarship.

The Smith full-time MBA curriculum is based on problem-solving. Students are taught how and when to use core skills and analytical tools, then are immediately offered the chance to analyse a real-world business problem, reach a conclusion, present their findings, and implement a strategy to solve the problem. Business partners for these ‘live case’ scenarios include such household names as Salesforce and Marriott. There’s also a global consulting project, in which students work as teams to develop and present an operational plan to a client business with an international scope, and global business courses that allow students to focus on a particular international region – perfect for those whose career plans are based around a specific part of the world.

Of course, it stands to reason that this practical, global MBA is an excellent preparation for the real business world, and it’s no surprise that the average post-graduation starting salary for Smith full-time MBA students is US$110,374. In terms of industry, Smith graduates are extremely well-prepared for consulting, given the depth of advisory projects on offer, and the larger proportion of graduates (24%) enter that field, with a similar amount going into marketing. Key employers include Ford, Google, PwC and Deloitte.