Stepping Boldly into Business at Dartmouth Tuck: MBA News Snippets

By Tim Dhoul Updated Dec 09, 2019

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Introduction
‘Step Boldly’ at Dartmouth Tuck
Wanted: Effective communication skills
Tackling business needs for sports stars at the University of Miami

Dartmouth Tuck women in business conference

Finding the right program and starting an MBA journey: Applicants & online resources

‘Step Boldly’ at Dartmouth Tuck

Dartmouth Tuck begins its annual women in business conference today, under the theme ‘Step Boldly’. The three-day event combines workshops and networking options with speeches from Dartmouth Tuck alumnae, such as Christina Morrison – senior VP of finance at Fortune 500 firm Aramark and formerly of pharmaceutical company, Merck.

At the same time, Dartmouth Tuck announced an extension to its selection of ‘bridge’ programs providing practical training in business fundamentals at undergraduate level through a partnership with women’s liberal arts college, Smith College.

“The Smith Tuck Business Bridge Program will give women a great opportunity to find out how rewarding a career in business can be,” said senior associate dean at Dartmouth Tuck, Robert Hansen.

According to the school, a number of the 4,000 graduates from existing bridge programs have gone on to study MBAs. Dartmouth Tuck’s dean, Paul Danos, said the move builds on several new efforts “designed to foster the academic, professional, and personal development of women who will go on to lead organizations.”

One of these efforts is the Tuck Initiative for Women which began in the last academic year to provide a platform for addressing gender dynamics at the school and plans to begin a ‘Women’s Voices’ speaker series in 2014-15.

Wanted: Effective communication skills

More emphasis should be placed on teaching effective communication skills at business school, according to a blog for the Wall Street Journal. It outlined seven areas in which possession of more effective communication skills could greatly impact on a person’s career, spanning presentations, meetings and written materials.

One point on ‘business writing’ stressed the importance in making a compelling argument of “taking a complex subject and explaining it simply,” calling to mind the ongoing battle against the misuses of business jargon.

Effective communication skills - along with interpersonal, strategic thinking and leadership skills – are soft skills cited as being of the utmost importance to international MBA recruiters and, in this regard, graduates continue to have trouble meeting employer expectations, according to the 2014/15 QS TopMBA.com Jobs & Salary Trends Report.

Tackling business needs for sports stars at the University of Miami

The University of Miami School of Business has announced the launch of an executive MBA tailored to the needs of athletes and artists.

The 18-month program features six two-week residential modules at the University of Miami – all in the NFL’s off-season, the American football league from which the program hopes to attract players looking to meld their current sporting success and branding potential with business success further down the line.

The move by the University of Miami School of Business follows that of Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business – who announced a program of customized education in conjunction with the NFL Players Association last month.

It’s not just football stars who could benefit, however. Retired basketball star, Antoine Walker, best known for his eight years with the Boston Celtics admitted, in an interview with Businessweek, that poor business decisions were to blame for his filing for bankruptcy in 2010. He feels today’s young athletes could stand to gain much from business school offerings tailored to their needs.

The inaugural intake at the University of Miami School of Business will step up to the plate in February 2015.

Written by

Tim Dhoul

Tim is a writer with a background in consumer journalism and charity communications. He trained as a journalist in the UK and holds degrees in history (BA) and Latin American studies (MA).