Why Vanderbilt EMBA?

World-class faculty. Outstanding professional peers. The value of diversity. A global perspective. The benefit of teamwork. Skills for long-term leadership.

The Vanderbilt Executive MBA offers the prestigious and recognized credential of a top-tier graduate school of business. Following are the reasons we most commonly hear about why executives with many educational options choose the Vanderbilt Executive MBA to shape their worlds and their futures:

“I want a world-class MBA degree.”
The Vanderbilt MBA is highly respected among leaders throughout the business world.With a comprehensive, rigorous 60-credit-hour MBA degree program, you can expect a comparable business education and diploma to the weekday MBA program, but with assignments and discussions designed for professionals already well into management careers. The program’s tough academic standards and selectivity assure you will be challenged intellectually and professionally by your classmates—all successful managers and executives who enhance your learning.
“I want to see dividends right away.”
As virtually all students and alumni of the program will attest, you’ll gain practical, proven business skills and tools you can apply to your job almost immediately—and that others in your organization will notice. By gaining a better understanding of a full range of business disciplines, you’ll step beyond your current role to apply new tools learned on the weekend to problems at work the following week.
“I want a strong return on my investment in education.”
For both the participants and sponsoring companies, the Executive MBA is highly rewarding. Our students report significant opportunities for both career and salary advancement, with about 50 percent earning promotions and/or substantial increases in responsibility well before graduation. Meanwhile, sponsoring companies reap the rewards of highly motivated, better prepared executives on their management teams.
“I want to be more valuable to my company.”
Vanderbilt Executive MBA students master proactive decisionmaking, innovative problem-solving and strategic thinking across business functions that will enable them to broaden their
outlook and contributions almost immediately.While only 30 percent of our students are financially sponsored in full, 75 percent stay with their employers longterm, finding that rewards come to those who contribute significantly to their corporate bottom line.
“I want to develop the skills I need to advance my career.”
The Vanderbilt Executive MBA curriculum is tailored specifically for mid- and senior-level executives in established careers. The program’s emphasis on leadership and strategic skills provides you with the higher level perspectives you need to guide your organization effectively. And your classmates, averaging 12 years of experience, are successful managers and executives who mentor you, sharing their best practices and widening the lens through which you see problems and opportunities.
“I want to gain hands-on experience in the global marketplace.”
From your classroom of peers, about 15 percent are international citizens and many others travel abroad in their professional roles. The Vanderbilt Executive MBA International Residency includes corporate visits and networking events that diversify your practical knowledge of the global market. Recent classes have studied in Hungary, Brazil and China. The Class of 2008 will visit India.
“I want to minimize the disruption to my career.”
Meeting on alternate Fridays and Saturdays over 21 months, the program is tailored to the schedules of professionals seeking to advance their careers without interrupting their career momentum. And because you’ll be bringing new solutions and perspectives to work, the two Fridays “away” from the office each month are very beneficial, improving productivity. At
school, you are often working to resolve job-related issues more effectively than if you’d been at the office.
“I want a collaborative academic environment.”
Our Executive MBA students and alumni will tell you that the small-group dynamics in a collaborative atmosphere—the invaluable interaction among peers and faculty with a diversity of backgrounds and viewpoints—make all the difference between “knowing” and “understanding.” The program prepares you to function effectively as part of a team and exposes you to viewpoints, solutions and perspectives different from your own. Your formal Study Group comprises the full set of skills and perspectives of a typical executive office lineup—representing four or five industries and the expertise of financial, operations, engineering/development, systems and marketing/sales executives.
“I want practical interaction with professors who have real-world experience and leading research perspectives.”
Drawing upon their consulting and research expertise, our internationally recognized faculty are more than PhDs of academic renown. They bring class sessions alive with real business problems and industry insights. Executive MBA professors love the complexity of issues and debates commonplace in the executive classroom. You will learn: Microeconomics and Macroeconomics from professors with career perspectives from the Federal Trade Commission and the International Monetary Fund; Transforming the Organization from a former Operations Manager at Hewlett-Packard; Creating and Launching the Venture from a professor who was on the ground level at the only firm to land twice at the number one spot on Fortune’s Fastest-Growing Companies list; and Strategy from a merger consultant with LECG and former Federal Trade Commission Director of Economics. And because the program is small and intimate by design, you’ll know these professors personally and enjoy greater opportunities to work together in a supportive, close-knit learning community, sharing valuable insights for short- and long-term application.
“I want to build a diverse business network.”
At Vanderbilt, you become part of a diverse, extensive and committed network of business leaders who will offer valuable advice and perspectives—all over the world, wherever your career takes you. That network will include your classmates, with whom you will remain connected long after you graduate, as well as nearly 8,000 alumni who have earned the MBA degree at Vanderbilt.