Category: I was reading an interesting online debate at the nytimes website about how business schools view their MBA students and I started thinking, “What do we think of ourselves as?” I would like to think we are students with a twist; in a executive program we should have some input into what we consider is useful to our careers with one caveat, none of us can really predict what our future career path may be. In our last semester we have our pick of classes, but what about the other terms? Are we demanding changes from the program?
I think we are. In our CCL class we had specific issues that we brought up and the professors tried to address it, the class has changed, albeit slightly. In this act we acted more like customers demanding a change in the product, but in our other classes we have not asked for changes. Sure, we moaned and bitched about that first accounting exam but we still studied all night long and took the test. We are students, and I think that’s how it should be. An MBA is a general degree focused on business skills, it should be tailored to the current business environment but should not change based on our whims.
Students should not be pampered. Business schools have a responsibility to society, they need to produce leaders who have real business skills, not pampered egomaniacs.
I think we are a combination of both. Obviously, there is a standard of what an MBA degree covers, so we can’t just say “We want more beach time, less class time!” But at the same time, it’s up to us to make the program what we want it to be, or at least what it could be for future classes.
I think it’s great that we have input into the program through the surveys, class liasons and the curriculum adviser positions. I haven’t felt the need to make any suggestions outside the surveys thus far, but it’s good to know I can.
I agree, having some level of input is a good thing. I don’t want to be able to say, give me straight A’s for all of my classes. The customer is always right, but the student (speaking of myself here) is often wrong, and he/she needs to know when that is the case.
Absolutely. If it ever got to the point where a passing grade was given as the default, it would completely eliminate the value of the degree.
Starting out my career, I took a lot of company-sponsored programming classes. After every class, you got a certificate of completion. I used to hang all of them up in my cubicle as a joke of sorts…in theory, I could program anything, the certificates said so!
When I went to my new job, I didn’t re-hang them up. I figured it was time for a new joke…so I hang up all my charity certificates of completion up now.