California State University, Long Beach College of Business Administration

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Students Say - Academics
For practically minded business students, CSU Long Beach offers three affordable and efficient MBA options: the Fully Employed MBA, the Self-Paced Evening MBA, and the oneyear Accelerated MBA. Catering to working adults in the Southern California region, these "focused, fast-paced, and competitive" programs are specially designed to help students balance professional and personal commitments while pursuing their educations. To that end, the programs are highly successful, offering a convenient and user-friendly educational experience. A current student explains, "The ease and inclusiveness of the school are exemplary. Every professor or administrator is highly accessible, and I have no problems at all getting into needed classes." Another adds, "The FEMBA program is specifically targeted to busy professionals, holding classes exclusively on Saturdays. The program administration goes out of their way to make sure we are getting everything we need." Indeed, CSU Long Beach runs smoothly from top to bottom, and "there is good communication with the administration to make suggestions for changes and improvement." Like administrators, CSU faculty is "closely connected with [the students], and they are extremely helpful." Bringing both real-world and academic expertise to the classroom, "professors are well-versed and have a strong command of the subjects they teach." In addition, the diversity of the "required coursework gives a balanced exposure to different business areas." Interaction is highly encouraged and "student-driven class activities" form the backbone of the educational experience. In fact, be prepared for "as many as three to five major group projects per semester." As a result, your classmates at CSULB will also be your teachers. Drawing a range of students from the region, graduate students at CSU are "very diverse in work experience, culture, backgrounds, and motivation." What's more, the school boasts "a large percentage of international students that are able to contribute a lot of different perspectives to the program. With the move towards a global business world, making these connections during the program are a big bonus." Most importantly, when it comes to group work, "all of the students that survived the program are smart, creative, team players, and committed to doing the best that they can each and every quarter."

Students Say - Admissions
Admissions criteria vary at CSU, depending on the program to which you are applying. In recent years, students entering the full-time, accelerated MBA had an average GMAT score of 520, an average GPA of 3.2, and an average age of 26. Evening MBA and Fully-Employed MBA candidates entered with a GMAT score of 555 and 536, respectively.

Students Say - Campus Life
A safe, cooperative, and pleasant campus atmosphere creates an appealing backdrop for CSULB's MBA programs. A current student explains, "The campus is very casual, and the students are very nice and friendly. It is like a second home, and I feel comfortable and safe in the environment." Since CSULB's graduate programs are designed for working adults, it's no surprise that "most students are part time, working during the day and coming to school at night. The majority of MBA students are only on campus three to six hours per week." However, those who would like to augment their coursework with a bit of extracurricular stimulation should not despair: "There are opportunities to participate in seminars and other social events with the MBA Association" and "there's a strong nucleus, which mingles off-campus throughout the semester." No matter what your background, you'll feel at home at this large public school community, which draws students who "range from open-minded thinkers to engineers who like to think by the rules."

Students Say - Careers
Students at the College of Business Administration are served by the MBA Career Management Services, which maintains an MBA job board and hosts on-campus recruiting events in a variety of business disciplines. The services also maintains contact with the school's alumni and maintains an up-to-date online job database for MBA students. In addition, students may choose to attend special workshops and seminars to assist in career development, or participate in one of the many large, campus-wide career fairs hosted by CSULB's Career Development Center. Many big companies have visited campus in recent years, including Alaska Airlines, Accountants Incorporated, American Capital Group, California National Bank, CVS/Carmark Pharmacy, First Investors, Kelly Scientific Resources, Ameriprise Financial, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and Comerica Bank, among others.

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