University of Arizona Eller College of Management

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School Says - General Information
The University of ArizonaÂ's Eller College of Management offers an AACSB-accredited MBA designed around your goals. Small class sizes allow the Eller MBA staff and faculty to spend time understanding your objectives, then tailoring meaningful projects, internships, and independent study around those goals, ultimately facilitating the transition into your desired career path. The Eller MBA is a recognized leader in management information systems and tops national rankings in entrepreneurship through its McGuire Center for Entrepreneurship.

School Says - Student Body
While the Eller MBA program is relatively small, The University of Arizona is home to more than 37,000 students, so you will receive the benefits of a large institution while taking classes in an intimate setting. At the Eller MBA program, underrepresented minorities make up on average 18 percent of programs, the maleÂâ€"female ratio averages 70:30, and international students make up nearly 35 percent of the class, representing ten or more countries.

School Says - Academics
The Eller MBA is built around a progressive series of real-world programs and activities, designed to test the skills you build in core classes through practical application. YouÂ'll kick off your experience with a multi-day Â"MBA Boot Camp,Â" as well as a two-credit graduate-level course on teams and leadership. Then youÂ'll spend your first semester building your analytic framework and developing soft skills in business communication, and your second completing your core curriculum while undertaking a business consulting project in your area of interest. These lessons will come to bear on a summer internship or international field project. In your second year of the program, youÂ'll have the opportunity to customize your experience through varied elective offerings. With an international class trip, study abroad and exchange programs, and a variety of courses related to international business, the Eller MBA offers its students opportunities to manage the challenges and seize the opportunities of a global and connected marketplace.

School Says - Admissions
The Eller College will work closely with you throughout admissions to ensure that your application process is personal, simple, and successful. We are interested in applicants with an academic background demonstrating strong intellectual capacity; professional experience including challenging assignments, career progression, carefully considered goals, and a strong work ethic; and personal qualities demonstrating leadership potential, initiative, involvement, and integrity. Admissions packets must include transcripts, GMAT scores, references, essay questions, and professional resume, as well as TOEFL scores for international applicants. An interview is also required. The Eller MBA program processes admissions for fall in three rounds with rolling admissions; deadlines are November 15, February 15 (final international deadline), and April 15.

School Says - Campus Life
Since 1992, the Eller College of Management has been housed in the four-story, 180,000-square-foot McClelland Hall. The $19-million building is built around an open-air, sunlit courtyard and houses classrooms, student activity areas, computer laboratories, centers for corporate research, public and community spaces, and faculty and administrative offices. The College has Wi-Fi throughout, paid parking at garages and surface lots in the immediate vicinity, and is a short walk from restaurants, coffee houses, and convenience stores.

Students Say - Academics
The Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona is "recognized as one of the nation's leading business schools" in MIS and entrepreneurship, many students here report. And "the weather doesn't hurt, either" adds one happy student. Experiential learning plays an important part in the Eller curriculum; students identify this as "one of the greatest strengths" of the program. One MBA explains how it works: "In the spring semester, MBAs work in teams with local businesses to assess real-world problems, make strategic recommendations, and ultimately assist the businesses in solving those problems." Another tells us that "The experiential learning is more than just a resume builder. It's a very real, very challenging experience, designed to prepare students for future leadership positions." The school's strong "relationship with key businesses" in the area plays a key role in making the experiential learning component a success. Students also appreciate that class sizes at Eller "are small enough that the students have easy access to professors…. Students are able to develop relationships and personal bonds with professors." These personal touches permeate the program's administration as well. One student reports that "The administrative staff adds great value to the student experience…[and] goes out of its way to help students find whatever they need. Cross-discipline courses, job opportunities, highly tailored informational interviewsâ€" the administration works hard to provide students with any resources they need." At the other end of the size spectrum is the university-at-large. It is huge, and this too is seen as an asset; "With a large campus, the business students can take advantage of wonderful resources for the entire school," one student explains. Eller professors "are very engaging and add significant value. The tenured staff places a strong emphasis on real-world experiences, ranging from case competitions judged by working professionals to company site visits." Instructors "are also very available for office hours and discussion outside of class. This creates an atmosphere of ‘24-hour learning.'"

Students Say - Admissions
The admissions process at The University of Arizona is highly quantitative, analyzing each applicant's ability to handle the analytic portions of the program as evidenced by their GMAT scores, undergraduate record, and work experience. The Admissions Committee carefully evaluates each applicant's intellectual capacity, professional experience and career progression, and personal qualities that demonstrate leadership, integrity, initiative, and potential.
In most cases, students must have a GPA of at least 3.0 to be considered for admission. Full-time applications are only reviewed in rounds. Applicants for Evening and Executive Programs are reviewed on a rolling basis. Students are highly encouraged to apply in first round, especially if they are international students or scholarship applicants. All qualified applicants are interviewed by an Admissions Official, either in person or via telephone.

Students Say - Campus Life
"Great weather and a very nice campus" soften the edges of Eller's intense program in graduate business study. So too does the perception that "no one in the MBA program needs to kill themselves to pass." Those who want to do better than scrape by will need to exert themselves, however; "excelling in all classes and electives requires an intense work week," students report. Program cohesion is enhanced through group work (the program requires "continuous case competitions, group projects, and presentations") and "lots of networking activities (e.g., happy hours, philanthropy, coed intramural sports teams)." Eller hosts "numerous guest speakers and [provides] chances to learn more with outside class activities." Students "work very hard but play hard as well. Everyone knows everyone else and there is a standing invite to any social events." Eller's "friendly, conservative, helpful, hard-working, social, busy" students form "a small group" who as a result are "very close. Everyone works together and helps others succeed while remaining competitive with people from other schools (instead of walking over people from the same program)." It's "a very diverse [group] with backgrounds ranging from Peace Corps workers to former hedge fund traders. We have military officers and students with private consulting backgrounds."

Students Say - Careers
The Office of Career Management aims to provide highly personalized service to each individual student, in the process of helping them plan and achieve their career goals. The office further supports students in their job search through professional development workshops, interview preparation, resume preparation, and professional mentoring. Companies most likely to hire Eller MBAs include: Astec Power; Deloitte; Dial; Sunquest; Roche; Emerson Network Power; E.& J. Gallo Winery; FedEx Services; Honeywell, Inc.; Intel Corporation; Los Alamos National Laboratory; PetSmart, Inc.; Raytheon Defense Systems; and U.S. Airways.

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