Each year, January is an occasion to reflect on the previous year and set goals for the coming year. And it’s no different for top business schools. To welcome 2018, the University of Washington Olin Business School released a sneak peek of Dean Mark Taylor’s plans for the school.
In the video post, Taylor talks about his new vision for Washington Olin as it embarks on its second century as a business school: to provide world-changing business education, research, and impact. This idea will be implemented in three ways:
- Through a global outlook,
- Through experimentation and thinking entrepreneurially, and
- Using data and a strong value system to consider impact on society.
In short, Taylor explains, he wants the Olin Business School to act with integrity to create a better future and a better world. No biggie.
He plans to focus on five areas in the coming year: experiential learning, innovative thinking, global learning, specialized masters, and research opportunities.
Experiential Learning
There are a variety of experiential learning opportunities for MBA students at Washington Olin. The program offers over 50,000 hours of experiential learning opportunities ranging from corporate consulting opportunities to case studies.
One example is the yearly ICE Week—short for Integrated Case Experience—a 17-year tradition at Olin. This grueling five-day marathon of case descriptions, business research, preparation, and case presentations takes place after finals each fall and provides students with a chance to collaborate in solving real-world problems for Olin business partners.
There’s also the CEL Practicum available from the Center for Experiential Learning. This practicum partners top-tier students on faculty-guided projects to address business challenges by delivering actionable recommendations. Students are given multiple opportunities to develop and refine their skill sets through high-level strategy and in-depth analysis.
Innovative Thinking
One example of the innovative resources available to MBA students is the Skandalaris Center for Interdisciplinary Innovation and Entrepreneurial Studies, which promotes corporate innovation and the commercialization of new business ideas. Specifically, the Hatcher course allows MBA students to work with entrepreneurs and investors to develop their own business plan.
Global Learning
“Nothing prepares you for the business world like seeing the world,” explains the Washington Olin website. The full-time MBA program offers two opportunities for students to gain first-hand experience with other cultures and economies around the world: Global Management Studies (GMS) and Venture Consulting in Budapest.
GMS is a travel abroad opportunity that has taken students to everywhere from Brazil to China, Japan, Peru, Scotland, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates. No matter the county, students gain exposure to international perspectives and global businesses as part of a student-led team conducting field research.
The Venture Consulting opportunity is a 10-day trip to Budapest, Hungary. During the trip, students will work with startups to solve real problems while also learning about the country’s history and culture.
Specialized Master’s
Washington Olin offers five specialized master’s programs: Master of Accounting, MS in Business Analytics, MS in Finance, MS in Supply Chain Management, and MS in Leadership. Each of these degrees includes real-world experience with concentrated business case competitions, consulting projects, and global immersions.
Compared to an MBA, most of the specialized master’s programs are less than two years in length. For example, the accounting degree program is only 18 months. In addition, the class is generally made up of younger students, with the average student age around 23 years.
These programs also offer areas of concentration within each specialty. In the Business Analytics master’s program, for example, students can choose among three different tracks in 2018: healthcare analytics, supply chain analytics, and financial technology analytics. As for the MS in Finance, students have the opportunity to choose among four different tracks: corporate finance and investments, wealth and asset management, quantitative finance, and global finance.
Research Opportunities
Olin’s professors are highly productive scholars, and the school is home to quite a few research centers. These centers foster collaboration between academia and the business community to advance knowledge in understanding firms and markets worldwide.
Among the centers is the Bauer Leadership Center, which highlights the importance of values-based leadership. The Center for Customer Analytics and Big Data, for its part, offers opportunities for faculty, students, and companies to collaborate on analysis and research.
To learn more about Washington Olin’s MBA program, visit the school’s website.
