UW Foster School of Business. File photo
What differentiates the Foster EMBA from others, in your opinion?
Hernandez: I think what separates Foster is, No. 1, if you think about this part of the world, the Pacific Northwest, the University of Washington has an international and national reputation. The ranking of the University of Washington cannot be disputed. Foster School has been in the top 25 now for a number of years. I think that definitely differentiates us from some of our peers in the Pacific Northwest.
What are some challenges for the EMBA generally and for your specific program?
Kapustka: The Executive MBA is, generally, something that is employee driven, as opposed to employer driven. So just the cost of these things is significant. We’re market priced, and we’re the most expensive MBA program at the Foster School. Typically that’s true of many Executive MBA programs. There’s always going to be that balance between what it costs and the value that it provides. Return on education is something that’s always gonna be important. That’s a challenge.
Another challenge is, honestly, I think many people that qualify for and would be interested in getting an MBA don’t understand that executive MBA exists. They think of an MBA as going to evening classes with great people, but 28 year olds. So, it’s always important that that value proposition is something that we talk about and how people’s lives are changed, how their careers are changed after completing an EMBA.
Hernandez: I think related to that, our biggest challenge is doing nothing. And, I think this is true for executive MBA programs at every business school. Life happens, and life is always going to win over an MBA, despite a person’s deepest desire to get that degree. The fact is, if you have to choose between focusing on your family or focusing on your job, those two things are going to win every single time. I think it’s the biggest challenge for any MBA program.
Talking about ROI and return on education, what kind of career coaching and advancement services does Foster provide?
Kapustka: Our career coaching and development, to me, is just as much a part of our offering as our accounting and finance classes. In the Executive MBA world, we don’t do placements like the full time programs, but what we do is we give you skills so that you can take your career to the next level. It’s not atypical for 30% of any incoming class, by year two, to be in a different job, either different employer or different role. So some of the ROI is looking at how many people have changed jobs, what kind of promotion opportunities or other opportunities have they had.
The other thing is the qualitative side: The way people say their whole perspective has changed, and their ability to contribute is different because they’ve been in a classroom of people they would not otherwise have known.
Hernandez: There’s three things I always talk about when I do my information sessions: People who come out of our programs are going to be better decision makers, better leaders, and better strategists. It doesn’t matter what company you work for, or what industry you’re in, if you can be a better decision maker, a better leader and a better strategist, you are going to be highly valued and you’re going to be sought after.
The other thing that I think is quite unique is that we offer lifetime career management services for our Executive MBA alumni. I think that differentiates us from most MBA programs.
Anything interesting coming down the pike for Foster’s EMBA?
Kapustka: Many Executive MBA programs have electives, and we have not done that in the past. We are headed down that path, there’s no question about it. So, we’ve offered a summer elective because our students are so busy during the school year, and we offered the opportunity during the school year for our students to take other non EMBA classes, but we are going to take a look at our curriculum in that regard.
The other thing that the Foster School is doing is looking at core classes that are similar, and allowing students from different programs to take them. Networking is a huge deal for executive MBA students and, frankly, all MBA students. Maybe what we do is allow more of the interactions by allowing different MBA students to take some classes together.
One of the things I have wanted to do forever is to create a collaboration with a peer program globally. So, pick a case, pick an issue, have each separate cohort talk about it, and then come together. Technology allows us to do that, and frankly, we’ve got some great colleagues across the world. I’d love to have our students talk to their students about a current issue that’s really important and see how each thinks about it.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Hernandez: For me, personally, there’s a strong push for diversity in MBA admissions, and we’ve been making great strides in gender representation. It’s been inconsistent for us in underrepresented students of color, but I still think we’ve been doing a pretty good job overall. But I’d like to see how we can integrate more DEI initiatives into our programs. Because the reality is, the workforce is becoming more diverse, not less diverse.
Kapustka: The last thing I will say is the thing that’s fun, too, is the age differential. The average age might be 38 to 40 for us, but we’ll have 28 to 29 year olds all the way up to 50. That means working with a different generation and understanding what that different generation is about from both sides.
Randall always tells people someone’s going to be the oldest and someone’s going to be the youngest. After the first day, it really doesn’t matter. It’s all about contribution and engagement in the classroom, but that’s also a great learning opportunity for our students.
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