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BOTTOM: KATHLEEN FISHER PHOTOGRAPHY 48 BCBUSINESS.CA MARCH/APRIL 2023 M BA students often have business in their blood, or at least on their under- graduate transcripts. Not so for Tana Dagneau-Jones, who manages marketing and cli- ent relations at a Kamloops law firm. Dagneau-Jones has a history degree and expe- rience running small businesses, but felt uneasy starting classes alongside peers who seemed so knowledgeable. "It was somewhat intimidating to be pursuing a master's in the field that I had no background in," she recalls. Her professors calmed her by giving answers and advice individualized for her needs. "They really delivered," she says. "They were able to give me information that wasn't in the course content, or places to search for what I needed to know." TRU takes a flexible, student-centred approach, where learners can shape their programs to their needs, says Mike Henry, the business school's dean. They can take classes in-person or online with the same professors, for example. They can also steer the content of their degrees. Students choose electives for a quarter of their class credits. Regular courses are worth three credits, but TRU professors can create smaller, customized classes called nano-courses, worth one credit each. The instructors propose a topic like environ- mental economics or carbon accounting, and stu- dents vote on what they will learn next term. "It's about breaking down and almost customizing a curriculum based on needs and interests," Henry explains. Students can even take electives from another faculty. Dagneau-Jones followed her curiosity to dig into urban design, and was surprised by the per- sonalized support she received from her instruc- tors. "My thesis isn't typical for an MBA program," she says. "So my thesis advisor suggested col- laborating with a couple different professors so they could guide me in the most effective way together." Thompson Rivers University TAILOR-MADE TRU's flexible, student- centred MBA programs welcome people with- out a business degree