BCBusiness

BcBUsiness.ca march 2018 BCBusiness 51 Cheryl Wallace. "It's not an executive program, but it is scheduled to meet the needs of working professionals." There's never been so much to choose from when deciding on a graduate busi- ness degree. Here's a sampling of what's on o•er at eight B.C. universities—and the unique traits that could make one of the programs a perfect €t. Royal Roads University OFFERING: blended mbA combining two three-week residencies with distance education TARGET MARkET: Working pro- fessionals seeking flexible learning Warren Eichhorst is a pragmatic sort who doesn't like to jump through unnec- essary hoops. The 2015 Royal Roads MBA graduate began his career with a technical diploma in software develop- ment because he thought a bachelor's degree, with all its electives, would be an impractical use of time and money. Programming jobs eventually led to a leadership role as VP of product and technoloŽy at Burnaby-based startup Conasys Inc., a maker of software that helps condominium developers inter- act with their homeowners. Eichhorst decided that he needed to enhance his business knowledge. Pragmatism drove his choice of MBA schools. "I need something that is going to enable me to work, have somewhat of a social life, as well as give me the end goal of learning," he recalls thinking. "Royal Roads is the best €t for me given the f lexibility." Eichhorst is now VP of information technoloŽy for Go Direct Supply Chain Solutions Inc., a Richmond- based logistics €rm. Royal Roads' 18- or 31-month pro- grams begin and end with a three-week residency at its Victoria campus, with the rest of the coursework delivered online. The residencies forge strong relationships among students with an intense schedule of classes, group work and team-building activities. Distance learning for the rest of the program maximizes f lexibility for working people. This blended delivery aims to give students the bene€ts of both face-to-face and distance- learning models. SFU, Beedie School of Business OFFERING: Full- and part-time mbAs; part- time management of technology mbA; executive mbA; Aboriginal business embA; mSc in finance TARGET MARkET: A wide variety of stu- dents, depending on degree type A l le n M ac K i n non w a s a U B C - educated engineer working his way up the ranks at Westport Innovations Inc. (now Westport Fuel Systems Inc.), a Vancouver-based maker of clean- burning fuel technoloŽy for trucks, trains, ships and industry. His company merged with New York–headquartered Fuel Systems Inc. in mid-2016, and the discus- sions leading up to the deal prompted him to realize that there was much about the business he didn't understand. MacKinnon, now Westport's director of UVic, Peter B. Gustav- son School of Business OFFERING: Full- and part-time mbAs; corporate mbA (Telus) TARGET MARkET: Generalist mbA seekers; Telus leaders Gustavson offers a Daytime mBA program that runs full-time for 17 months, while its Weekend mBa holds face-to-face classes one weekend a month for 24 months. the spacing of the part-time program's classroom sessions gives working students more flexibility, drawing some who commute from as far afield as calgary. Between meetings, students connect with lectures, other course content and fellow classmates online, so they can make the most of their face-to-face time. "When the students come for a weekend, we spend a lot more time discussing things and doing project work," explains david dunne, gus- tavson's director of mBa programs. the school's culture and small class sizes–20 students on average– foster a more intimate connection with professors, dunne says. "i know every student in both our weekend and daytime programs quite well." Uvic offers another mBa pro- gram that's both unique and exclusive. gustavson has collabo- rated with telus corp. to develop a custom, part-time mBa for select employees. Jill schnarr, telus's vice-president of community affairs, was among the first cohort of 20 who completed their degrees last october. schnarr had already built a successful career, but she says the mBa revitalized her and opened new doors: "it's given me massive, exponential increases in confidence and credibility." Trinity Western University OFFERING: blended part-time mbA combining residency with distance education; flexible-schedule mbA; China-based mbA TARGET MARkET: Students seeking to specialize in international business, non-profit management or growing enterprises; Chinese students seek- ing an english-language mbA TWu's mBA program is young but growing like bamboo shoots. it opened its doors in 2006 but already has two locations in the lower mainland and three in china. the chinese expansion began in tianjin in 2013, and the Beijing and shanghai branches were approved last summer. in canada, tWU's langley campus offers three specializations: management of the growing enterprise, international business, and non-profit and charitable organization management. its richmond campus offers just the international business specialization. Both 21 months long, the growing enterprise and non-profit specializations combine online courses with face-to-face classes in langley. international business students can choose to study in langley or richmond, under a uniquely flexible format. that begins with a personalized study plan. "We sit down individually with each student and say, 'ok, tell us, when do you want to start? When do you want to finish?'" explains tWU mBa director murray mactavish. "you can do the program in 12 to 21 months. you can take up to five years, frankly, but only a few people have needed longer periods." two years is the norm. 2018 MBA GUIDE

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