Prospective MBA Working Professional Students
Our Program
Curriculum
Our goal at the Fisher College of Business is to give you the best tools available to ensure you will excel in your career. We combine rigorous academics, thought-provoking research, world-class faculty and a team-based culture to bring you the cutting edge in management education. The team experience is at the heart of Fisher College, and it extends beyond students to include faculty and corporate partners. Fisher College graduates leave with a strong network that serves them throughout their career.
As a Fisher College of Business student you will concentrate on stretching your analytical skills, decision making abilities and presentation style. The first year builds a foundation in key functional areas, while allowing you the flexibility to tailor your program to your goals and interests.
In the first year, each incoming class is divided into 2 sections. With a few exceptions, these sections take classes together for the first 5 quarters of the program. In these sections, you will have the opportunity to build your own team of four to six students for group assignments. The intense pace of our program design and curriculum demands independent thinking, flexibility and relies on collaboration.
As a Fisher MBA graduate, you'll be able to offer prospective employers:
- Leadership skills that stem from cross-functional learning
- The ability to take a holistic view of an enterprise
- A global vision and understanding
- Strong interpersonal skills
- A commitment to ethical business practices
The MBA for Working Professionals curriculum is 76 total credit hours, comprising 40 credit hours of core courses and 36 credit hours of elective courses. Degree requirements must be completed within five years of initial enrollment.
Core Courses
Core courses provide an in-depth exploration of all of the functional areas critical to a complete understanding of the general business environment. As a Fisher Working Professional MBA student you will typically complete core courses by attending class two times a week from 6:00pm-10:00pm. The schedule is highly flexible, designed to be altered if you find that you need to extend your MBA studies beyond two years.
Note: You will be expected to take at least one core course in your first quarter in the program. This ensures a positive start toward completion of the program within five years.
We recognize that there may be situations where work commitments or other unexpected circumstances make it impossible for you to enroll in the required core course. If this happens, you must request, in writing, permission not to take any core classes during your first quarter in the program. Requests must include a plan that explains how you will complete the program in the required four years. Send requests to:
Director of Graduate Programs
100 Gerlach Hall, 2108 Neil Avenue, Columbus OH 43210-1144
The Director will accept email requests.
Under no circumstances will a Working Professional MBA student be granted permission to enroll in no courses during both of the first two terms following admission (i.e., summer and autumn quarters). If you fail to enroll for any classes in your first two quarters following admission you will be dismissed from the program. You may update your application and resubmit it to the admissions committee for reconsideration in the following year.
The Working Professional student schedule is carefully planned to make it possible for you to efficiently complete the program. Failing to enroll for one or both of the first quarter core courses may limit eligibility for elective offerings during the second year in the program. Additionally, skipping some core courses may mean that you will need to schedule first and second summer quarter core classes together in order to complete all core classes by the end of the second summer. Questions regarding this policy should be directed to:
Student Services
Graduate Programs Office, 100 Gerlach Hall
(614) 292-0887 or email mbaadvisor@cob.osu.edu
Elective Courses
Once you complete your core courses, you will be able to pursue electives relevant to your interests, goals and current work challenges.
Electives are available in the areas of accounting, information systems management, finance, management sciences, marketing, logistics, human resources management, and operations.
The flexibility of the MBA for Working Professionals program allows you to complete the program in two years by completing eight credit hours of core courses during the first five quarters of your program and twelve hours of elective credit during the last three quarters of your program. It is possible to substitute an elective for a core course in the same subject area if you have completed the appropriate prerequisite courses. Keep in mind that if you skip any core courses, you may have to wait a year or more for them to be available to you again.
Unlike Full-Time MBA students, students enrolled in the Working Professional program are not required to choose a major or minor. However, it may be useful to guide your education in a particular direction by taking some of the courses required for majors.
Since Working Professioanl students are only required to take 36 hours of elective credit to complete your MBA, taking all of the required courses to complete a major may be difficult unless you choose to take more than the 36 required hours of elective credit.
Note: Fisher's MBA program does not accept transfer hours from other graduate programs.