Such high-profile visits are not uncommon for the leading American business school. Christine Lagarde, managing director of the IMF, has held the fund’s annual meetings there for the past two years.
GWU School of Business is a stone’s throw away from the White House. Nestled in Washington DC, a political and economic hub, it benefits from close proximity to organizations such as the World Bank.
GWU School of Business offers Global MBA, Professional MBA, Online MBA, and World Executive MBA programs, as well as joint-degree MBAs.
The Global MBA is 21-months in length and costs $90,000 in tuition and other costs. The course was ranked within the top-100 of the FT Global MBA Rankings 2015.
Global MBA students have an average GMAT score 644, an average age of 28, and 4.5 years’ average work experience.
Christopher E Storer, executive director of admissions, explains what makes GWU School of Business unique, what type of candidates it seeks, and the opportunities for international immersion.
What makes GW’s business school unique?
Ethics. We offer an extensive portfolio of MBA and graduate programs that are grounded in the concepts of ethics, international business and leadership. We seek out business professionals that want to learn how to do well financially – and good socially.
Global commitment. Mandatory and optional residencies are offered around the globe. From Rwanda to Sweden, Peru to China, Turkey to India – GWSB integrates experiential learning opportunities that cannot be found in any textbook.
Customization to fit career goals. Within our MBA programs students have more than 200 electives to choose from in multiple areas, including business analytics, sustainability, international development, entrepreneurship [and] health services.
They also have the ability to take electives across the suite of graduate schools at GW. This includes our Elliott School of International Affairs, the GW Law School, our Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration, and our School of Public Health and Health Sciences.
Our DC location. Just steps from the White House, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Federal Reserve, and embassies from around the world, our state-of-the-art facility provides students with an outstanding learning environment.
Students find employment at organizations such as General Electric, Deloitte, IBM, Walmart, Standard & Poor’s, the US Federal Government, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and AT&T.
What are you looking for in MBA applications and what can they do to stand out?
Our admissions team travels extensively to find students. We seek candidates who want to make an impact, that can handle the academic rigor of our programs, and who are interested in being part of a dynamic community.
Simply, we’re seeking the best and brightest students from all around the world.
To stand out at a place like GW is simple – present your authentic self throughout the admission process and through your interactions with our faculty and staff. By doing that you’ll be sure to know whether GW is the best fit for you, and likewise it will help us to know if GW is a match with you.
You run an online MBA. How important is online learning to the business school?
We’ve been in the online learning space for about 16 years and it plays an important role in our curricular offerings.
The full suite of online degree offerings includes our Online MBA, Online Healthcare MBA, Online MS in Information Systems & Technology Management, and our MS in Project Management.
More students are opting to combine the online and on-campus learning experiences through a hybrid delivery format, providing even more flexibility.
You run a master's degree with Renmin University in Beijing. What other opportunities are there for students to sample international business?
We offer more than 20 short-term study abroad opportunities annually, and are teamed up with 15 university exchange partners around the world. We offer one of the largest arrays of international learning options.
You can visit Dubai and learn about marketing in the Arab world; discover business growth strategies in the developing world in Ghana; study economic and financial issues in global financial markets while in China; or discuss creating value for business and society in Argentina.
You can also choose to spend a semester abroad at some of the finest universities in the world while experiencing life in Taipei, Mexico City, Milan, or any of the other cities where our partners are located.
Through our Global MBA, students experience the Consulting Abroad Program [CAP] during the second semester of the first year. Students work in teams of five with an overseas client, and it culminates with them traveling abroad at the end of the first year to work with the client in [that] country.
A few recent examples include a trip to Rwanda to work on microfinance, international development, and social entrepreneurship; some students went to Turkey to do marketing with a major retailer; and others were in Sweden for a clean tech and renewable energy project.
What changes to the MBA programs are being made, and what is the strategy to grow the program moving forward?
Quite a few changes are already underway. Based on feedback, GWSB launched a revised MBA curriculum in August 2014.
The core curriculum has been reduced to allow students to have greater flexibility to choose from our more than 200 electives each year. Students may choose from 15 areas of specialty to customize their degree, to meet their specific career goals.
The core has also been re-sequenced. The program now begins with an intensive strategy course that is delivered during the first two weeks. It culminates with a case competition that was this year judged by Deloitte.
This has already proven to be effective in preparing students for the internship recruiting process that begins shortly after they arrive on campus.
In terms of moving forward, with the Global MBA our aim is to keep the size relatively small – approximately 100 new students each year – and focus on continually raising the calibre and profile of our incoming students, while also diversifying the class.
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