Insider's Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business

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mbaMission’s Insider’s Guide Stephen M. Ross School of Business University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI

2017–2018 mbaMission can help you stand apart from the thousands of other MBA applicants!

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mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Introduction

After more than a decade helping MBA applicants get Over the past six years, Poets&Quants has become into top business schools, we have learned what can the foremost authority on the top business schools. compel an admissions committee to send that cov- Our mission has always been to help young profes- eted letter of acceptance. Selecting the right MBA sionals with one of the most important—and po- program for your needs and developing a true un- tentially most expensive—decisions of their lives: derstanding of and familiarity with that program are whether to pursue an MBA. crucial in crafting a successful application. We have therefore invested hundreds of hours into research- This Insider’s Guide is part of a new editorial part- ing and examining the leading business schools—in- nership between Poets&Quants and mbaMission, cluding speaking with students, alumni, and other the world’s leading MBA admissions consulting firm. representatives—to construct these guides, with the We closely evaluated all such guides currently on the express goal of helping applicants like you make in- market, and I am confident that you will not find a formed decisions about this important step in your more thorough analysis of an MBA program than education and career. mbaMission’s. These in-depth reports are well re-

searched and well written, offering the detail and

We hope you enjoy this guide and encourage you to examination applicants need to really understand visit us at www.mbamission.com for complete and de- a school’s culture, offerings, and outcomes. We are tailed analysis of the leading schools’ essay questions, thrilled to offer these guides to our readers for free, weekly essay-writing tips, MBA news and trends, and thanks to our new partnership. other valuable free information and resources. And for any advice you may need on applying to business Moreover, the guides are a great complement to the school, please contact us for a free 30-minute consul- daily coverage of MBA news, students, programs, tation. Our consultants are extensively trained to help and admissions practices on PoetsandQuants.com. applicants present themselves in the most interesting We hope you will visit our site often to stay informed and compelling way and take advantage of every op- about the programs that interest you and the one you portunity that might increase their chances of being ultimately attend. We will continue to provide the admitted to their target MBA program. most relevant and current resources on the MBA world

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mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Free Resources from mbaMission

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mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Interview Primers mbaMission Chicago Booth School of Business Interview Primer mbaMission Columbia Business School Interview Primer mbaMission Dartmouth Tuck Interview Primer mbaMission Duke Fuqua Interview Primer mbaMission Haas School of Business Interview Primer mbaMission Harvard Business School Interview Primer mbaMission INSEAD Interview Primer mbaMission London Business School Interview Primer mbaMission Michigan Ross Interview Primer mbaMission MIT Sloan School of Management Interview Primer mbaMission Northwestern Kellogg Interview Primer mbaMission NYU Stern School of Business Interview Primer mbaMission Stanford GSB Interview Primer mbaMission Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania Interview Primer mbaMission UCLA Anderson Interview Primer mbaMission UVA Darden Interview Primer mbaMission Yale School of Management Interview Primer

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mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Table of Contents

9 The MBA Program in Context: Choosing Michigan Ross 10 Location: Urban Campus Versus College Town 13 Class Size: Smaller Versus Larger 18 Curriculum: Flexible Versus Mandatory Core 22 Pedagogy: Lecture Versus Case Method 24 Academic Specializations/Recruitment Focus: Resources and Employers 27 Alumni Base: Opportunities to Engage 28 Facilities: Shaping the Academic/Social Experience 30 Rankings and Reputation: Important Metrics or Arbitrary Measures?

36 The Stephen M. Ross School of Business 36 Summary 37 The Dean 38 Professional Specializations 38 Consulting 39 Entrepreneurship, Private Equity, and Venture Capital 42 Finance 44 General Management 45 Health Care 47 International Business 50 Marketing 51 Operations/Manufacturing 53 Real Estate 54 Social Entrepreneurship 56 Notable Professors and Unsung Heroes 57 Social/Community Life 59 Academic Summary 61 Admissions Basics 65 University of Michigan (Ross) Essay Analysis, 2016–2017 67 mbaMission’s Exclusive Interview with Soojin Kwon, Director of Admissions for the Ross School of Business

76 Appendix: Ross Facts and Figures 76 Basics 77 Class Profile (Class of 2018) 77 Employment Statistics (Class of 2016)

81 Bibliography The MBA Program in Context: Choosing Michigan Ross

Over the years, we have met many aspiring MBA students who have tried to You may not find a identify their target schools and quickly become overwhelmed, wondering, single program that “How are the top MBA programs really different?” and “How do I choose the meets all your needs one that is right for me?” and preferences, but you should be able to Frustrated, some applicants ultimately choose schools based simply on identify ones that fulfill rankings or the opinions of friends or alumni. Although these inputs have a the factors that are place in your evaluative process, you should also do the necessary research most important to you. to find the program that is truly best for your personality and professional needs. In doing so, you will find significant differences between, for example, programs that have a class size in the low 200s and those that have classes of more than 900 students. As you are undoubtedly already aware, an MBA is a significant investment in the short term and a lifetime connection to an institution in the long term. We therefore strongly encourage you to take time now to think long and hard about this decision and thoroughly consider your options. We hope this guide will prove helpful to you in doing just that.

At mbaMission, we advise candidates evaluating their potential target schools to consider the following eight specific characteristics (in no particular order) that shape MBA programs:

1. Location: Urban Campus Versus College Town

2. Class Size: Smaller Versus Larger

3. Curriculum: Flexible Versus Mandatory Core

4. Pedagogy: Lecture Versus Case Method

5. Academic Specializations/Recruitment Focus: Resources and Employers

6. Alumni Base: Opportunities to Engage

7. Facilities: Shaping the Academic/Social Experience

8. Rankings and Reputation: Important Metrics or Arbitrary Measures?

You will not likely find a single MBA program that meetsall your needs and preferences across these eight criteria, but you should be able to identify schools that fulfill the factors that are most important to you. Although this guide is intended to familiarize you on a deeper level with this particular school, nothing will prove more valuable in your decision making than visiting the programs that appeal to you and experiencing them firsthand. Inevitably, no matter what your research may reveal, some schools will simply “click” with you, and others will not.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Note: The authors and editors at mbaMission have made every effort to ensure the accuracy and timeliness of the information included in this guide. However, some discrepancies may exist or develop over time between what is presented here and what appears in the school’s official materials, as well as what may be offered by other content providers in print or online. For the most up-to-date information, always check with your target school directly. The opinions expressed by the people interviewed are those of the attributed individuals only and may not necessarily represent the opinion of mbaMission or any of its affiliates.

We also wish to thank the students, alumni, faculty members, and administrators who gave generously of their time to provide valuable input for this guide.

1. Location: Urban Campus Versus College Town

Pursuing an MBA can be quite intense, and the environment and community The environment surrounding the campus can profoundly affect and even shape your MBA and community experience. For example, imagine stepping out of a class at New York Univer- surrounding your sity’s (NYU’s) Stern School of Business and into the energetic bustle of New chosen school can York City’s West Village. Now imagine walking outside after a course at the profoundly affect and Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and being surrounded by the tranquil- shape your MBA ity and natural beauty of New Hampshire’s Upper Valley. Neither scenario is experience. necessarily “better” than the other, but one might appeal to you more.

An urban campus can undoubtedly offer social and cultural opportunities that a college town simply cannot match.

This is not to suggest, however, that college towns are devoid of culture—indeed, intense intellectual and cultural programs exist in college towns precisely because the academic institution is at the core of the community.

While schools in college towns tout their close-knit atmosphere and the tight bonds classmates form in such a setting, this environment can be welcoming for some students and overwhelming for others. In contrast, urban campuses are more decentralized, with students often living in various parts of a city and even in the surrounding suburbs. Someone who has a greater need for privacy or personal space might therefore prefer an urban environment. In addition, in major urban centers, some students—particularly those who lived in the city before enrolling

Urban Campus Schools Urban/College Hybrid Schools College Town Schools

Chicago Booth Northwestern Kellogg Cornell Johnson Columbia Business School Stanford GSB Dartmouth Tuck Harvard Business School UC Berkeley Haas Duke Fuqua MIT Sloan Yale SOM Michigan Ross NYU Stern UVA Darden UCLA Anderson UPenn Wharton

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 in business school—may already have well-developed social groups, and this scenario may again be better for those who find an academically and socially all-encompassing environment less attractive.

One aspect of the MBA experience that candidates often fail to consider when evaluating their school options is weather. Although factoring climate into your school choice may initially seem superficial, if you know you cannot comfortably manage frigid conditions or soaring temperatures, certain programs should be stricken from your list. We encounter many applicants each year who wisely stave off a potentially miserable experience by choosing to not apply to certain schools in locations they just do not feel are “livable” for them.

In addition, housing costs are one expense that many applicants do not stop to consider before choosing a school to target. By researching real estate prices at the top programs, we found that the cost differential between renting a one-bedroom apartment in a Midwestern college town and renting one in New York City, for example, can be quite significant—adding up to tens of thousands of dollars on a cumulative basis across two years. This is an important factor to include as you weigh your options and calculate your projected budget.

In summary, a college town can be appealing for some candidates because its smaller size tends to create strong bonds within the business school’s community, though for others, the lack of privacy could be undesired or overwhelming. Furthermore, some find a slower pace of life calming and comfortable, whereas others crave the energy and bustle of a city. If you strongly prefer one or the other, you should be able to quickly eliminate certain schools from your list.

Average Monthly Rent for a One-Bedroom Apartment

NYU Stern New York, NY $3,395 within .27 mile radius of campus

MIT Sloan Cambridge, MA $3,149 within .49 mile radius of campus

Harvard Business School Cambridge, MA $2,631 within .59 mile radius of campus

Columbia Business School New York, NY $2,563 within .54 mile radius of campus

Stanford GSB Stanford, CA $2,521 within 1.15 mile radius of campus

UCLA Anderson Los Angeles, CA $2,336 within .96 mile radius of campus

UC Berkeley Haas Berkeley, CA $1,984 within .57 mile radius of campus

Northwestern Kellogg Evanston, IL $1,772 within .69 mile radius of campus

Dartmouth Tuck Hanover, NH $1,727 within .38 mile radius of campus

UPenn Wharton Philadelphia, PA $1,418 within .78 mile radius of campus

Yale SOM New Haven, CT $1,232 within .30 mile radius of campus

Chicago Booth Chicago, IL $1,222 within 1.05 mile radius of campus

Cornell Johnson Ithaca, NY $1,092 within .58 mile radius of campus

Michigan Ross Ann Arbor, MI $976 within .46 mile radius of campus

Duke Fuqua Durham, NC $916 within 1.8 mile radius of campus

UVA Darden Charlottesville, VA $827 within 1.26 mile radius of campus

According to Rentometer.com, accessed April 2017.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Ann Arbor, Michigan, is unmistakably a college town, bustling with students and boasting a young, vibrant atmosphere. The entire city has been said to turn maize and blue on game day, and athletics are a central part of the University of Michigan experience. Moreover, Ann Arbor offers sophistication not necessarily found in other college towns or Midwestern cities of similar scale, in part because of the university’s sheer size (it employs approximately 44,000) as well as its reach in terms of research and technology. The Ste- phen M. Ross School of Business claims on its Web site that the city offers “cosmopolitan living without the hassle.” The Detroit Metro Airport is located approximately 30 minutes from downtown, and residents of Ann Arbor enjoy an active arts scene, including the only U.S. residency of England’s Royal Shakespeare

Company, restaurants to fit all budgets, and an array of outdoor activities, with more than 140 parks within the city’s limits.

During the business school’s three-day Go Blue Rendezvous welcome weekend, which typically occurs in early spring, new admits have the opportunity to get a feel for Ross, its MBA program, and its student body. Some admits also use this time to explore housing options, and many who have already decided on

Ross may choose to secure housing during this visit. The vast majority of Ross students live in off-campus houses or apartments, of which the choices are abundant.

The affordability, safety, and accessibility of public housing allow Ross students to easily live within walking or biking distance of campus. Those who live further away from grounds can take public transportation or drive to get to campus; however, parking is often limited. Of the more than 250 students who completed the Ross MBA Housing Guide 2016–2017 survey (conducted by housing search company VeryApt), most reported that commuting to campus takes them five to 15 minutes on foot or five to ten minutes by bike.

Proximity to campus is something to consider, given the severity of Michigan’s winters, which could make for an unpleasant commute for those not accustomed to snow or frigid temperatures. Half of the survey respondents said that they live in a mid- or high-rise apartment building, while 42% reported that they live in a standalone apartment unit, low-rise, or a house; 8% said they live in a mid- or high-rise condo building.

The majority, or 38%, said their household has three or more bedrooms, while 29% lived in a two-bedroom,

25% in a one-bedroom, and 8% in a studio or efficiency.

According to the survey, the average rent for a studio apartment in the Ann Arbor Area is $1,100. One- bedrooms average approximately $1,350, two-bedrooms $1,500, and three-bedrooms $3,400. The Ross

Partners Club 2015–2016 Housing Survey, however, reported the average monthly rent for all size apartments as being between $1,100 and $1,299. Factoring in utilities can be a key consideration, given that heat alone can cost upward of $100 per month during the winter.

The school advises the following rule of thumb for housing selection: “Secure your housing before you arrive in Ann Arbor this fall, as the pickings do get slimmer as time passes, but it’s fine to use GBR [Go Blue

Rendezvous] weekend just to explore options.” A participant in the 2015–2016 Partners Club survey shared

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 a similar view: “When we arrived at GBR, we felt like we had to find housing that weekend (I am glad we did);

so do your homework prior to arriving.”

Student comments in the surveys can also be particularly helpful, such as the following examples from

the 2010 version of the school’s Go Blue! Rendezvous housing survey: “We flew out from NYC one weekend

and had made 15+ appointments in advance to see apartments—there was so much diversity in the qual-

ity of housing (you can’t tell from the price how nice it is—we learned that right away) that we’re glad we

came and saw it all in person. We saw a ton of places and signed a lease that weekend (this was in April)—it

worked out great” and “Live close to campus (<10 mins by walk) for the first year. First year is crazy! Even

if you have a spouse and are looking for a quiet place to live, there are many options close to campus.” A

partner of a Ross student underscored the importance of starting the apartment hunt early in the Partners

Club survey, saying, “Find housing as soon as possible! It’s very difficult to find affordable and nice housing

in Ann Arbor.” Another partner shared this tip: “Look at unconventional housing options. There are lots of

places for rent and for sale and lots of different communities.”

When considering attending Ross, one should factor in whether living in a town in which the school and

the city are inextricably intertwined is appealing. Although students do not typically live on campus, the

community is tight-knit and appears to share a strong appreciation for higher learning, collaboration, and

school spirit.

2. Class Size: Smaller Versus Larger

Another element that affects the character of a school’s MBA experience is class size. You might want to reflect on your high school, college, and work environments to help you determine whether you would be more comfortable in a larger class or a smaller one—or whether this is even a consideration for you at all.

Students at smaller schools (which we define as having approximately 350 Reflect on your past students or fewer per class) tend to interact with most of their peers and academic and work professors at some point during the typical two-year MBA period. Thus, the environments to smaller schools are generally considered more “knowable,” and their com- determine whether munities tend to be quite closely knit. Also, consider that assuming a leader- you would be more ship position is easier in a smaller environment, because, for example, the comfortable in a larger Finance Club may have only one president at both a small school and a large or smaller class—or school, but competition for such a position would obviously be greater in the whether this is a larger program. consideration for you at all. Some individuals might prefer to be at a larger school where they can better maintain their anonymity if they so choose. A student at a school with close

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Class Size to 900 people or more in each class will not likely get to know each and every one of his/her classmates 900 to 1,000 Harvard Business School by the end of the program, and some people might 800 to 900 UPenn Wharton prefer this. Further, advocates of larger classes tout 700 to 800 Columbia Business School1 the advantage of being able to interact with more 500 to 600 Chicago Booth people during one’s MBA experience—and to thereby 400 to 500 Northwestern Kellogg develop a broader and more robust network of peers. Duke Fuqua Stanford GSB Note that many schools divide students into smaller Michigan Ross groups—called “sections,” “clusters,” “cohorts,” or MIT Sloan even “oceans”—in which approximately 60–90 stu- 300 to 400 NYU Stern UCLA Anderson dents take certain classes together, and this ap- UVA Darden proach can help foster a stronger sense of commu- Yale SOM nity within the larger programs. 200 to 300 Dartmouth Tuck Cornell Johnson UC Berkeley Haas Historically, Ross’s class size was in the 430–440

Schools are listed in order from largest class to smallest within range, making the school a midsized one. The Class each category. of 2011, however, grew to 500, and the next several

1 Includes J-Term students. classes were comparable in size, in part because of

the school’s ability to handle a larger incoming class.

Director of Admissions Soojin Kwon explained in an interview with mbaMission, “Because of our new build-

ing, we have the ability to increase our class size, and so we are moving in that direction.” The Class of

2015, however, had just 455 students, reflecting—as a March 2014Poets&Quants article explained—an ef-

fort on the school’s part “to bring its acceptance rate down to 33.7%, from an unusually high 40.6% a year

earlier” and subsequently improve the admissions statistics used to determine its place in the rankings.

The downward trend has since continued, with only 407 students in the Class of 2017—the lowest incoming

class in years—and 415 students in the Class of 2018.

Whether the class numbers closer to 400 or 500, the group as a whole is too large to allow every student

to truly get to know one another. However, Ross divides its students into cohorts, which helps provide

ample opportunity for students to become well acquainted with a smaller group of classmates. Further,

the 270,000-square-foot building that opened on Ross’s campus in 2009 helps foster community and sup-

port team-based learning (see the Facilities section for more).

Ross offers several programs to promote friendships and connections between new students in the in-

coming class. For one, many students participate in initiatives hosted by the Sanger Leadership Center at

different points throughout the two-year MBA program that are designed to help students test and de-

velop their leadership capabilities. These include an Impact Challenge, through which student teams work

with local nonprofit organizations on projects aimed at creating social and economic value in Detroit, and a

Crisis Challenge, which is a time-sensitive, role-playing competition that tests students’ capacity to think

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 School (Class of 2018) Women International Minorities

Chicago Booth 42% 36% 29%1

Columbia Business School 38% 48% 31%1

Cornell Johnson 31% 33% 15%

Dartmouth Tuck 44% 30% 18%1

Duke Fuqua2 35% 40% 20%

Harvard Business School 43% 35% 25%1

Michigan Ross 40% 31% 24%

MIT Sloan 40% 39% NA

Northwestern Kellogg 41% 35% 26%1

NYU Stern 35% 31%4 30%

Stanford GSB 41% 40%3,4 29%1

UC Berkeley Haas 38% 38% 32%1

UCLA Anderson 32% 38% 25%

UPenn Wharton 44% 32% 32%1

UVA Darden 39% 33% 20%1

Yale SOM 43% 46% 28%1

1 Specified as U.S. minorities.

2 Fuqua had released no official figures for the Class of 2018 by the publication of this guide but offers statistics on its site to represent a

“typical” class.

3 Includes permanent residents.

4 Includes dual citizens.

on their feet and cope with pressure. Students are presented with a simulated crisis at a company and have

a limited amount of time in which to develop a strategy for addressing the issue. The students then com-

municate and defend that strategy to the company board and potentially to some journalists as well (all

played by professors). Another element is a Story Lab, in which participants hone their storytelling skills

in preparation for job interviews. The Lab culminates in a gathering of students, faculty, and alumni, where

student work is revealed.

Other optional programs include M-Treks— multiday, outdoor-focused trips led by second-year students

and are intended to build bonds between participants and to promote leadership in a team setting. Past

M-Treks have taken participating students to such places as the glaciers of Norway and the beaches of

Croatia. In total, 29 M-Treks took place in 2017 (20 in 2016), including one to South Africa titled “Cape Town

Throwndown,” one to Spain and Greece called “Party with the Gods,” and one to Indonesia themed “Ballin’

in Bali.”

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Most Common Undergraduate Major for Incoming Students (Class of 2018)

Chicago Booth Business 28%

Columbia Business School Social Science 34%

Cornell Johnson NA NA

Dartmouth Tuck Humanities, Social Science, Economics 51%

Duke Fuqua1 Engineering/Natural Sciences 29%

Harvard Business School Economics/Business 41%

Michigan Ross Economics/Business 38%

MIT Sloan Engineering 32%

Northwestern Kellogg Economics/Business 45%

NYU Stern Business 29%

Stanford GSB Humanities/Social Sciences 48%

UC Berkeley Haas Business 24%

UCLA Anderson Business 28%

UPenn Wharton Humanities 46%

UVA Darden Business 25%

Yale SOM Humanities and Social Sciences 33%

1 Fuqua had released no official figures for the Class of 2018 by the publication of this guide but offers statistics on its site to represent a

“typical” class.

Trips are rated on a scale of one to three for lodgings, culture, nightlife, and physical activity, with one be-

ing minimal and four being luxurious or intensive. For example, a “one” might mean that students have just

tents or cabins for accommodations, whereas a “four” would indicate a fancy hotel. Students on a Brazil

trip, for example, spent time visiting beaches and partying, and the trek was rated a four for nightlife. In

contrast, a trip to Nicaragua was rated a four for physical activity.

Each year, one or two of the treks are MYSTERY Trips, where participants discover the destination right be-

fore takeoff. The 2017 MYSTERY Trips were titled “MYSTERY 5.0 Maize: Into the No No Zone” and “MYSTERY

5.0 Blue: Journey through the Back Door.” The non-MYSTERY Trips in 2016 included one to Bolivia titled

“Don’t Stop Bolivian’,” one to Morocco and Portugal called “Morocc’n the Night Train to Lisbon,” and one to

Guatemala and Belize with the title “Guate Get Down.” Among the trips in 2015 were “Peru-sing the Tinder

Scene” in Peru, “Shish Kebaby One More Time” in Turkey, and “Thai and Stop Us… From Raging!” in Thailand.

2014 trips included “We Came in Like a Reyk-ing Ball,” which took participants to Iceland; “Puerto Freakin’,”

for which students visited Puerto Rico; and “Pour Drinks, Poor Choices, Portugal!,” a South Europe trip

heavy on social events.

As at many other business schools, first-year students at Ross are divided into sections, which are each

made up of approximately 70–85 students (depending on the size of the incoming class) who take the

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Year-Over-Year Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Class Profile Data: of 2018 of 2017 of 2016 of 2015 of 2014 of 2013 of 2012 of 2011 Michigan Ross

Total Number of NA NA NA NA 2,436 2,929 2,722 2,697 Applicants

Number of Full- 415 407 447 455 502 501 488 500 Time Students

Average GMAT 708 708 702 704 703 703 704 701

GMAT Range 650– 660– 650– 650– 650– 650– 650– 650– (Middle 80%) 750 760 750 750 750 750 750 760

Average GPA NA NA 3.4 3.4 3.4 3.4 3.4 3.4

Average Years of NA NA 5 5 5 5 5.2 5 Work Experience

Range of Years of NA NA <1–15 <1–20 <1–15 <1–15 <1–16 1–20 Work Experience

Average Age of NA NA 27 28 28 28 28 28 Candidates

Female 40% 32% 32% 33% 30% 31% 30% 33% Representation

Minority 24% 25% 23% 24% 27% 28% 27% 23% Representation

International 31% 35% 34% 31% 36% 31% 38% 31% Representation

school’s core curriculum classes together. Ross’s first years do, however, have the option of taking some

classes apart from their section. Nonetheless, given that section members generally spend a significant

amount of time in the classroom together and that the sections involve a large social component, section

mates are often forever linked—and most Ross students and alumni we interviewed speak fondly of this

part of their experience. Ross does not officially assign students to learning teams, but some classes do

divide students into small groups for project-based work.

Ross also offers specific programs tailored to its underrepresented minorities and international communi-

ties. Minorities and students from outside North America represented 24% and 31%, respectively, of the

incoming Class of 2018 (25% and 35% for the Class of 2017 and 23% and 34% for the Class of 2016). Ross’s

annual diversity event, UpClose, is hosted by the Black Business Students Association and the Hispanic

and Latino Business Students Association, in partnership with the Admissions Office. UpClose is designed

for prospective MBA students of any race or ethnicity who are interested in improving the representation

of minorities in management, and the event provides them with the opportunity to experience Ross’s com-

munity and programs. Typically held in the fall, the program spans two days and consists of workshops

and discussions, such as an admissions presentation on how to build a competitive application, a panel

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 discussion with students about campus life, and the opportunity to attend a Ross MBA class. The agenda

also includes a dinner reception and a night out with first- and second-year students.

To assist international candidates who have been accepted to and are considering attending Ross in mak-

ing their school selection decision, students and alumni around the world make themselves available for

questions via phone calls and online chats. These students and alumni ambassadors provide perspective

on attending Ross as an international student, and their names and email addresses are provided in the

admissions section of Ross’s Web site. International students at Ross can choose from an array of clubs

and organizations that may be of interest, such as the Africa Business Club, the Hispanic Business Students

Association, and the Indian Subcontinent Business Association.

Lastly, the university’s International Center provides support on a variety of issues specific to students

from outside the United States, from immigration to health insurance to cross-cultural questions.

3. Curriculum: Flexible Versus Mandatory Core

Many business schools have a “core” curriculum—a standard series of cours- The rigidity or es that all students must take. However, these core requirements can vary flexibility of a school’s tremendously from one program to the next. For example, one school may first-year curriculum teach its required curriculum for the entire first year, meaning that students affects students’ will not take any elective courses until their second year, whereas another education and MBA program may stipulate only one or two required courses. socialization.

The rigidity or flexibility of a school’s required curriculum affects students’ education and socialization. Regardless of their professional experience, students at a school with a rigid core curriculum must all take the same classes. At some schools, for example, even CPAs must take the required foundational accounting course, whereas at others, students can waive selected classes if they can prove a certain level of proficiency. Again, both approaches have pros and cons, and what those are depends on your perspective.

Proponents of a rigid core curricu- Can Waive/ Cannot Waive/ Test Out of Classes Test Out of Classes lum would argue that academics Chicago Booth Cornell Johnson understand what skills students Columbia Harvard Business School need to become true managers Dartmouth Tuck MIT Sloan and that when students “overspe- Duke Fuqua Stanford GSB Michigan Ross UVA Darden cialize” in one area, their overall Northwestern Kellogg Yale SOM business education can ultimately NYU Stern UC Berkeley Haas suffer. A significant body of aca- UCLA Anderson demic writing has been devoted UPenn Wharton

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Average GMAT of Incoming Students to critiquing programs that give students a narrow view of busi- (Class of 2018) ness, notably Henry Mintzberg’s Managers Not MBAs: A Hard Look

Chicago Booth 726.3 at the Soft Practice of Managing and Management Development

Columbia Business School 717 (Berrett-Koehler, 2004) and Rakesh Khurana’s From Higher Aims

Cornell Johnson 700 to Hired Hands: The Social Transformation of American Business

Dartmouth Tuck 717 Schools and the Unfulfilled Promise of Management as a Profes- sion (Princeton University Press, 2007). Duke Fuqua NA

Harvard Business School1 730 Advocates of the core curriculum approach would also argue Michigan Ross 708 that having all students take the same classes creates a common MIT Sloan 724 language and discussion among the classmates because of the Northwestern Kellogg 728 shared experience. In addition, proponents contend that a rigid NYU Stern 710 core curriculum facilitates learning, because students who have Stanford GSB 737 applicable direct experience bring that knowledge and insight UC Berkeley Haas 717 into the classroom and can thereby help teach others. Finally, UCLA Anderson 715 schools with mandatory cores generally keep students together UPenn Wharton 730 in their sections for several months, if not an entire academic

UVA Darden 712 year, and students who interact every day in this way ultimately 1 Yale SOM 730 forge strong bonds. This sustained contact and connection can

1 Represents median rather than average. create a deep sense of community among the students.

In contrast, those who would argue in favor of a more flexible curriculum feel that students benefit from the opportunity to specialize immediately—that time is short, and students need power and choice in preparing for their desired careers. So if, for example, a student intended to enter the world of finance, an advocate of flexibility would argue that the student should be able to study finance in depth throughout the MBA program, possibly even from day one, so as to gain as much experience as possible in this area—especially before interviewing for a summer internship. Furthermore, proponents for flexible curricula caution that experienced students could end up

“wasting” hours taking courses in subjects in which they already have expertise. Finally, they would assert that a flexible schedule allows students the opportunity to meet a greater number and wider variety of their classmates.

Ross has two 14-week terms, referred to as Fall and Winter, each of which is subdivided into two seven-

week sessions. As a result, students have Fall A and Fall B, followed by Winter A and Winter B. Many Ross

classes are taught within the shorter seven-week time frame, but some courses may span the entire 14-

week period (i.e., an entire term).

Ross’s first-year core curriculum consists of nine classes plus the Multidisciplinary Action Project and is

standardized; three additional elements are also required for graduation but can be completed at any

point in the two-year MBA program. The first-year schedule is as follows:

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Fall A

“Applied Business Statistics”

“Applied Microeconomics”

“Corporate Strategy”

“Principles of Financial Accounting”

Communication Competency Requirement

Fall B

“Financial Management”

“Leading People and Organizations”

“Managerial Accounting” (can also be taken during Winter A)

“Marketing Management”

Communication Competency Requirement

Optional business elective or degree requirement

Winter A

“Managerial Accounting” (can also be taken during Fall B)

“Operations Management”

Communication Competency Requirement

Optional business elective or degree requirement

Winter B

Multidisciplinary Action Project

As noted, all first-year students are required to participate in the Multidisciplinary Action Project, or MAP.

During the last seven weeks of the winter term, teams of four to six students, in conjunction with a faculty advisor, work for corporations, nonprofits, and start-ups around the world to tackle real-life business problems. MAPs constitute the entire academic course load in the final quarter of the first year; no other classes are taken during this time, making MAP an intense, hands-on learning experience. This experience can be helpful to students, particularly those seeking to change careers, in gaining exposure to their field of choice for the job search process. In fact, one student with whom we spoke declared that MAP was one of the main reasons he chose Ross for his MBA education.

The MAP Web site describes the partnerships between student teams and sponsor organizations as among

“the world’s most extensive and intensive [in] action-based learning.” MAP was instituted in 1992, when then dean Joseph White renewed the school’s commitment to innovation and expanded the hands-on teaching program. Since then, Ross MAP teams have completed more than 1,900 assignments for more than 1,300 sponsors in nearly 100 countries across the globe. MAPs are submitted by both domestic and

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 international organizations and are subject to a rigorous approval process before being assigned a student team.

Past MAP projects have ranged in scope from working with Kumi Hospital in Uganda to analyze its supply chain system, develop recommendations for improvement, and pilot changes, to helping American Express understand new ways of reaching customers in leading-edge interactive channels. In 2016 specifically,

Ross students conducted more than 80 MAP projects in 20 countries. These projects included working with an Indian nonprofit to eliminate needless blindness, preparing a strategic plan for Make-a-Wish, designing a strategy for an investment fund in Finland, and formulating a new business model for Roche Brazil. MAPs in 2015 included rebranding an apparel company in the Dominican Republic, collaborating with Google in

Singapore and Bangkok, and helping create a training program for the Miami Dolphins in Florida. Among the 2014 project options were working with a global bank in India, conceptualizing business models in the world’s most underprivileged locations, and cooperating with a multinational nonprofit health organization in South Africa.

In their second year, students are largely free to take only the courses they want, provided they fulfill the

57 credits (27 of which may be taken as electives; electives can be 1.5, 2.25, or 3.0 credits) and three additional requirements needed for graduation. The three additional requirements are (1) the “Competing in the Global Business Environment” strategy course, (2) successful completion of a course in business law, and (3) fulfillment of the Communications Competency Requirement (explained later in this section).

Students can choose from among nine elective classes that satisfy the business law/ethics requirement.

Typically, students spend most, if not all, of their first year with their section, taking core classes. However,

Ross’s program does offer some level of flexibility in that (1) a slot is provided for students to take at least one elective in the Fall B and Winter A sessions and (2) students are able to waive core courses via an exam or a waiver request, based on their academic background, prior Ross coursework, and/or professional experience or designation. A student can submit a request to waive the business law/ethics obligation based on academic experience or professional designation, but students cannot test out of this requirement. The only two courses that technically cannot be waived are “Corporate Strategy” (part of the first-year core curriculum) and “Competing in a Global Business Environment” (one of the three additional requirements for graduation), and these classes must be completed at the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus.

Applicants interested in the specific requirements for testing out of or waiving a particular core course should check out the Core Course Waivers & Waiver Exam Information found within the Academics section of Ross’s Web site. Here one will find an exam testing timeline and information on the process and criteria for submitting a waiver request as well as information on the “pros and cons” of waiving classes.

Ultimately, the decision to waive a course should be weighed against the loss of time in the first-year section experience.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 The Communications Competency Requirement, which is designed to ensure that graduates leave the pro-

gram with excellent managerial communication skills, can be fulfilled by passing a written exam. This exam

is typically offered in July or August. Students otherwise fulfill the MBA Communications Requirement in

one of the three groups they are divided into.

A total of ten hours of coursework may be taken outside Ross, meaning that second-year students can

take advantage of hundreds of classes available via the university’s numerous graduate school programs,

including the Ford School of Public Policy, the School of Natural Resources and Environment, and the Taub-

man College of Architecture and Urban Planning. In addition, second-year students can participate in inde-

pendent study projects as well as classes at the Washington Campus.

4. Pedagogy: Lecture Versus Case Method

Students will likely encounter multiple styles of learning while in business Students will school—including participating in simulations, listening to guest speakers, encounter many and partaking in hands-on projects—but the two most common MBA learn- different styles of ing styles are case method and lecture. learning during their time at business Pioneered by HBS, the case method, or case-based learning, requires stu- school, but the two dents to read the story (called a “case”) of either a hypothetical or a real most common are case protagonist who is facing a managerial dilemma. As the student reads, he/ method and lecture. she explores the protagonist’s dilemma and has access to various quantitative and qualitative data points meant to facilitate further analysis. (Cases can vary in length but are typically 10–20 pages long.) After reading and studying the entire case, the student generally understands the profundity of the problem and is typically asked a simple question: “What would you do?” In other words, how would the student act or react if he/she were in the protagonist’s place? What decision(s) would the student make?

After completing his/her independent analysis of the case, the student typically meets with the members of his/ her study group or learning team (if the school in question assigns such teams) for further evaluation. Together, the group/team members explore and critique one another’s ideas and help those students who may have had difficulty understanding particular aspects of the issue or progressing as far on their own. Often, though not always, the team will establish a consensus regarding the actions they would take in the protagonist’s place. Then, in class, the professor acts as facilitator and manages a discussion of the case. Class discussions can often become quite lively, and the professor will guide students toward resolving the dilemma. Sometimes, the professor will ultimately reveal the protagonist’s decision and the subsequent results—or even bring the actual protagonist into the classroom to share and discuss the case’s progression and outcomes in person.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 In short, the case method focuses primarily on the analytical pro- Average GPA of Incoming Students cess and illustrates that the problems presented have no clear- (Class of 2018) cut right or wrong responses. For a student to disagree with the Chicago Booth 3.6 protagonist’s chosen path—even after it has proved to be suc- Columbia Business School 3.5 cessful—is not unusual. After all, another approach (or even inac- Cornell Johnson 3.39 tion) may have produced an even better result. Dartmouth Tuck 3.5

Duke Fuqua NA Note that case-based learning is not specific to one academic Harvard Business School 3.67 discipline. Cases are available in finance, strategy, operations, Michigan Ross NA accounting, marketing, and still other areas. Further, many cases MIT Sloan 3.5 are interdisciplinary, meaning that they address more than one Northwestern Kellogg 3.6 area at a time, such as requiring students to think about how a NYU Stern 3.51 financial decision might affect the operations of a manufactur- Stanford GSB1 3.73 ing company or the ways in which a marketing decision might in- UC Berkeley Haas 3.64 volve significant financial considerations. Importantly, students UCLA Anderson NA in case environments are often graded on their “contribution” UPenn Wharton NA to the class discussion (measured by the level of one’s partici- pation in discussions and analysis, not on the frequency with UVA Darden 3.5 2 which one offers “correct” answers), so the case method is not Yale SOM 3.65 for those who are uncomfortable speaking in class. However, it 1 U.S. schools, 4.0 scale only. can be incredibly helpful for those who want or need to practice 2 Median GPA listed. and build confidence speaking publicly.

Lecture is the method of learning that is familiar to most people—the professor stands in front of the class and explores a theory or event, facilitating discussion and emphasizing and explaining key learning points. Often, students have read chapters of a textbook beforehand and have come to class with a foundation in the specific area to be examined that day. Although the case method gives students a context for a problem, those who favor lecture tend to believe that the case method is too situation specific and therefore prefer a methodical exploration of theory that they feel can be broadly applied across situations. In lecture classes, the professor and his/her research or theory are technically paramount, though students still participate, challenge ideas, and debate issues.

Note that at some schools, professors may alternate between cases and lectures within a single semester of classes.

Ross’s teaching method combines both case method and lecture-based classes. Our conversations with

students and alumni revealed that an individual’s preference and area of interest can often determine the

mix of case method and lecture coursework that each student experiences during the second year. Stu-

dents who prefer lectures tend to gravitate toward classes with professors who favor that method, while

those who find case-based learning appealing do the opposite. For example, one student with whom we

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 spoke estimated that 90% of his classes were case based, while another estimated that less than half of

his classes were.

As noted in the Curriculum section, the required MAP entails a major curricular emphasis on experien-

tial, or “action-based,” learning. As the self-described pioneer of this approach, which was introduced in

1992, Ross explains action-based learning on its Web site as “the cornerstone of your education,” adding,

“[When] you graduate, you will be ready to apply theory and practice to real-world issues. You will emerge

as a leader who has worked side-by-side with business executives to help them solve real problems. And

you’ll have been tested, proven yourself, and are ready to succeed at conquering any challenge.”

A 2012 post on the dean’s blog describes action-based learning as remaining ahead of the curve of similar-

ly experiential field studies at other business schools. Then Dean Alison Davis-Blake states, “At Michigan

Ross, we assert that no other method of learning can better prepare today’s business student for tomor-

row’s business challenge. And here’s what our faculty have learned during 20 years as leaders in action-

based learning: It’s not just about action. It’s not just about solutions. It’s about transformation.”

5. Academic Specializations/Recruitment Focus: Resources and Employers

Schools’ brands and reputations develop over time and tend to endure, Do not merely accept even when the programs make efforts to change them. For example, many stereotypes but truly applicants still feel that Kellogg is only a marketing school and that Chi- consider the breadth cago Booth is only for people interested in finance, even though both pro- and depth of resources grams boast strengths in many other areas. Indeed, this is the exact reason available at each mbaMission started producing these guides in 2008—we wanted applicants school. to see beyond these superficial “market” perceptions. Make sure you are not merely accepting stereotypes but are truly considering the breadth and depth of resources available at each school.

We have dedicated the majority of this guide to exploring the principal professional specializations for which resources are available at this particular school, and we encourage you to fully consider whether the MBA program meets your personal academic needs by supplementing the information here with additional context from the school’s career services office, by connecting with the heads of relevant clubs on campus, and perhaps even by reaching out to alumni in your target industry.

Ross focuses on teaching students general management business practices through multidisciplinary,

action-based programs. The school claims on its Web site that it strives for excellence across functions,

and its curriculum supports the general management philosophy, offering essential core classes with

many electives in each specialty. Further, although the school does not offer majors, students can tailor

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 School Top Industry for 2016 Graduates % Entering the Industry

Chicago Booth Financial Services 36.0%

Columbia Business School Financial Services 36.9%

Cornell Johnson Financial Services 32.0%

Dartmouth Tuck Consulting 36.0%

Duke Fuqua Consulting 32.0%

Harvard Business School Financial Services 28.0%

Michigan Ross Consulting 32.2%

MIT Sloan Consulting 30.5%

Northwestern Kellogg Consulting 32.6%

NYU Stern Consulting 35.3%

Stanford GSB Finance 31.0%

UC Berkeley Haas Technology/Telecom 38.8%

UCLA Anderson Technology 28.3%

UPenn Wharton Financial Services 35.1%

UVA Darden Consulting 38.0%

Yale SOM Consulting 30.8%

Most Common Pre-MBA Industry (Class of 2018)

Chicago Booth Consulting 21%

Columbia Business School Financial Services 25%

Cornell Johnson NA NA

Dartmouth Tuck Consulting 20%

Duke Fuqua NA NA

Harvard Business School Consulting 15%

Michigan Ross Financial Services 20%

MIT Sloan NA NA

Northwestern Kellogg Financial Services 22%

NYU Stern Financial Services 26%

Stanford GSB Investment Management/Private Equity/Venture Capital 20%

UC Berkeley Haas Consulting 22%

UCLA Anderson High Tech 26%

UPenn Wharton Consulting 23%

UVA Darden NA NA

Yale SOM NA NA

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Top Industries: 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 Michigan Ross

Consulting 32.2% 30.9% 34.1% 32.8% 31.9% 27.6% 26.2% 24.8% 24.7%

Technology/Telecom 20.4% 17.6% 14.6% 14.3% 14.8% 11.0% 12.2% 11.8% 10.8% Services

Financial Services 13.6% 7.5% 9.0% 12.0% 7.4% 9.8% 8.5% 5.0% 10.2%

Consumer Packaged 9.8% 11.0% 11.7% 9.4% 11.0% 9.5% 10.3% 11.1% 9.0% Goods

Health Care 6.8% 2.6% 1.5% NA 2.5% 2.4% NA NA NA

Computers/Electronic NA 2.0% 5.2% 3.4% 2.7% 3.6% 4.1% NA NA Products

their coursework, particularly in the second year, to meet personal objectives. Lastly, Ross’s general man-

agement focus is perhaps reinforced most acutely through the previously mentioned seven-week MAP, in

which teams of four to six students work on current, real-world problems for a wide range of companies.

Ross’s Office of Career Development (OCD) fields questions about recruiting, provides workshops on job

search techniques, organizes on-campus recruiter events, and manages job postings and interview sched-

ules. According to the OCD’s 2016 employment report, approximately 70.2% of Ross’s 2016 graduates se-

cured their jobs through on-campus or school-facilitated recruiting (68.7% for the Class of 2015, and 71.4%

of the Class of 2014). A second-year student we interviewed spoke very highly of the office’s process with

regard to on-campus recruitment, responsiveness, and overall concern for students’ career development,

saying, “If you go to them with questions, they will get back to you, but you should expect to put in a solid

effort when it comes to the job search process.”

As evidenced by the school’s 2016 employment report, recruiters at Ross will find a diversity of interests

across the Ross student body. While the school graduated its fair share of consultants (36.1% accepted

jobs with a consulting function) and finance professionals (21.6%) in 2016, the marketing/sales function

accounted for 18.3% of job acceptances, and an aggregate 14.2% of the class accepted offers in the func-

tional areas of general management (6.5%), operations/supply chain management (4.7%), and strategic

planning (3.0%). Geographically, Ross students come from and later return to all parts of the United States,

including the Midwest, where the largest percentage—35.4%—of Ross’s 2016 graduates found work, and

the West, where 24.2% accepted positions. Of the Class of 2016, 7.7% found jobs outside the United States,

with most of these students accepting positions in Asia (5.6%).

Alumni can continue to make use of OCD services long after graduating from Ross. The school’s graduates

can post a full resume and streamlined profile on the Ross alumni resume database, which is viewed by top

companies around with world with whom the OCD has relationships, such as Amazon, Eli Lilly and Company,

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 and Google. The alumni career services Web site also provides resources related to career search strate-

gies and staying current in one’s profession.

6. Alumni Base: Opportunities to Engage

The size and depth of a school’s alumni base may be important to you as you Some schools boast seek to break into a specific field or region/country. Some MBA programs sizeable alumni have had large classes for many years and can therefore boast sizeable networks, while alumni networks, whereas other schools may have pockets of strength in others have pockets of particular parts of the world or in certain industries—or can claim a smaller strength in particular but tighter-knit and more dedicated alumni network overall. For example, regions or industries. Dartmouth Tuck has a smaller absolute number of alumni than most top U.S. schools but has repeatedly been touted as having the highest rate of annual alumni giving, thanks to its very dedicated graduates.

Alumni Base

Schools are listed in order from largest alumni base to smallest within each category.

NYU Stern, UPenn Wharton, Harvard Business School 75,000 to 100,000

Northwestern Kellogg 50,000 to 75,000

Chicago Booth, Michigan Ross, Columbia 25,000 to 50,000 UC Berkeley Haas, UCLA Anderson, Stanford GSB

MIT Sloan, Duke Fuqua 10,000 to 25,000 UVA Darden, Cornell Johnson

Tuck 10,000 Yale SOM or fewer

0 25,000 50,000 75,000 100,000

Note: Some schools include MBA program graduates only in their alumni total; other schools may also include alumni from their part-time, executive, doctoral, and/or other programs, so totals may not be directly comparable.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Although acquiring detailed breakdowns of a school’s alumni base is sometimes difficult, you may want to consider whether the school you are targeting has alumni clubs in your chosen professional area (i.e., some schools have industry-specific alumni groups) or preferred post-MBA location. Furthermore, if you are determined to live in a particular city/country/region after graduating, then earning your MBA in or near that area, if possible, may be a good idea, so that you can more easily connect with local alumni while you are in school—particularly if you want to pursue a niche professional area and do not expect to participate in on-grounds recruiting. Of course, technological developments have greatly facilitated outreach, meaning that alumni are no longer a flight or long drive away, but are now just a phone call, email, text, or even Skype session away.

Ross boasts more than 45,000 alumni living in 90 countries. Alumni clubs are active in 24 cities in the United

States and 25 cities internationally. In addition, Ross graduates can participate in affinity clubs, including

the Black Business Alumni Association. Alumni club events range in scope from the Annual Congressional

Breakfast and Silent Auction hosted by the Ross Club of DC—which in 2016 welcomed U.S. Representative

Tom Price (who has since been appointed as the Secretary of Health and Human Services) as keynote and

benefitted the club’s Scholarship Program—to the monthly Entrepreneurship Meetups in Palo Alto, hosted

by the San Francisco Bay Area Alumni Club.

Lastly, one should not underestimate the power of the larger Ross alumni network, which includes Uni-

versity of Michigan undergrads (Michigan’s Bachelor’s in Business Administration program ranks highly in

surveys of undergraduate business school programs) as well as professionals from the university’s other

graduate schools. Michigan’s living alumni total more than 575,000, and mbaMission’s conversations with

Ross students indicated that not only are the business school’s alumni responsive and helpful in career

networking, but graduates of the university’s other schools are, too.

Membership in the Alumni Advantage program provides Ross’s graduates with exclusive benefits, including

online courses and access to University of Michigan library databases, livestreaming events at the school,

and #ROSSTALKS, a speaker series that takes place in cities across the world.

7. Facilities: Shaping the Academic/Social Experience

When contemplating an MBA program, do not overlook the school’s facili- If a school has not ties. Renovations, upgrades, and new construction are all regular occurrenc- updated its facilities in es on school campuses these days, as some programs increase their square recent years, perhaps footage while others unify disparate areas or refresh existing spaces. Some none were needed or schools boast on-campus housing or elite athletic facilities, others have es- the school has invested tablished new green spaces and meeting rooms, and still others have refur- in other aspects of its bished or added classrooms, theaters, libraries, and other such resources. program instead.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Keep in mind, though, that just because a school has not updated or added to its facilities in recent years, this does not mean that its offerings are outdated or subpar; the lack of updates may simply be because none have been needed or the school has invested in other aspects of its program instead. A campus visit is always the best way to evaluate firsthand what a school has to offer, but we nonetheless dedicate this space to a discussion of the facilities available at this particular program.

In early 2009, the business school at the University of Michigan completed construction of a new facil-

ity, which was funded by a $100M gift in 2004 from real estate tycoon Stephen M. Ross (BBA ’62). Because

of this generous gift, the business school was renamed in his honor. Measuring 270,000 square feet, the

building was designed to support the school’s action-based learning approach. In addition, the admin-

istration regularly consulted a student committee to gather input on how best to design the space. One

of the student-led initiatives was to create a building that supports the school’s commitment to sustain-

ability—the Ross building is LEED certified and supports the school’s commitment to sustainable living,

incorporating recycled building materials and eco-friendly energy and water systems. In February 2014,

the university’s governing board approved plans for a $135M addition to the Ross building, again funded

mainly by alumnus Stephen M. Ross. The project, which was completed in October 2016, encompassed

renovations, the demolition of one building, and the development of a completely new one named the Jeff

T. Blau Hall (after donor and alumnus Jeff T. Blau [BBA ’90]). The construction added 179,000 square feet

to the campus, including study areas, classrooms, and offices. The new building features nine new class-

rooms, two workshop spaces, and space for the many centers and institutes of the school to work together.

At the (now renovated) Ross building’s center is the Davidson Winter Garden, a three-story, glass-enclosed

public space used by students and faculty alike. In our conversations with second years, the Winter Garden

was described as being like an indoor quad—allowing students to gather and study or to socialize year

round, just as they would otherwise do outside, but in a temperate setting, shielded from Michigan’s win-

ter snow and cold winds.

The building’s other notable features include the Blau Auditorium (which seats 500), the Seigle Café (of-

fering a wide variety of foods, from sushi to sandwiches to Indian curries), the Jane and Dan Och Fitness

Center (for exclusive use by Ross students, faculty members, and staff) and more informal meeting areas,

which offer ample space for student gatherings. Each of the 12 state-of-the-art, auditorium-style class-

rooms has two adjacent group-study rooms to support the team-based learning model. Five additional

classrooms have flexible configurations to facilitate a variety of hands-on learning endeavors. Important-

ly, the building features the latest in technology, such as plasma screens in group study rooms and video

conferencing capabilities, to enable more effective communication among students, professors, and the

administration, as well as with the school’s external corporate and nonprofit partners—particularly those

who participate in MAP.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 We asked students about the building’s role in campus life at Ross, and the athletic facilities it offers

earned high praise. One second year noted that the fitness center is an “amazing perk that everyone

loves!” And another second-year student asserted that the gym “is one of my favorite things about our

new building; it’s just so nice and never crowded.”

The Kresge Business Administration Library at Ross closed in May 2014 to accommodate the construction

of the new building. During the construction project, students were able to use the larger University of

Michigan library system—the ninth largest academic research facility in the United States—which includes

19 separate libraries and more than 13 million volumes. The updated Kresge Library opened for students

in late 2016 and was redesigned to no longer house print collections. An expert staff now guides access to

e-books and electronic journals.

8. Rankings and Reputation: Important Metrics or Arbitrary Measures?

MBA rankings should always be viewed with a healthy dose of skepticism, The various surveys given that they can fluctuate dramatically from year to year and from publi- should and will cation to publication. For example, if you had relied on the Financial Times’ provide some context rankings to choose the Yale School of Management as your business school for your decision, but in 2011 because of the program’s position at number seven, you probably resist the temptation to would have been disappointed to see the school then slide down to number choose a school based 12 just one year later before rebounding to number nine the following year. on rankings alone. Similarly, if you had selected UC Berkeley Haas in 2004, when it was number

17 in Bloomberg Businessweek’s ranking, you would have been delighted to see the program rise to number eight in 2010 before it slipped out of the top ten again to number 13 in 2012.

Can an MBA program—which is made up of so many moving parts—really change so much in just one or two years? Furthermore, how can one reconcile that UVA Darden is in the third position (among U.S. programs) in The

Economist’s rankings but is 12th in the Bloomberg Businessweek survey, 14th in the U.S. News & World Report, and

16th in the Financial Times’ rankings—all at the same time? Or that Stanford GSB holds the fifth position onThe

Economist’s list and fourth in the U.S. News rankings, but is second in the Bloomberg Businessweek rankings and first in the Financial Times’ survey? Or that UPenn Wharton is number one according to the U.S. News rankings and number two in the Financial Times’ list, but only number six in Bloomberg Businessweek and number nine in The

Economist’s survey?

An MBA ranking that appears to be gaining in popularity, according to feedback we have received from candidates in recent years, is from Poets&Quants, which aggregates what it considers the top five MBA surveys—Bloomberg

Businessweek, The Economist, the Financial Times, U.S. News & World Report, and Forbes—to create a kind of com- posite ranking.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Of course, the various surveys should and likely will provide some context for your decision, but resist the temptation to choose a school based on rankings alone, because rankings may ultimately betray you—possibly even before you graduate.

One thing to keep in mind, particularly for international students, is that a school’s reputation domestically can be quite different from its reputation abroad. Years ago, mbaMission worked with an international candidate who was accepted into the MBA programs at Cornell Johnson and Dartmouth Tuck. When this individual shared the good news with his manager, his manager said, “I thought you would have gone to an Ivy League school like Princ- eton!” Of course, Dartmouth and Cornell are in fact Ivy League institutions, and Princeton does not even have an

MBA program—the manager’s reaction illustrates how possible misconceptions can arise. So, after considering an

MBA program’s strengths, you might factor in that some schools have greater brand power in certain parts of the world, especially if you plan to live and work abroad after you complete your studies.

We advise you to consider your MBA a long-term investment that will pay dividends throughout your life, and such an investment should be based on more than a one-time ranking. In fact, most MBAs who are five to ten years out of school are not even aware of what their school is now ranked. Perhaps more importantly, if you were to ask one whether the school’s position in the rankings has any effect on his/her career, the response would certainly be an impassioned “No!”

U.S. Ranking: 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 Michigan Ross

Poets&Quants NA NA 13 13 11 12 13 12 13 NA NA

U.S. News & 11 12 11 11 14 13 14 12 13 NA NA World Report

Bloomberg NA NA 13 10 9 [8] 8 [7] 7 [5] 5 Businessweek1

Financial Times NA 12 11 13 13 15 14 12 12 12 NA

The Economist NA NA 15 17 15 16 16 20 15 12 NA

1 Until 2015, Bloomberg Businessweek released rankings every two years (in November), so numbers in brackets represent carryover from the previous year’s ranking.

Though Ross fell slightly to 13th place in the 2016 Bloomberg Businessweek rankings from tenth in 2015,

overall, the school has consistently fared pretty well among leading business school programs; prior to

2016, it maintained a top-ten ranking in the Bloomberg Businessweek poll since that ranking was first pub-

lished in 1988. Notably, the school has often rated well in terms of both student satisfaction and recruiter

satisfaction. One first-year student with whom we spoke about Ross’s position in this prestigious MBA

ranking noted, “I do feel a higher ranking is in order based on the manner in which my needs and wants are

being met.”

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 We suspect that Ross’s absence from the top ten in The Economist’s and the Financial Times’ rankings is likely because the school is not as well known internationally. The school does stand within the top 20 in the United States on both, but fell slightly from 11th to 12th place domestically in the 2017 Financial Times survey, as well as from 20th to 23rd internationally. The program climbed two positions domestically— from 17th to 15th—in The Economist’s 2016 ranking and rose more notably internationally, moving from

27th to 21st. Poets&Quants ranked Ross 13th in 2016 and 2015.

Ross is also within the top 20 in the 2018 U.S. News & World Report survey, climbing one spot from 12th to 11th within the United States. In that publication’s specialty rankings, the school was included among the top ten in all of the following areas: production/operations (3), supply chain/logistics (4), accounting

(5), management (5), marketing (5), entrepreneurship (6), international (7), nonprofit (7), finance (9), and information systems (15). In addition, the Princeton Review’s 2017 survey of 294 MBA programs named Ross number six for Top Entrepreneurial Program, number seven for Best Green MBA, and number ten for Best

Campus Environment.

A 2011 article in the Monroe Street Journal, the business school’s student newspaper, notes that rankings tend to be much on students’ minds. The article details a question-and-answer session with then Dean

Alison Davis-Blake in which she explains that immediate changes in the rankings are hard to make, but that

“in the longer term, the school will improve if students interview well and demonstrate that they are good employees.”

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Poets&Quants (2016)

1 Harvard Business School

2 Stanford GSB

3 Chicago Booth

4 Northwestern Kellogg (tie)

4 UPenn Wharton (tie)

6 MIT Sloan

7 Dartmouth Tuck

8 UC Berkeley Haas

9 Columbia Business School

10 Yale SOM

11 Duke Fuqua

12 UVA Darden

13 Michigan Ross

14 Cornell Johnson

15 UCLA Anderson

16 UNC-Chapel Hill Kenan-Flagler

17 NYU Stern

18 UT Austin McCombs

19 Carnegie Mellon Tepper

20 Emory Goizueta

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 U.S. News & World Report (2018) Bloomberg Businessweek (2016)

1 Harvard Business School (tie) 1 Harvard Business School

1 UPenn Wharton (tie) 2 Stanford GSB

3 Chicago Booth 3 Duke Fuqua

4 MIT Sloan (tie) 4 Chicago Booth

4 Northwestern Kellogg (tie) 5 Dartmouth Tuck

4 Stanford GSB (tie) 6 UPenn Wharton

7 UC Berkeley Haas 7 MIT Sloan

8 Dartmouth Tuck 8 Rice Jones

9 Columbia Business School (tie) 9 Northwestern Kellogg

9 Yale SOM (tie) 10 UC Berkeley Haas

11 Michigan Ross 11 Columbia Business School

12 Duke Fuqua (tie) 12 UVA Darden

12 NYU Stern (tie) 13 Michigan Ross

14 UVA Darden 14 Yale SOM

15 UCLA Anderson 15 Carnegie Mellon Tepper

16 Cornell Johnson 16 Cornell Johnson

17 UT Austin McCombs 17 NYU Stern

18 UNC-Chapel Hill Kenan-Flagler 18 Texas A&M Mays

19 Carnegie Mellon Tepper 19 Washington Foster

20 Emory Goizueta 20 Emory Goizueta

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Financial Times (2017)1,2 The Economist (2016)1,3

1 Stanford GSB 1 Chicago Booth

2 UPenn Wharton 2 Northwestern Kellogg

3 Harvard Business School 3 UVA Darden

4 Columbia Business School 4 Harvard Business School

5 Chicago Booth 5 Stanford GSB

6 Northwestern Kellogg 6 Dartmouth Tuck

7 MIT Sloan 7 UC Berkeley Haas

8 UC Berkeley Haas 8 Columbia Business School

9 Yale SOM 9 UPenn Wharton

10 Dartmouth Tuck 10 UCLA Anderson

11 NYU Stern 11 Yale SOM

12 Michigan Ross 12 MIT Sloan

13 Duke Fuqua 13 Duke Fuqua

14 Cornell Johnson 14 NYU Stern

15 UCLA Anderson 15 Michigan Ross

16 UVA Darden 16 UNC-Chapel Hill Kenan-Flagler

17 Carnegie Mellon Tepper 17 Vanderbilt Owen

18 Georgetown McDonough 18 Cornell Johnson

19 Washington Foster 19 Emory Goizueta

20 UNC-Chapel Hill Kenan-Flagler 20 IU Kelley

1 Excludes international schools and reranks only U.S. schools.

2 The Financial Times ranks Michigan Ross 23 internationally.

3 The Economist ranks Michigan Ross 21 internationally.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 University of Michigan The Stephen M. Ross School of Business

Summary

In 1924, the Regents at the University of Michigan announced the establishment of the School of Business Admin- istration. Since then, the school has developed and matured into a leading MBA program, always holding true to the spirit of its initial leaders, who laid the groundwork for an innovative, hands-on approach. In 2004, Stephen M.

Ross (BBA ’62) donated $100M to the school, in part to fund the construction of a new building on campus for the program. At the time, his donation ranked as both the single largest gift ever given to a U.S. business school and the largest gift in the University of Michigan’s 190-year history; thus, the school was renamed in his honor. The program had been in need of updated facilities and technology, so “the gift reinvigorated the student body and faculty,” remarked an alumnus we interviewed. In January 2009, the building opened, boasting a state-of-the-art business education facility with tiered classrooms to facilitate student-to-student and faculty-to-student inter- action, 20 small group study rooms with wireless connectivity and video conference technology, and a top-notch fitness center.

From the John R. and Georgene M. Tozzi Electronic Business and Finance Center (Tozzi Center)—a simulated trading floor on campus—to the MAPs, Ross incorporates a hands-on approach into its curriculum. The school teaches that real-world problems are not solved in a vacuum, limited to just one business area, but that the impacts of business decisions are felt across and throughout an organization. The program therefore offers students a broad-based, multidisciplinary core curriculum in the first year, and then allows students to tailor their MBA experience in the second year to meet personal goals.

In our conversations with Ross students and alumni, two common threads emerged in descriptions of the school’s community. First, all with whom we spoke referred to the community as both collaborative and friendly. The word “humble” was also used several times to describe the student body. Ross was presented as striving to recruit a certain type of individual—one who leaves his/her ego at the door and comes prepared to learn and work alongside classmates both inside and outside the classroom. In fact, each student and graduate we interviewed referred in some way to the collaborative nature of the school’s community. According to a second year we interviewed, “You hear about it as a cliché, but Ross really is a collaborative place—everything from formalized help as part of the career-focused clubs to the informal, people go out of their way to help others.” Similarly, a first year described his classmates to us as “really collaborative and helpful.”

Second, all agreed that Ross students are passionate about their program and all things Michigan. From Go Blue

Rendezvous weekend for new admits to section shout offs in the sea of maize and blue in The Big House (Michi- gan’s football stadium) on football Saturday, the school appears to abound with spirit and enthusiasm for Michi-

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 gan and for the MBA program. “Go Blue!” is a phrase that is fondly exchanged among Michigan students and alumni around the world.

Lastly, Ross is part of a very large organization that offers numerous other top-ranked graduate school programs

(e.g., law, public policy, medicine, engineering). Although one could argue that this is also true at some of the Ivy

League schools, we learned that students at Ross can readily—and easily—access the resources of Michigan’s other graduate schools. In fact, on its Web site, Ross highlights its flexibility in creating joint degrees: more than

20 are offered in conjunction with the MBA, and the university even allows students to create any dual degree they may be interested in pursuing. In addition to the full-time MBA program, Ross offers a very well-respected Bach- elor’s in Business Administration program for undergraduates as well as part-time and executive MBA programs.

The Dean

In the spring of 2015, then Dean Alison Davis-Blake announced her plans of stepping down from the position at the end of her first five-year term in June 2016. “I have decided that I want to turn the focus of my professional service to the broader problems and opportunities facing universities,” Davis-Blake wrote in a school-wide memo. In the news release, Davis-Blake highlighted her accomplishments at the school, including raising global student partici- pation by 40%, launching the capital campaign with more than $210M raised at the time, and generating positive media coverage of the school worldwide. A search advisory committee for a new dean was formed July 2015, and the school announced in May 2016 that Scott DeRue was chosen for the position. DeRue was no stranger to Ross— at the time, he was a professor of management, the associate dean for the Executive Education program, faculty director of the Emerging Leaders Program, and director of the Sanger Leadership Center. He first joined the school in 2007 after serving as a lecturer at Michigan State University’s Eli Broad College of Business and working for such companies as Monitor Deloitte (then the Monitor Group) and Hinckley Yacht Company. DeRue earned numerous accolades for his work at Ross before even entering the consideration for the dean position—in 2012, for example, he received the Executive Education Teaching Impact Award and in 2011, Poets&Quants named him as one of their

“Top 40 Business School Professors Under 40.”

DeRue stepped in as the ninth Ross dean in July 2016. “Since 2007 when I joined the Michigan Ross faculty, I have come to cherish the commitment to excellence and collaborative culture that define this school,” DeRue said in the school’s announcement of his appointment. “Looking forward, I am thrilled to be working with our world-class faculty, staff, students, and alumni to build on that success and propel Michigan Ross into the future,” he said. His accomplishments at Ross prior to deanship include leading the creation of the new Alumni Advantage initiative and helping the Executive Education program reach its best performance in ten years.

The Ross Web site notes that the new dean is “committed to creating transformative student experiences” in his position, and in an interview with Poets&Quants, DeRue described his initial goals at Ross as “the continued investment in Ross’s faculty, the objective of creating transformational experiences for students, and a renewed

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 commitment and investment to the school’s global resources.” University Provost Martha Pollack expressed confidence in DeRue in a statement regarding his appointment, saying, “Under [his] leadership, the school will build on its already-impressive contributions to business education at every level and achieve even greater distinction.”

Indeed, no goal or obstacle as dean is likely to seem too large for DeRue—in 2013, he completed a successful ex- pedition to the top of Mount Everest.

Alison Davis-Blake, who was the first female dean in Ross’s history, set a goal of 40% women for new faculty hires at the beginning of her deanship and met that goal prior to her departure. In addition, in 2014, Bloomberg Busi- nessweek reported that among the top ten business schools in the country, Ross had the highest proportion of women who are tenured or are on the road to tenure—27% (40 faculty members). During Davis-Blake’s time at the school, the Ross Web site stated that global learning opportunities for students had seen a boost of 89%, while the school had also formed new partnerships with 17 universal programs.

In 2013, Davis-Blake unveiled a new strategic plan for the school based on input from the Ross community, em- bracing a mission that aims “to develop leaders who make a positive difference in the world,” declares the school’s

Web site. The strategic plan subsequently defines four key values: positive business practices, a boundaryless approach, analytic rigor, and action-based learning. “These four principles come to life in many different ways at

Ross, and collectively they define our unique identity,” Davis-Blake stated in a blog post http://rossblogs.type( - pad.com/deansblog/) that month, adding, “They are both our ethos and our roadmap.”

In a 2013 post on her blog, Davis-Blake detailed some specific goals of the plan, including greater integration between Ross research and curriculum, increasing analytic rigor in the classroom, and hiring 12 new faculty members in the following academic year. “We will continue to expand offerings related to each area of our new strategic plan,” she declared, “focusing on our distinguishing strengths in research and analytic rigor as well as our leading position as the world’s center for excellence in positive business, the most boundaryless business education globally, and premier school for action-based learning.” By April 2015, Ross had placed 30 lecturers and 25 faculty members on the tenure track—altogether making up 30% of the teaching faculty.

Professional Specializations

Consulting

Perhaps not surprisingly, given Ross’s general management and hands-on, problem-solving focus, approximately a third of the school’s students typically choose a position in the consulting industry upon graduation (32.2% in

2016, 30.9% in 2015, 34.1% in 2014, and 32.8% in 2013). With approximately 25 active faculty members and more than 20 course offerings, the strategy department at Ross offers a broad array of educational opportunities for

MBAs interested in this field. Further, the school’s MAP course is well suited for would-be consultants, allowing

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Ross students to basically act as external consultants for a company for a seven-week period during the first year, making recommendations at the project’s conclusion, just as one would do as an employee of McKinsey or Bain.

As described in the Curriculum section, MAP (the Multidisciplinary Action Program) is a full-time, hands-on assign- ment that takes place during the last seven weeks of students’ first year. Given the nature of the projects, which focus on helping organizations solve strategic issues, MAP appears to be a perfect training ground for students interested in consulting careers. Just as one would find within a major consulting organization, the program’s teams, advisors, and projects are cross-functional in nature.

In terms of extracurricular activities, would-be consultants will find several options to supplement their coursework. The Ross Consulting Club describes itself on its site as the largest professional club at Ross with more than

500 members, and the group’s mission is to help members develop the skills necessary to attain and succeed in consulting careers. To this end, the club hosts speakers from consulting firms, schedules visits to consulting offices, and offers case interview workshops, mock interviews, and case competitions.

Through Ross’s Community Consulting Club, students can put their skills to work assisting local nonprofit organizations with a variety of strategic initiatives. Approximately ten to 15 projects involving both MBA and undergraduate students are completed through the club each year. Past opportunities have included developing growth strategy for Arbor Hospice, finding a corporate sponsor base for Habitat for Humanity, and consulting on a fund- raising campaign strategy for the Ann Arbor Leaning Community.

Deloitte, McKinsey & Company, Accenture, Bain & Co. Inc., A.T. Kearney Inc., PwC, the Boston Consulting Group,

EY, and ZS Associates were listed among the school’s top hiring companies for full-time MBA graduates in 2016.

Entrepreneurship, Private Equity, and Venture Capital

At Ross, entrepreneurship and the Samuel Zell and Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies (the Zell

Lurie Institute) go hand in hand. The Zell Lurie Institute offers an array of resources for students interested in entrepreneurial endeavors. Housed within Ross, the institute was funded in 1999 with a $10M gift from University of

Michigan alumnus Sam Zell (BA ’63, JD ’66), a real estate executive, and the widow of Robert Lurie (Bachelor of Sci- ence in Engineering, Industrial and Operations Engineering Department ’64, MSE ’66), Zell’s University of Michigan classmate and long-term business partner.

The institute provides “curriculum, program initiatives, community involvement, and alumni outreach” for entrepreneurs at Ross, says its Web site, but its reach extends beyond the business school to other University of

Michigan graduate schools, including the Schools of Medicine and Engineering, where ideas and specialties are cross-fertilized. Through the Zell Lurie Institute, Ross entrepreneurs will find a list of ten professors who teach classes that have an entrepreneurship focus (plus eight from the entrepreneurial studies department), as well as a course selection and programming guide tailored to the needs of aspiring entrepreneurs. The list includes

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 more than 30 cross-functional courses, including selections from marketing, finance, strategy, and operations.

Examples of courses that have been offered in this study area include “Entrepreneurial Management,” “Global

Strategy,” “Commercialization of Biomedicine,” and “Writing for Entrepreneurs.”

Part of the Zell Lurie Institute’s funding is used to provide capital and support to students as they research, build, and launch new businesses while earning their degree—as well as in the years to follow. To kick off the academic year, the Zell Lurie Institute and the Entrepreneur and Venture Club cosponsor Entrepalooza, a symposium that brings leaders in the fields of entrepreneurship and venture capital to campus to discuss industry trends.

The 2016 Entrepalooza carried the theme of “Creativity through Entrepreneurship” and began with a keynote address by a co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s. The daylong event’s five workshops discussed the topics “Demystifying

Creative Process: Developing New Skills to Enhance Innovation, Collaboration, and Diversity,” “How to Build a Kill- er Team: Effective Leadership 101,” “Start a Business in the Arts? We’re That Crazy, and You Can Be Too!,” and “Your

Logo is Worthless.” Participants were also able to attend a lunch-and-learn session and a networking reception.

The 2015 event was themed “Entrepreneurship through the Kaleidoscope” and featured as its keynote speaker a BBC

World News lead anchor and author. Also speaking at the event were the founder of Sphinx Organization and the executive director of the Zell Lurie Institute, as well as numerous other participants who delivered TED-style talks.

One of the event’s highlights was the “un-conference,” a peer-to-peer discussion facilitated by university experts.

The Zell Lurie Institute also provides sponsorship and development seminars for students via the Michigan Busi- ness Challenge, a university-wide event comprising four successive rounds of team competition over four months.

Winners at the 2016 Michigan Business Challenge included the following:

Pryor-Hale Award for Best Business

PreDxion Bio (First Place, $25,000 award; Williamson Award for Outstanding Business & Engineering,

$5,000) – An immune response monitoring blood test.

Gaudium (Runner Up, $10,000 award; Best Written Plan, $2,000; Marketing Award sponsored by Mar-

keting Associates, $2,500) – A video game development company specializing in Anime-style games.

Social Impact Award

Kulisha ($15,000 award) – An environmentally friendly aquafeed company.

Through another initiative, Dare to Dream, students can apply for grants (of $500 to $5,000) for student start-ups at three critical developmental stages: business design, business assessment, and business plan. Winners of grants in 2016 include the creators of such innovations as Digital Face, which creates facial prosthetics for clini- cians, and Pedal Cell, a bicycle generator. Mingle ’n’ Match, a series of casual networking events that introduces entrepreneurs and potential colleagues to one another, is yet another of the institute’s offerings. Through the

Marcel Gani Internship Program, the institute works with start-up companies and venture firms that are interested

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 in hiring Ross students as summer interns. In some cases, financial assistance is provided to the hiring companies to alleviate the financial burden of taking on an intern and to encourage students to explore such opportunities.

Lastly, the Wolverine Venture Fund (WVF) conducts due diligence and then makes early- and later-stage investments in young companies. The WVF manages more than $7M of capital and has invested in more than 27 companies, according to Ross’s site. Students interested in joining the teams that review business plans and make investment decisions must apply for the positions. For the WVF, twelve to fifteen first-year students are selected by existing student members of the fund and by the managing director(s), who are faculty members, based on each applicant’s resume and a personal statement that addresses specific questions posed by the selection committee.

Existing student members of the Zell Lurie Commercialization Fund (formerly the Frankel Commercialization Fund) and the fund’s managing director (currently an Ann Arbor–based venture capital professional) choose six to ten first-year students and two to four second-year or evening students to become members. Interested students must submit a personal statement and a resume and demonstrate an interest in entrepreneurship and/or commercialization. Selected students serve on the fund for two years and are given the privilege of investing up to

$100K per entrepreneurial venture. In addition, in late 2009, Ross launched the Social Venture Fund, the nation’s first student-led impact investing fund, which Soojin Kwon, Ross’s director of admissions, described in a 2011 admissions chat as “a student-managed fund, and the students are learning how to invest in and manage sustainable for-profit enterprises that really address a societal need.”

The Center for Venture Capital and Private Equity Finance (CVP) at Ross directs entrepreneurship as it relates to the investment component of the school’s curriculum. Working closely with the Zell Lurie Institute, CVP strives to create a connection between the school’s entrepreneurs and the greater finance community through initiatives such as the annual Michigan Growth Capital Symposium and the Michigan Private Equity Conference. The Growth Capital

Symposium is a two-day, off-site event designed to bring financiers together with the “best of the Midwest” in new business and emerging technologies. The 2016 symposium involved 33 presenting companies, with a founding and managing partner at Plus Capital and a managing partner at Deerfield Management featured as the keynote speakers. The event also included company presentations, networking opportunities, and panel discussions. Panels covered such topics as “The Challenges of Medical Software Startups,” “Nurturing the University Start-up: Licensing and Venture Investment,” and “The Corporate Venture Capitalist Role and Goal in Healthcare Innovation.”

In 2015, the symposium attracted 32 prequalified Midwest companies seeking funding. The event featured the president and CEO of Ford Global Technologies and the CEO and co-founder of Uptake Technologies as keynote speakers. Panels explored the topics “VC Investment Trends and Opportunities in the Midwest,” “Cybersecurity:

Attracting Big Headlines and Even Bigger Valuations,” and “The Internet of Things.”

The Michigan Private Equity Conference provides an opportunity for aspiring MBA entrepreneurs to network with finance professionals and business leaders from all over the United States. The September 2016 event began with a golf outing before the actual conference got under way the next day, and a football game the day following the con-

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 ference. The conference featured a managing partner at Capital Z Partners and the director of athletics at the Uni- versity of Michigan as the keynote speakers. Panel discussions explored the themes “Deal Winning Strategies” and

“Today’s LP Mindset: Opportunities and Challenges in a Global Market.” A networking luncheon concluded the event.

At the October 2015 conference, the co-founder and managing partner of KPS Capital Partners, LP gave the keynote address, and panel discussions examined the topics “Private Equity Firms and Public Policy,” “Private Equity in China,” and “LP/GP: A Constantly Evolving Partnership.” The conference was preceded by a golf outing and a dinner reception, both of which provided attendees with access to representatives from investment banking and private equity firms from across the country.

Lastly, would-be entrepreneurs at Ross can choose from an array of student clubs and organizations that may be of interest, including the Entrepreneur and Venture Club, which provides networking and career development resources for students. The club states on its site that it offers members the opportunity to further “their educational and professional goals as prospective entrepreneurs and investors in new ventures.”

The club cosponsors Entrepalooza (a public symposium that attracts, on average, 300 entrepreneurs and venture capitalists and explores current issues and trends in the industry); organizes a Venture Capital Investment Com- petition; assists members with securing part-time jobs with local venture capital firms and start-ups; hosts a trip to the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas; and offers an Entrepreneur Consultants Program, in which student teams work with local start-ups as consultants, providing business plans, market research, and financial and strategic analysis.

Ross’s 2016 employment report notes that 0.9% of the school’s graduates (four students) were either starting or buying a business after completing the MBA program. This figure was 0.7% (three students) in 2015 and 1.2% (six students) in 2014.

Finance

Incorporating a hands-on component to learning wherever possible, Ross’s finance department offers a curriculum that blends largely traditional finance courses with those that are more specialized and tailored to today’s issues. In total, approximately 30 finance classes are taught by Ross’s more than 30 finance faculty members.

Recently, the finance department abandoned its traditional five career paths and introduced the Fast Track in

Finance (FTF) initiative. Students pursuing this initiative have two track options: in one, students qualify for the

“Advanced Financial Analysis” course and participate in a case-based “Valuation” course in the Fall B section of the first year of the MBA program. In the second option, students are required to take the “Valuation” course and take part in an online summer program.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Calling the initiative “highly selective,” the FTF Web site states that the “program offers the best of both worlds,” in that students can start taking classes in finance from their first day in the Ross program without having to sac- rifice any of the benefits offered by the school’s foundational core curriculum.

Of Ross’s 2016 graduates, 21.6% accepted positions with a finance function (up slightly from 21.4% in 2015, 18.4% in

2014, and 20.1% in 2013): 9.5% entered corporate finance, 6.8% investment banking, and 5.3% asset management.

In 2016, Citi was the primary employer in the area of finance at Ross (with 9 hires), and other firms listed as top hirers of the school’s MBAs that year include Bank of America Merrill Lynch (7), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (5), American

Express Co. (3), and Wells Fargo (2).

A distinguishing feature of Ross’s finance program is the John R. and Georgene M. Tozzi Electronic Business and

Finance Center (known as the Tozzi Center), which opened in 2003. The Tozzi Center is a hands-on learning facility that combines a mock Wall Street trading floor and a financial analysis classroom equipped with the latest tools, including live financial news wires, data, and research. The center also offers several workshops to teach students to use research databases such as FactSet and MSCI Barra.

Ross students can also gain hands-on finance experience through the Ross School of Business Maize and Blue

Endowment Fund, a student-managed fund of more than $300K that makes up a portion of the greater university’s endowment. Both undergraduate and graduate students can apply to serve as fund managers, for which the students can also earn academic credit.

Students interested in pursuing a career in finance can also take advantage of several Ross clubs dedicated exclusively to investing and/or financial engineering. These groups primarily provide members with resources and materials to assist with career development and job searches in specific areas of finance. Such clubs include the

Finance Club, the Michigan Real Estate Club (see the Real Estate section for more information), and the Ross In- vestment Management Club.

Through the Finance Club, students can participate in the Wall Street Forum, an annual weeklong trip to New York

City that includes presentations by and networking opportunities with professionals at major financial institutions. The club offers a similar trip to Chicago, in addition to treks to San Francisco, Hong Kong, and Charlotte.

According to its Web site, the Finance Club focuses on helping its members via three specific “Silos”: corporate finance, investment banking, and private wealth management/sales and trading. Second-year club members lead each Silo.

The Finance Club also hosts the Corporate Finance Forum, which aims to expose first-year students to potential career paths within various finance-related industries. This annual event has welcomed representatives and sponsorship from such firms as Dow Chemical Company, PepsiCo, Target Corporation, and American Express.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 The Ross Investment Management Club states on its site that its primary focus is “to help members recruit for and obtain investment management and research positions at mutual funds, hedge funds, asset management firms, and investment banks.” The club hosts a number of events each year, such as the annual Ross Investment Compe- tition, in which teams from top business schools pitch investment options to a panel of industry expert judges. At the October 2016 competition, teams from nine MBA programs participated in the two-day event, whose panel of judges featured representatives from American Century Investments, INCORE Capital Management, and Catalyst

Capital Advisors LLC.

General Management

Although no specific general management department exists at Ross, students can look to the subject areas of business administration, management and organizations, and strategy for a solid foundation in general management. Required courses such as “Corporate Strategy” and “Leading People and Organizations”—along with the seven-week MAP—provide an underpinning of business fundamentals throughout the core portion of the curriculum. In the core course “Corporate Strategy,” which first years take in Fall A, students explore the skills required of a general manager to understand complex business situations. The class is designed to provide a foundation for the more functional courses first years will take later in the year. In Fall B, the “Leading People and Organizations” course gives students a framework for understanding complex institutional issues and helps them develop the skills necessary to effectively manage organizations, lead teams, and create high-performing groups that thrive in the competitive global arena.

Of the 57 credits required to graduate, at least 47 must come from business administration courses. Classes listed under business administration range from “Green Development” to “International Business Immersion,” which in- volves a three-part exploration of a specific target country’s business environment. Students first study the target country in the classroom, then travel to the location over winter break, and finish by analyzing their conclusions in group projects. “Business Strategies for the Base of the Pyramid” explores the condition of the world’s poor and uses ideas gleaned from strategy, international business, and nonprofit management to develop BoP (Base of

Pyramid) enterprises. Such ventures are designed to apply traditional market-based measures for growth to work toward alleviating poverty.

Courses offered through the departments of management and organizations and of strategy might also interest future general managers. With 39 faculty members, the management and organizations department provides students with an understanding of organizational practices, leadership, and human resources. Nearly 20 electives cover a range of topics, such as “Bargaining and Influencing Skills: Negotiation Strategy in a Global Economy,” “Inter- personal Dynamics in Management,” and “Navigating Change: Skills and Strategies for Consultants and Managers.”

In the course “Developing and Managing High-Performing Teams,” students undertake a self-assessment of their leadership style and receive feedback from other students in the class. Then, using this amassed information, the students take steps to improve their effectiveness as team leaders through both group and individual exercises.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Rather than focusing on functional areas such as finance or accounting in isolation to enhance specific areas of a firm’s performance, the strategy department views organizations as a whole to improve their overall effectiveness.

Twenty-five faculty members comprise the strategy department, which consists of nearly 25 electives, including

“Global Strategy,” “Mergers, Acquisitions, and Corporate Development,” and “Strategic Management of Alliances.”

The General Management Club also supports students interested in this function. The group notes on its Web site that a good general manager is “like a symphony orchestra conductor, who holds rehearsals, hires and retains the talent, conducts during performances, and composes music that the orchestra will play during future engage- ments.” By organizing and sponsoring events throughout the academic year, such as fireside chats with company representatives, mock interviews, a career trek to Chicago, and company visits, the club works to help prepare its members for this complex role.

The club also sponsors an annual, two-day General Management Conference. The November 2016 event was themed “Managers of the Future” and sponsored by companies such as ExxonMobil and DaVita. Representatives from Republic Services and Cummins served as the conference’s keynote speakers. As in 2015, two career track panels explored the topics “Internal Corporate Strategy” and “Business2Business.”

With the theme “Business Leadership in Changing Times” and representatives from Beckman Coulter, The Dow

Chemical Company, and Cummins as its keynote speakers, the November 2015 event included two career track panels, discussing the topics of “Internal Corporate Strategy” and “Business2Business.” The event concluded with a career fair.

In 2016, 6.5% of Ross’s graduates accepted positions that had a general management function (6.4% in 2015, 8.2% in 2014, and 8.3% in 2013), with another 4.7% entering roles in operations/supply chain management and 3.0% taking jobs in strategic planning. In 2015, these two latter function areas accounted for 6.4% and 1.7% of graduates, respectively, although the first was listed as operations/engineering management.

Health Care

Ross introduced a health care management concentration in 2013, which the school declares is “perfect for students looking to combine interests in business and healthcare” on its Web site. Drawing on the school’s abundant offerings in this area, the concentration gives students the freedom to pursue a specialized focus in the business of health care by taking advantage of related electives and extracurricular activities. Although the Class of 2015 was the first for whom declaring this official concentration has been an option and 2.6% of students entered positions in the health care industry, 1.5% of the Class of 2014 did so as well. This figure went up for the Class of

2016, of which 6.8% accepted positions in the health care industry. While there was no figure listed in the 2016 employment report for the pharmaceutical/health care products industry, 2.6% of the Class of 2015 accepted jobs in these areas (2.9% in 2014 and 2013).

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Students may opt into the health care management concentration in their first year by supplementing Ross’s core

MBA curriculum with health care–related electives and learning opportunities. Qualifying for the concentration requires a minimum of 12 credits earned via such courses as “Healthcare Markets and Public Policies,” “Business of Biology,” and “Comprehensive Healthcare Strategies.” In addition, three of these required credits must be taken as an approved class offered by one of the following outside of Ross: the School of Public Health, the School of Information, the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, the School of Social Work, the Law School, or the School of Nursing.

Through the William Davidson Institute (see the International Business section for more on this offering), the school’s Healthcare Initiative supports globally focused research projects across three areas of expertise: private sector supply chains for global health, public sector medicine and vaccine supply systems, and global market dynamics and forecasting. Projects in these areas often dovetail with the business school’s MAP opportunities, allowing students to engage with partnering organizations and work on industry-specific research. Students can also gain hands-on experience working for an international health care organization by applying for the institute’s

Global Impact Internship program (also discussed in the International Business Section). Internship projects that align with the institute’s Healthcare Research Initiative are among those given preference for the program.

The Healthcare and Life Sciences (HLS) Club helps prepare students for careers in all health care–related sectors through a number of resources and events, including a weekly newsletter, career workshops, a recruiting guide, and interview tutorials. The club also organizes the annual Ross Global Healthcare and Life Sciences Sympo- sium, which typically welcomes more than 250 students, faculty, and professionals “to explore how the health care industry is adapting to the changing expectations and standards of individuals in the U.S. and around the world,” states its Web site. The September 2016 symposium explored the theme “Disruptive Healthcare Practices:

Challenging the Status Quo” and welcomed a group vice president of DaVita as the keynote speaker. Three panel discussions explored the topics “Big Data and Privacy,” “Private Sector Responses to Public Health Issues,” and

“Policy, Risk Sharing, and the Global Marketplace.” The event also featured networking possibilities, a career fair, and a health care start-up panel.

The September 2015 symposium, themed “Rising Costs and Declining Reimbursement: Emerging Trends in the

Healthcare and Life Science Industry,” featured a keynote address by the general manager of DaVita VillageHealth.

A series of breakout panel discussions were dedicated to such topics as “New Approaches to Reimbursement,”

“New Business Models for the Development of Innovative Therapies and Devices,” and “Emerging Trends in the

Commercialization of Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices.” The event concluded with a career fair.

Health care and pharmaceutical companies that recruited members of Ross’s graduating class in 2016 include

Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare, DaVita Inc., Humana Inc., and Medtronic Inc.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 International Business

From the required “Competing in the Global Business Environment” class, which can be taken in the first or second year, to the many international MAPs to strategy electives such as “Business in Asia” and “Global Strategy,” those interested in international business will find a variety of resources at Ross to help them prepare for their chosen career. As then Dean Davis-Blake noted in her 2010 interview with the Monroe Street Journal with respect to emerging markets, “The landscape is changing really rapidly. For business schools, the norm used to be that everyone comes to the United States. … I think there is a trend toward more people having interests that drive desires for initial placement outside the [United States].”

Indeed, 7.7% of Ross’s Class of 2016 accepted positions outside the United States, with 5.6% going to Asia, 0.6% to both Europe and South America, and 0.3% each to Australia/New Zealand, Mexico, and the Middle East. The percentage of graduates entering internationally based positions seems to fluctuate a bit from year to year, with

6.4% having done so in 2015, 6.6% in 2014, and 11.2% in 2013.

The William Davidson Institute (WDI) at the University of Michigan may also be of interest to those who wish to incorporate more of an international component into their business school studies. WDI was created in 1992 through a grant from Guardian Industries Corporation and named in honor of that organization’s late chairman, president, and CEO, William Davidson. WDI has previously described itself on its site as “the only institution of higher learning in the United States that is fully dedicated to understanding and promoting actionable business and public policy approaches to addressing the challenges and opportunities in emerging market economies.” The objective of the educational and research programming is to develop knowledge and capability that help improve the effectiveness of firms and social welfare in developing economies.

In its efforts to integrate education, research, and practical project-based work, and in collaboration with some of its corporate and nonprofit partners, WDI organizes several MAPs for Ross students, usually partnering with organizations in emerging economies. These projects allow Ross students to work full-time with international organizations to address real-world business issues, including developing business plans, restructuring marketing programs, and analyzing new business opportunities in such places as India, Rwanda, and Kosovo.

WDI also sponsors internships for University of Michigan graduate students through partnerships with businesses and nonprofits in emerging-market economies. Through its Global Impact Summer Internship program, WDI provides participating students with international business experience and partner organizations with the benefit of student expertise and assistance. Internships are of two types: (1) WDI-Partnership Global Impact Internships, which are internship opportunities identified by WDI, and (2) Student-Initiated Internships, for which students identify the project themselves and then apply for funding from WDI. In lieu of a summer salary from the student’s employer, fellowships of up to $10,000 and a $1,500 airfare reimbursement are granted to students selected for internships through either program.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 A notable opportunity for students interested in international business is the University of Michigan’s annual In- dia Business Conference, which serves as a campus-wide platform to “engage in a thought provoking discussion about various aspects of India and its relationship with the United States as well as with the global economy,” states the event’s Web site. The latest and eighth annual conference, offered in March 2017, featured a keynote address by the Indian minister of state for civil aviation, in addition to panel discussions titled “VC in India: Get- ting Funded and Growing Companies Across Geographies,” and “Role of Businesses in Social Impact.” Panelists and speakers included the chief marketing officer of SC Johnson, the chairman of TVS Capital Funds, the CEO and founder of Seclore, and the founder of LuminAID. Students could also participate in the C. K. Prahalad Case Com- petition, in which teams presented their findings to a panel of judges.

The March 2016 conference featured CEO Sessions with leaders from Myntra and Tata Consultancy Services, as well as panel discussions and Q&As titled “Make in India,” “Issues in the Indian Economy (From Vajpayee Rule to the

Present Day),” “Managing in India’s Institutional and Legal Environment,” “Building Brands in India,” and “Technol- ogy Entrepreneurship in India.” The C. K. Prahalad Case Competition was also offered.

The previous conference, hosted in 2014, was themed “The Four Trends Impacting Global Business that Every

Leader Needs to Know.” The president and CEO of Epic Sciences, a former cabinet minister of India, and the CEO of

Mahindra GenZe were among the featured speakers. Panel topics included “Healthcare in India,” “Businesses En- tering New Markets: Context Matters,” “Digital Education in Emerging Markets: University of Michigan as a Pioneer in Online Education,” and “Creating the Next Generation of Global Leaders.”

Another significant opportunity for students with an interest in international business is the school’s Asia Business

Conference, which—in its 26th year in 2017—purports to be the longest-running student-organized conference in

North America that focuses on Asian business. The 2017 conference featured the Hong Kong commissioner for economic and trade affairs to the United States as the keynote speaker, and panels concentrated on such topics as

“Consulting,” “Finance,” “Japan,” and “Sustainability.” Panelists included representatives from such companies as

Boston Consulting Group, Greenfield Consulting Group, AGacquisitions Group, Ford Motor Company, and Maybank.

The previous conference, held in 2015, drew approximately 400 attendees—roughly twice as many as in 2014—and featured 31 speakers participating in 11 panels. Singapore’s ambassador to the United States delivered the conference’s keynote address. The discussion panels focused on different countries (e.g., Japan, China, India), industries

(e.g., transportation, marketing, entrepreneurship, technology), and careers, with participants representing such companies as Whirlpool Corporation, the Lincoln Motor Company, A.T. Kearney, Deutsche Bank, Otsuka Pharma- ceutical, PRIME Research, Boeing, and Qualcomm Incorporated.

The 2014 event, themed “Discover the Possibilities, Shape the Future,” featured a former United States Ambas- sador to Vietnam as keynote and offered a series of nine panels on China, Japan, entrepreneurship, India, ASEAN, energy, technology/manufacturing, Korea, and finance. Panelists represented a variety of organizations, including

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 CVC Capital Partners of Greater China, the Singapore Economic Development Board, Mazda Motor Corporation, Lan- zaTech, the Heartland Mobile Council, the Asian Development Bank, General Motors, A.T. Kearney, and Tractus Asia.

Finally, second-year students may gain further international experience by participating in the MBA Global Semes- ter Exchange Program. The program offers the choice of either a half or a full semester abroad and allows students to pursue specific academic interests in an immersive, cross-cultural environment. Ross maintains exchange opportunities with the following partner institutions:

• Australian Graduate School of Management, Sydney, Australia

• China Europe International Business School, Shanghai, China (half semester only)

• Copenhagen Business School, Copenhagen, Denmark

• ESADE Business School, Barcelona, Spain

• ESSEC Business School, Paris, France

• HEC Paris, Paris, France

• Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong

• IESE Business School, University of Navarra, Barcelona, Spain

• INCAE Business School, San Jose, Costa Rica (half semester only)

• Indian School of Business, Hyderabad, India

• Keio Business School, Yokohama City, Japan

• London School of Economics, London, England

• Nanyang Business School, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (half semester only)

• Norwegian School of Economics, Bergen, Norway

• Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, Netherlands (half semester also available)

• Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China

• Universidad Argentina de la Empresa, Buenos Aires, Argentina (half semester only)

• University of St. Gallen, St. Gallen, Switzerland

• Warwick Business School, Coventry, England (half semester only)

In a 2012 Dean’s Blog post, Davis-Blake detailed her plans to expand Ross’s global programs, saying, “We’ve conducted a complete inventory of our global activities and discovered that, while we are doing more than it might first appear, we can integrate our efforts more effectively and go deeper than before. In 2012, we’ll focus on academic and research activities, as well as [on] alumni and corporate outreach. This includes custom executive education, in-country student projects, and new knowledge creation.” Emphasizing the “global nature of the Ross community” in a later post, in 2014, Davis-Blake further elaborated on the school’s international outreach efforts, saying, “One of the key concepts we want to make sure each Ross student understands and experiences is that business is a global enterprise. Success in business requires strong relationships and multicultural understanding.”

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Marketing

The marketing curriculum at Ross appears robust, combining a strong research base with the school’s charac- teristic hands-on approach to learning. “Our professors use concepts from psychology, economics, statistics, neuroscience, and engineering to tackle the crucial issues of today’s fast-moving markets,” says the school’s Web site, which also asserts that “working with award-winning teachers and researchers, [students will] be prepared to handle a wide array of marketing challenges.” In 2016, 18.3% of Ross graduates accepted positions with a marketing/sales function (9.8% brand/product management, 5.6% general marketing, 1.8% in sales, and 1.2% in other marketing), while 21.4% did so in 2015 and 14.9% in 2014.

The school’s 27 marketing faculty members are well published, and perhaps not surprisingly, Ross seems to focus on melding these experts’ cutting-edge research with classroom simulations and/or field experience to fit the

“thought and action” component of the school’s educational approach. The department offers 17 courses, the majority of which appear to require work outside the classroom. The quality of Ross’s marketing department—and of the students it trains—has not gone unnoticed by large, multinational packaged goods and consumer product companies, including Procter & Gamble, General Mills, Johnson & Johnson, and PepsiCo, who all recruit at and hire multiple candidates from Ross each year.

The Yaffe Center for Persuasive Communication at Ross, funded in 1996 by alumnus Fred Yaffe (BBA ’54, MBA ’58), is dedicated to research and education in the field of persuasive communication—an area strategically important for marketing-oriented individuals, though equally useful for those pursuing other fields. Yaffe established the center to help educate and prepare students for marketing careers, and as part of this goal, the center sponsors certain marketing courses. It also funds primary research, commissions case studies, brings industry speakers to campus, and occasionally hosts topical industry conferences that attract practitioners from around the globe.

Speakers in the center-sponsored Distinguished Speakers series have in recent years included executives from

Keebler, Procter & Gamble, Sundberg-Ferar, the Detroit Lions, EnvisionIt, Kaleidoscope Product Development,

Carnevale Interactive, Crisp Media, Specific Media, Digitas, and the Kellogg Company. The series also encompassed the seventh annual Yaffe Center Digital Marketing Event (previously called the Social Media Workshop), which had the theme “Hands-On Experience and Stories From the Real World” and explored on the evolvement of digital marketing with speakers from such companies as Procter & Gamble and Google.

Ross’s Marketing Club boasts more than 300 members and is one of the larger student organizations on campus.

The group states on its site that it strives to “equip students with the necessary tools and coaching to excel in networking and interviewing.” In addition to mock interviews and case study preparations, the club organizes one-day visits to more than 20 companies in cities from coast to coast and hosts the two-day Marketing Symposium, which includes a social hour for networking, mock interview sessions, panel discussions led by industry experts, and a mini career fair. Some well-known companies that have participated in the symposium and company visits include

ConAgra Foods, Unilever, Johnson & Johnson, Ford, General Mills, American Express, Frito Lay, and Nestle S.C.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 The November 2016 symposium, themed “Dialogue in the Digital Age,” featured speakers from Owens Corning and SC Johnson. Participants were able to attend company breakout discussions, mock interviews, panels, and a concluding career fair.

The 2015 symposium was themed “Big Data: Leveraging Constant Information in Marketing,” and the senior vice president of social engagement at Doner, the senior vice president of U.S. dairy foods at Land O’Lakes, and the chief marketing officer of Kimberly-Clark Corporation served as keynote speakers. The event’s two panel discussions were titled Marketing to Consumers Who Have Access to Unlimited Information” and “Turning Big Data In- sights Into Actionable Marketing Initiatives.”

Other clubs at Ross that may be of interest to students who intend to pursue a marketing path include the Luxury

Goods and Retail Club and the Entertainment and Media Club. Established in 2003, the Luxury Goods and Retail

Club focuses on all types of retailing, from mass electronics to luxury apparel, as well as a broad range of business functions, from supply chain management to retail consulting and marketing. The club hosts educational presentations for members, including “The Fundamentals of Retailing,” as well as networking lunches for students, during which first years meet and mingle with second years who spent their summers working in the retail industry.

The Luxury Goods and Retail Club has also organized a New York City retail trek (a one- to two-day event involving visits to organizations such as Saks and L’Oreal) in addition to luncheons and presentations hosted by companies that interview on campus. Treks in recent years have featured visits to such brands as BCBG Max Azaria and DKNY.

The group has also arranged a West Coast Forum trek to San Francisco to visit retailers such as GAP, Levi’s, Wil- liams Sonoma, and The North Face.

Like the Luxury Goods and Retail Club, the Entertainment and Media Club provides networking opportunities, career treks to both New York City and Los Angeles, and professional development workshops on media-related topics that may be of interest to students pursuing marketing.

Operations/Manufacturing

Given Ross’s proximity to Detroit, one might expect a very strong tie between the business school and the au- tomobile industry. Numerous General Motors and Ford employees have certainly passed through Ross’s halls in both the full-time and executive MBA programs, but no particular emphasis is placed in the curriculum on the motor industry or manufacturing, and indeed, Ross offers an array of classes and resources that provide ample training for operations careers in any industry. The Tauber Institute for Global Operations (discussed later in this section) is also available to help prepare students for long-term careers in global operations.

Of Ross’s 2016 graduates, 4.7% entered positions with an operations/supply chain management function, after

6.4% did so in 2015, 5.2% in 2014, and 3.4% in 2013. From an industry perspective, 9.8% of the class accepted jobs in consumer packaged goods, 5.6% in manufacturing, and 1.2% in transportation. The following companies known

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 to hire graduates in this area recruited and hired Ross students in 2016: Amazon, Microsoft Corp., Kraft Heinz Co.,

Whirlpool Corp., General Motors Corp., Procter & Gamble Co., and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

The Tauber Institute for Global Operations has its roots in the Michigan Joint Manufacturing Initiative (MJMI), an interdisciplinary program of the university’s College of Engineering and the business school. MJMI was renamed the Tauber Institute in 1995 after Michigan alumnus Joseph Tauber (BBA ’56, MBA ’63) donated $5M to ensure that the program’s mission was sustainable. That mission is to be “the recognized leader in operations by knowledge generation, innovative education, and impacting practice,” states the institute’s Web site. Tauber is an “overlay” or “degree add-on” program that requires additional coursework. Ross students can apply for admission to the

Tauber Institute in conjunction with their Ross application. If the candidate is admitted to Ross, he/she is then reviewed for entry into Tauber; candidates interview separately for Ross and Tauber.

All Tauber MBA students must complete the courses “Topics in Global Operations” and “Manufacturing and Supply

Operations,” as well as a paid summer team project with a sponsoring company. In addition, students are required to fulfill flexible elective requirements and participate in four facility tours at such corporations as General Mo- tors, Microsoft, and UPS. Tauber students are also required to participate in Leadership Advantage SM, a series of workshops on the everyday challenges operations professionals face, covering soft skills such as strategic networking as well as hard skills, such as specialized, operations-focused software training.

To fulfill the team project requirement, all institute participants are offered guaranteed, paid, team-based summer internships with corporations with whom Tauber has relationships. Through Tauber, students can network with company executives, some of whom are on the institute’s advisory board. A second year with whom we spoke noted that “the guarantee of the internship takes the pressure off, but you will use the time you would have devoted to recruiting to keeping up with Tauber’s additional academic requirements.” This student explained that

Tauber also provides the opportunity to “learn from a different group of students and develop another set of friends and colleagues” while at Ross. A reportedly popular course offered through Tauber has been “Integrated

Product Development,” in which a team of students from Ross, the College of Engineering, and the School of Art and Design develop and launch a product from the market research stage to the design and manufacture stage, in competition with other student teams.

The 34 faculty members in the school’s technology and operations department offer a total of 27 courses in the area as part of the full-time MBA curriculum. Students will find opportunities to supplement their education outside the classroom as well, particularly through the Operations Management Club, which focuses on developing leaders in operations and encourages an appreciation for the need to work cross-functionally within an organization. The club promotes and shares operations management knowledge for its members through activities such as lunch and learns events, mock interviews, and panel discussions.

For the past seven years, in conjunction with the Tauber Institute, the club has hosted the Global Operations Con- ference, which brings together students and industry leaders to discuss and debate current ideas and issues in

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 the complex world of global operations. The 2016 conference focused on the theme “New Frontiers in Operations” and offered keynote addresses from the global supply chain visibility leader at The DOW Chemical Company; the vice president of information, data governance, and health informatics at IBM; and the vice president of operations at Stitch Fix. A series of panel discussions explored such topics as “Big Data and Predictive Analytics,” “Glo- balization through Operations,” and “Evolution of Operations in Healthcare.” Panelists represented such companies as General Motors, Boeing, and Cardinal Health.

At the 2015 event, which was themed “Disrupting the Competitive Landscape through Operations,” the senior vice president of integration at Eaton, the co-founder and executive vice president of Llamasoft, and the general manager of additive technologies at GE Aviation served as keynote speakers. Panel discussions welcomed representatives from Deloitte, Microsoft, and Amazon, with such topics as “Creating Extreme Industrial Innovation,”

“Focusing on Corporate Social Responsibility Throughout the Supply Chain,” “Exceeding Customer Expectations in an Increasingly Competitive Environment,” and “Managing Global Risk in a Complex Supply Chain.”

Real Estate

Given that Stephen M. Ross, the school’s namesake, is one of the most successful real estate developers of his time, we would be remiss if we did not highlight the resources available at the school for students interested in this field. For starters, students will find five dedicated real estate classes at Ross, including “Real Estate Development:

Fundamentals,” “Real Estate Law,” “Real Estate Finance and Investment” (I and II), and “Real Estate Essentials.”

Few Ross graduates go into the real estate industry—although the school’s 2015 and 2014 employment reports did not offer any percentage at all for this area, 0.3% of the Class of 2016 accepted jobs in the industry. However, the

Michigan Real Estate Club is still quite active, providing its members with educational and professional networking opportunities that will help them in their job search while they pursue their MBA, as well as after graduation. The group also assists members by maintaining an online job opportunity board, and hosts panel discussions on a variety of industry-related topics with such speakers as principals from Walton Street Capital and Kohn Pedersen Fox.

When applying to the Ross MBA program, candidates can simultaneously apply to the school’s Real Estate De- velopment Certificate Program, which focuses on sustainable metropolitan development and educates students about ways in which developers can improve quality of life for those who live in areas affected by their projects and lessen the environmental impact when designing and building tomorrow’s communities. The program requires nine additional hours of coursework at the University of Michigan’s Horace H. Rackham School of Gradu- ate Studies. The program allows for eight hours of “double counting” in the 17-credit-hour certificate, so a Ross student would complete the required 57 MBA hours and then an additional nine hours at Rackham. Participants receive a Real Estate Development Certificate designation at graduation, in addition to their MBA.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Social Entrepreneurship

Ross students interested in social entrepreneurship can tap into a number of resources at the business school as well as elsewhere within the larger University of Michigan community. For one, several opportunities for dual degrees are available for Ross students. The Frederick A. and Barbara M. Erb Institute for Global Sustainable En- terprise (known simply as the Erb Institute) is a joint partnership between Ross and Michigan’s School of Natural

Resources and Environment. The institute fosters professional education, public outreach, and scientific scholarship in support of sustainability, particularly related to the business and industrial community.

Candidates applying to Ross who have a deep interest in environmental issues can apply for acceptance to the institute’s MBA/MS program. Applications must be submitted to both Ross and the School of Natural Resources.

The MBA/MS is a three-year degree that integrates coursework in business with that in environmental science, with the goal of educating future corporate executives on ways companies can incorporate environmental impact awareness and sustainability into their day-to-day business activities. Students who do not enter the MBA/MS program but have an interest in this business area can enroll in such environmentally focused classes as “Strate- gies for Sustainable Development I: Competitive Environmental Strategy” and “Systems Thinking for Sustainable

Development and Enterprise” in the second year of the MBA program.

In addition, students have the option of earning a dual MBA/Master’s in Public Policy through the Gerald R. Ford

School of Public Policy; candidates interested in this degree must apply separately to both Ross and Ford. All Ross students are able to use resources and take electives at Ford during their second year. On the Erb Institute Web site, one will find a list of almost 100 course offerings not only from Ross, but also from other schools within the larger university—such as the School of Natural Resources and Environment, the Ford School, the College of Engineering, and the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning—that frequently are of interest to Erb students.

The Center for Social Impact is a major resource for Ross students interested in social issues. The center states on its Web site that its mission is “to prepare and inspire leaders to solve complex social challenges.” Its focus areas include social innovation, nonprofit and public management, and social enterprise and entrepreneurship.

The center also hosts the Board Fellowship, which allows selected students to gain experience in nonprofit organization management and board governance via workshops and special events, as well as by serving on a board committee and working on organizational team projects.

In addition, the Center for Social Impact partners with a Detroit-based organization to host the annual Social

Impact Challenge. Participants grapple with a real-life strategic challenge, and the winning team claims a $2,500 cash prize. The 2017 challenge focused on the economic development of Flint, Michigan. In 2016, participants worked on the redevelopment of a historic area with partners the Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy and Detroit PAL.

The center also offers MBA students sponsored consulting internships via its Impact Corps Internship Program

(formerly Domestic Corps), providing selected individuals with an approximate salary of up to $10,000 over the course of a ten-week internship.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Ross also boasts an active Net Impact chapter (Ross Net Impact, or RNI), which has been recognized numerous times by the national Net Impact organization: as a Gold Chapter (a designation awarded to the most active chapters) every year from 2012 through 2015; as a Chapter of the Year in 2006; and as the Large University Chapter of the

Year in 2010. In 2012 and 2009, it was named the runner-up Chapter of the Year and for three consecutive years (2006 through 2008) was chosen as National Chapter of the Year, reflecting the club’s large and enthusiastic membership.

As part of its mission, RNI helps identify appropriate courses for students who aspire to become social entrepreneurs and frequently brings executives to campus whose companies prioritize sustainability. Past speakers have included the founder and president of Honest Tea and the vice president of sustainability for Procter & Gamble.

The Net Impact Conference is an annual, two-day event that attracts students from Net Impact chapters at top- ranking business schools across the country. RNI members typically travel to the conference each year, though the 2010 event—themed “2020: Vision for a Sustainable Decade”—was held at Ross and drew 2,500 attendees representing 129 schools in 14 countries and 39 states. Keynote speeches were presented on the topics “Corporate

Responsibility 2020: The Future of Sustainable Business” and “Green the Ghetto: And How Much It Won’t Cost Us.”

More recently, nearly 2,500 participants traveled to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for the October 2016 conference, which was themed “Make History.” The keynote addresses were delivered by such notables as the president and

CEO of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.; the CEO of Etsy; and a special assistant to the President at the White House, Attend- ees were able to choose from more than 80 discussion panels hosted by 300 speakers.

The November 2015 conference drew approximately 2,400 people to Seattle, Washington. With the theme “Game

On,” the event featured as keynote speakers the founder and CEO of KIND Snacks; the group president of Star- bucks Coffee U.S. and Americas; and the CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Discussions examined such topics as “The Key to Making Nonprofit and Corporate Alliances Work,” “Sustainable Cities From the Inside Out,”

“Making Social Impact the New Professional Norm,” and “Climate Change Hits Home: Adapting to the New Normal.”

Other offerings included workshops, networking salons, and story series lectures.

The University of Michigan’s Social Innovation Summit, sponsored by the Nonprofit and Public Management Center and hosted by Ross, presents another opportunity for students to explore the intersection of entrepreneurship and social impact. The summit has not been hosted in the last few years; however, the event took place in 2014 with the theme “Finding Purpose, Delivering Impact.” The event featured the CEO of Imperative as the keynote and welcomed guest speakers from such organizations as the Michigan Urban Farming Initiative, the City of Detroit, and Focus: HOPE. Two discussion sessions explored multiple topics, including “Equity in Detroit’s Food and Water

Systems,” “Investing in Social Impact in Detroit,” and “Aligning Personal Values and Social Innovation.” Students were also given the opportunity to collaborate with the event’s keynote speaker in creating a social innovation action plan.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 In 2013, the summit had as its theme “Exploring Social Funding Methods” and commenced with a rapid-fire profile session in which industry leaders presented an overview of social funding methods. A keynote address from the co-founder and CEO of Kiva followed. A series of expert panel breakout sessions then explored the topics “Foun- dations and Impact Investing,” “Microfinance and Crowdsourcing,” “Social Venture Funding and Philanthropy,” and “Government, Banks, and Agencies,” with representatives from such organizations as the Ann Arbor Area

Community Foundation, the Kresge Foundation, and the United Way of Washtenaw County. The day ended with a networking reception.

The Ross community sadly lost a shining light in 2010 when Paul and Ruth McCracken Distinguished University

Professor of Corporate Strategy C.K. Prahalad passed away unexpectedly. In a 2011 admissions chat, Director of

Admissions Kwon stated that in the wake of the professor’s untimely death, the school would be “developing an initiative around his vision for creating inclusive capitalism. So there will be activities to focus on his research and his commitment to try to get businesses to do more with less, for more people.” Indeed, the school launched the

C.K. Prahalad Initiative in the spring of 2011, offering two components honoring the late professor: a MAP project focusing on the relationship between profit and social value creation and a fellowship for students to work on action-based learning projects.

Notable Professors and Unsung Heroes

Aneel Karnani (https://michiganross.umich.edu/faculty-research/faculty/aneel-karnani): Aneel Karnani is a member of the strategy department at Ross and teaches courses in both the core and elective curriculums. All the students mbaMission interviewed about Karnani lauded his innovative way of teaching, which, one said, keeps you “at the edge of your seat.” Karnani is known to challenge his students constantly, forcing them to rethink their views and opinions. His areas of interest include corporate competitiveness—particularly in the context of companies that are growing in emerging economies—and the role of the private sector in the fight against poverty.

Karnani has received the Teaching Excellence Award, voted on by the Ross student body, on eight occasions, including 2014, 2015, and 2016. In 2011, Karnani published his first book, titledFighting Poverty Together: Rethinking

Strategies for Business, Governments, and Civil Society to Reduce Poverty (Palgrave McMillan).

Gautam Kaul (https://michiganross.umich.edu/faculty-research/faculty/gautam-kaul): Gautam Kaul, the Fred M.

Taylor Professor of Business Administration and Professor of Finance at Ross, teaches both core curriculum courses and electives. In addition to referencing his intellectual capabilities, students with whom mbaMission spoke described Kaul as extremely friendly and having a great sense of humor. He is also known for his willingness to help students both inside and outside the classroom. In 2005, in direct response to student interest, Kaul developed the course “Finance and the Sustainable Enterprise.” In return, students recognized his efforts and awarded him the Sustainability Pioneer Award and a plaque in his honor on one of the chairs in the main auditorium of the university’s School of Natural Resources and Environment. Kaul has been nominated for an MBA Teaching Excel- lence Award, (which is voted on by the student body) numerous times, and won the award in 1996, 2006, 2009, 2011,

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 and 2013. He is also the 2009 recipient of the Victor L. Bernard Leadership in Teaching Award from the university’s

Center for Research on Learning and Teaching. More recently, Kaul has gained followers online with classes on the college course Web site Coursera, where he offers such classes as “Principles of Valuation: Risk and Return” and

“Valuation: Alternative Methods.”

Nejat Seyhun (https://michiganross.umich.edu/faculty-research/faculty/nejat-seyhun): Known for his work in breaking the story on backdating options for corporate executives in 2006, Nejat Seyhun was praised by a second- year student with whom we spoke not only for his technical expertise but also for his willingness to regularly share his thoughts on current events with students. In fact, Seyhun, who is the Jerome B. and Eilene M. York Professor of Business Administration and a Professor of Finance, takes the first ten minutes of each class to engage in a dialogue on what is making news in finance and how it could affect his students—whether it be the government bailout packages or new regulations. Added the second-year student, these thoughts “make the class interesting and relevant.”

Social/Community Life

The Arb: Nichols Arboretum, known as “the Arb,” is located approximately 12 blocks from the University of Michi- gan’s Central Campus, not far from Ross. The “Arb” offers space for an abundance of outdoor activities and provides a great place for students to jog, throw around a Frisbee, study, or even sled during the winter. In an email to mbaMission, an administrator at Ross reported that students from nearby Residential College present “Shake- speare in the Arb” performances in the arboretum in the summer.

Football Tailgates: College football is big in Ann Arbor, and Ross students appear to enjoy the season with real fervor. Tailgates precede nearly every game, and some tailgate parties are even sponsored by corporations and serve as mini recruiting events. At these sponsored tailgates, corporate representatives—who are usually Michi- gan alumni—network with Ross students. And generally, the more important the game, the more senior the executives representing the sponsor company! We should also mention “The Bus”—a literal school bus painted to look like a Michigan football helmet that is owned by roughly 50 Ross students and has been passed down from class to class each year since the early 2000s. Originally conceived as a way to centralize tailgating for the Ross community, “The Bus” is present at every home game as well as at least one away game each season, serving as home base for spirited tailgate parties. Even the dean has been known to visit tailgates at “The Bus”—which has its own

Facebook page! A first-year student with whom we spoke noted that “Bus tailgates at home football games” were not to be missed, saying they are “Lots of fun, and you get to hang out with the whole class.”

MBA Games: As the wrap-up to the Ross Leadership Initiative (incoming students’ weeklong orientation), roughly a week after classes start, MBA Games matches section against section in a series of field competitions. Although these games take place early in the academic year, the new class of students has already spent orientation and the first week of classes together, so sections have developed initial bonds, and the competition is fierce. The

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 games kick off with Shout Off, a cheering competition between sections that is sponsored by SC Johnson. In addition to bragging rights for the rest of the winning section’s time at Ross, a financial gain is also on the line: the winning team wins funds for a section happy hour. Sections then compete in a variety of sports activities that have been organized by second years, including soccer, an obstacle course, and tug-of-war. These events also are sponsored by companies who donate generous prizes, such as free massages and gift cards for the winning teams.

MBgAy Party: Ross Out for Business hosted its first school-wide party, called MBgAy, in 2009. The event is typically held at a club in Ann Arbor and features a drag fashion show followed by dancing. Profits are split between a local charity and the club’s scholarship fund for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered students. A first year we interviewed just days after the February 2011 party (which raised $1,000 for the aforementioned scholarship fund) described the event as a “must see—for everyone.” The 2017 event benefited the Ozone House, a shelter located in Washtenaw County for homeless and runaway youth in the area. In 2016, a portion of the proceeds raised went to support the Jim Toy Community Center in Ann Arbor, which supports gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, and allied residents in the area. In 2015 and previous years, the event benefited the Trevor Project, a national organization that provides suicide and crisis intervention for LGBTQ youth.

Ross Follies: Not to be missed, the Ross Follies is an entertaining evening of student-produced and -performed theatrical skits held at the Michigan Theatre during winter term. Attended by Ross students, faculty members, and staff, the show is a chance for first and second years to show off some of their talents—anyone can participate in the production, even members of the faculty and administration. The 2017 Follies show was themed “Dirty Thirty” and featured such skits as “Real FACT Group Leaders of Ann Arbor,” “Be an MBA1 Angel,” and “Section 6 Rumors.”

The 2016 show marked the 30th anniversary of the Follies and had the theme “What the Follies.” That year’s skits included “Harbaugh Takes the Core,” a parody on Jim Harbaugh, the head football coach at the University of Michi- gan, and “Ew!,” a take on the similarly named sketch on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

In 2015, the show was themed “This. Is. Follies.” The show highlighted musical and dance performances, such as an

“All About That Case,” a parody of the hit song “All About That Base,” in addition to video performances, including

“Hotel Room Interviews.” In 2014, the Follies was titled “Face the Music (and Tune Out)” and featured Bollywood and Bangra dances by members of the Ross Indian Subcontinent Association and “Big Music Hits” by the performance group rossMob. Other Follies themes from years past have included “Imported from Ann Arbor” and “It’s

Always Funny in Follydelphia.” Inside jokes, spoofs on life at Ross, and heartfelt acting ensure that the show is enjoyed year in and year out.

RSA Winter Formal: Think “prom.” Hosted off campus at a hotel each year and attended by approximately two- thirds of the student body (first- and second-year students alike), this is the Ross Students Association’s big winter party. Dressed in tuxedoes and gowns, students temporarily put aside their case work, forget about interviews, and party in style. The 2017 Winter Formal, which took place in January, was held at the historic Fillmore

Theatre of Detroit, a building that originally opened in 1925 as a movie house.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Thursday Happy Hour at Scorekeepers (Skeeps): Ross students gather for happy hour, sponsored by the Ross Stu- dents Association (RSA), every Thursday at Scorekeepers, or “Skeeps,” a watering hole near campus. This sports bar and grill offers cheap drinks, good music, and lots of TVs—especially important when a game is on. The casual atmosphere offers an opportunity for students to “unwind, free their minds from assignments and corporate recruiting, and socialize with classmates,” asserts the RSA’s Web site. Happy Hours are occasionally frequented by faculty and often co-sponsored by Ross clubs and organizations.

Academic Summary

Curriculum: The curriculum at Ross is mostly rigid in the first year but entirely flexible in the second. Further, room for two electives is scheduled into the first-year curriculum, and students have the option of waiving a core course

(by proving their competency in that area), which then allows them to take another elective in the first year to better prepare for recruiting season. Ross offers nearly 100 elective courses each term. In addition, ten hours of electives can be taken outside Ross at other schools within the University of Michigan.

Ross’s first-year core curriculum consists of nine classes plus MAP and is standardized; three additional elements are also required for graduation but can be completed at any point in the two-year MBA program. The first-year schedule is as follows:

Fall A

• “Applied Business Statistics”

• “Applied Microeconomics”

• “Corporate Strategy”

• “Principles of Financial Accounting”

• Communication Competency Requirement

Fall B

• “Financial Management”

• “Leading People and Organizations”

• “Managerial Accounting” (can also be taken in Winter A)

• “Marketing Management”

• Communication Competency Requirement

• Optional business elective or degree requirement

Winter A

• “Managerial Accounting” (can also be taken in Fall B)

• “Operations Management”

• Communication Competency Requirement

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 • Optional business elective or degree requirement

Winter B

• Multidisciplinary Action Project

In their second year, students are largely free to take only the courses they choose, provided they fulfill the 57 credits (27 of which may be taken as electives; electives can be 1.5, 2.25, or 3.0 credits) and three additional requirements needed for graduation. The three additional requirements are (1) the “Competing in the Global Busi- ness Environment” strategy course, (2) successful completion of a course in business law, and (3) fulfillment of the

Communications Competency Requirement. Students can choose from among nine elective classes that satisfy the business law requirement. A student can submit a request to waive this obligation based on academic experience or professional designation, but students cannot test out of this requirement.

The Communications Competency Requirement, which is designed to ensure that graduates leave the program with excellent managerial communication skills, can be fulfilled by passing a written exam. The exam is case- based and typically offered in July or August. Students otherwise fulfill the Communications Competency Require- ment by passing one of five specific elective classes.

Grade Disclosure Policy: The school does not prohibit students from disclosing grades to recruiters. Students can generate unofficial transcripts for interviews, if needed.

Majors: Ross does not officially designate or offer majors, but it does recommend that students select elective courses in a way that balances broad perspectives on business and more in-depth, industry-specific coursework that will best support the student’s career ambitions.

Research Centers and Institutes:

• Center for Nonprofit and Business Management

• Center for Positive Organizations

• Center for Social Impact

• Center for Venture Capital and Private Equity Finance

• China Initiatives

• East Asia Management Development Center

• Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise (joint partnership with the School of Natural Resources and

Environment)

• Global Student Experiences

• India Initiatives

• Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations

• John R. and Georgene M. Tozzi Electronic Business and Finance Center

• Mitsui Life Financial Research Center

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 • Office of Tax Policy Research

• Paton Center for Research in Accounting

• Samuel Zell and Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies

• The Sanger Leadership Center

• Tauber Institute for Global Operations (joint partnership with the College of Engineering)

• Technology and Business Innovation Forum

• William Davidson Institute

• The Yaffe Center for Persuasive Communication

Teaching Method: Ross does not adhere strictly to either case method or lecture. Professors are free to select the format that best fits the subject matter being conveyed. However, all departments focus on “action-based learning” in all classes.

Admissions Basics

Note: Any specifics discussed in this section related to application requirements were valid for the 2016–2017 admissions season (unless otherwise noted). Be aware that requirements for any subsequent admissions cycles may differ.

Always check with the school directly to confirm all application details.

As part of its outreach effort, Ross has developed a Student Ambassador program; these ambassadors are students who blog about their Ross experience and are reachable (via email) to answer applicants’ questions about school, life in Ann Arbor, and specific career paths. Through the Ross Web site, applicants can select from nearly

200 students to contact based on industry, geography, career focus, or major. Some Student Ambassadors also maintain blogs about their Ross experiences, lead school tours, host prospective students for class visits from

September through March, and make themselves available for Café Chats (informal one-on-one sessions for prospective students to get to know a Ross student firsthand) around the globe during their winter break, study abroad, or MAP.

In addition, Ross’s student newspaper, the Monroe Street Journal, has interviewed Director of Admissions Soojin

Kwon several times about a variety of topics, from how the committee goes about building a class to her thoughts on life at Ross. Kwon also keeps an active blog, through which she provides application tips, updates prospective students on the process, and offers updates on decisions (http://michiganross.umich.edu/admissions-blog).

Application Process: Applications for each round are processed all at once, beginning immediately after each application deadline. Applications are randomly assigned to and reviewed by an admissions committee member for a “first read.” At this stage, an applicant is grouped into one of three categories: (1) move to second read and invite to interview, (2) move to second read and consider for interview, (3) remove from further consideration. If a candidate is placed into one of the first two categories, a different admissions committee member then reads

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 the application in the second review. Interview invitations are extended simultaneously with or after the second review. The second reader makes a pre-interview decision on the basis of the application material. Once the applicant completes his/her interview, a third reader reviews the interview report and file and then renders a post- interview decision.

The committee discusses all post-interview decisions on a weekly basis, and evaluations are calibrated during this review. After all decisions have passed through the admissions committee review, Kwon reviews each one, adjusts decisions in the context of the entire applicant pool, and submits the results to the associate dean for degree programs for final approval. Applicants are able to access final decisions online on the posted notification date for each respective round, though admitted students can expect a phone call from a member of the admissions committee a day or two before the notification date.

Of the decision-making process at Ross, Kwon wrote in a 2011 blog post: “You might think it’s as easy as upload- ing a decision file and flipping a switch, but it’s not that simple. There are many behind-the-scenes processing and coding activities that need to take place to ensure that all decisions are posted accurately.” Kwon continued,

“Decisions are not about selecting qualified candidates. … Decisions are really about creating the right mix of backgrounds, experiences, and goals among our students while preserving our quality and culture. It’s not an easy task when the applicant pool is strong.”

Admissions Rounds: Ross has three application rounds. Submitting an application before the deadline confers no advantage for the candidate. Typically, the admissions committee will fill approximately 90% of the class from the first two rounds. In her exclusive interview with mbaMission, Kwon explained that the admissions committee wants candidates to apply when they feel that their applications are at their best—applicants should not rush to submit by the first round. However, waiting until Round 3 is not ideal, because scholarship decisions are primarily made in Round 1 and Round 2. In addition, international applicants are encouraged to apply in Round 1 or Round 2 to ensure their visas can be processed appropriately.

GMAT/GPA Cutoffs: Ross has no GMAT score or GPA cutoffs; however, the admissions committee considers each applicant’s highest total score and reviews the breakout between the quantitative and verbal scores. The committee generally recommends that candidates retake the test until they achieve a score within the school’s middle

80% range, at least, which for Ross’s Class of 2018 was 650–750.

TOEFL/PTE: Ross accepts only the Internet-based TOEFL. The school will accept the Pearson Test of English (PTE) in lieu of the TOEFL.

Word Limits: Admissions committee members do not count words or cut off candidates’ essays, but they expect candidates to adhere to the word-limit guidelines provided.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 International Quotas: Ross does not have any specific quotas with regard to country or industry. However, the admissions committee strives for diversity among the school’s international students. Typically, international students make up 30%–35% of each class and come from dozens of countries. Of Ross’s Class of 2018, 31% were citizens of countries outside North America.

Younger Candidates: The average age of Ross students was 30 for the Class of 2016. Ross has no official requirement regarding applicants’ number of years of work experience, yet the admissions committee notes that most admitted students have at least one year of professional experience. With all applicants, regardless of the extent of their work experience, the admissions committee is primarily interested in learning how the candidate has in- fluenced his/her organization(s) over the course of their employment, whether that spans one year or ten. Further, comments made by members of the admissions committee in various online chats indicate that for candidates whose years of work experience are limited, as well as for those with an above-average number of years in the professional realm, explaining why they want an MBA now and why Ross is the best program for them is particularly important.

Extracurriculars: The Ross application does not ask applicants to provide a list of their extracurricular activities.

In a 2010 admissions blog post, Kwon explained why: “This was a conscious decision based on our observations over the past many years that: (1) not all cultures and industries encourage or accommodate extracurricular activities; (2) many applicants included awards and activities that were ‘beyond the expiration date’ (i.e., were from high school or college); (3) many applicants felt compelled to provide a laundry list of activities that often didn’t gel with the rest of their application; and, (4) lists were often ‘padded’ (e.g., when we added up the amount of time that applicants said they engaged in an activity on a weekly basis, it occasionally exceeded their full-time jobs, which made the [admissions committee] wonder, ‘Do these people never sleep or did they forget to do their math?’).”

However, adding that “we want to know that the applicants we admit will be engaged members of our community, not just in the classroom, but outside as well,” Kwon explained that candidates can instead “include an ‘extracurricular activities and honors’ section” in their resume or “address it in one of the essays—either the ‘what are you most passionate about’ or the optional essay.”

Recommendations: Ross asks candidates to provide one letter of recommendation, preferably from a direct su- pervisor. The admissions committee discourages applicants from sending any additional letters.

Campus Visits: The Ross Visit in Person program provides a tour of the Ross facilities, an opportunity to meet with students and Student Ambassadors, and the chance to attend a class (only on Mondays and Thursdays).

Interviews: Interviews are mandatory for admission for all candidates and are by invitation only, even for reapplicants. The admissions committee does not target a specific percentage of applicants to interview, but historically, approximately 40%–50% of applicants are interviewed each application season. Interviews are granted on

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 a rolling basis within each round as applications are processed. The admissions committee assesses each candidate’s GMAT score, GPA, and work experience but also focuses on recommendations and essays, and specifically interviews when confirmation is needed of an applicant’s “fit” with Ross’s culture and potential to contribute to the Ross community as a student.

Interview questions are based solely on the information in the applicant’s resume, not the entire application packet, meaning that interviewers have not read the candidate’s essays or other portions of his/her application.

Although not “make or break,” interviews are intended to confirm what the candidate has shown in the rest of his/ her application; applicants are encouraged to prepare for their MBA interview as they would for a job interview.

In a 2015 post on the Michigan Ross Admissions Director Blog, Kwon offered the following tips to candidates preparing to interview with the school:

1. Make your answers clear and succinct. This is an important skill. But don’t come across as scripted.

2. Answer the questions that are asked. This will differentiate the scripted interviewees from those who

aren’t. It’ll also demonstrate listening and thinking skills.

3. Do your research. Know why Ross, why XYZ career (pre- and post-MBA).

4. Don’t agonize over how you can differentiate yourself, or the fact that you work in a non-business

field. If you tell your unique story, and follow Tips 1–3, you’ll go a long way towards making a positive

impression.

Waitlist: Ross’s waitlist is not ranked. Candidates who are waitlisted are re-reviewed in subsequent rounds in the context of the class’s overall composition, at which point they may be accepted, held on the waitlist, or denied. In a 2012 admissions blog post, Kwon explained how and why some candidates find themselves on this list, saying,

“There are two main reasons for being placed on the waitlist: (1) you had good academics, work experience and personal experiences, but there were many other candidates who promised to bring the same thing to the table as you did; or, (2) you had good work and personal experience, but there wasn’t enough evidence in your academic record to give us confidence that you wouldn’t struggle in our program.”

The admissions committee is open to learning about any changes or improvements to an applicant’s candidacy (e.g., new GMAT score, promotions, additional community service, coursework) that occur while he/she is on the waitlist.

Financial Aid: Ross offers both need- and merit-based scholarships, and all applicants to the school are considered for both as part of their general application.

Reapplicants: Reapplicants who apply within one year of their original application date are allowed to submit an abridged application, which includes an updated resume, a new application form, one recommendation, and the fee. The recommendation letter can be from an original recommender but should be updated. The reappli- cant should also provide a detailed cover letter outlining how he/she has spent the previous year and what the

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 candidate has done to strengthen his/her candidacy. Submitting one of the current year’s application essays is optional. All deadlines are the same for reapplicants as for first-time applicants, and reapplicants are likewise required to interview, if invited. Those reapplying more than a year after their previous application must submit an entirely new application.

University of Michigan (Ross) Essay Analysis, 2016–2017

In 2014, the admissions committee at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan asked applicants to share—in two separate essays—their greatest points of pride in their professional life and in their personal life.

Last year, Ross left the decision of whether to focus on a professional theme or a personal one up to the candidate. And now this year, the school is requesting that applicants discuss their proudest moment exclusively in their personal life. This prompt is rather paradoxical in that it is simultaneously narrow and broad. How so? The narrowness is in the word count. You are limited to just 400 words, which is challenging. Writing something that is both concise and powerful is difficult, but the result often has a much stronger impact than if you had had no limits. As the old saying goes, “If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter.” The broadness lies in the open-ended nature of the prompt, given that the only restriction on content is that you not discuss something from your career. Your professional aspirations are the focus of the school’s second essay question, though it allows you even less space in which to convey your points—only 250 words. If you are unsure about how to make the most of these limited opportunities to impress the Ross admissions committee, continue reading our essay analysis…

What are you most proud of outside of your professional life? How does it shape who you are today? (up to 400 words)

First, we should start with some semantics. We have already said that this essay is broad, but you may have read the prompt and thought, “Great, I can tell a single story using just 400 words. How broad is that?” Sure, if you are

“most proud” of a stand-alone experience or accomplishment, you can definitely explore it in full in this essay, but you are not actually limited to one story. You might instead take a thematic approach, showing that you are most proud of a particular trait or value, which will enable you to present several anecdotes or experiences that relate to and illustrate that trait/value. So, maybe you are most proud of having had the audacity to put on a one- man play in a fringe festival, for example, or perhaps you are proud of your willingness to take personal risks, as indicated by your one-man play, your week-long solo camping excursion in the deep woods, and your many trips across the country to face off against other pit bosses in barbecue competitions. Either approach can work.

The specific example—or series of examples—you offer is not as important as trulyowning the example(s) via your narrative. We strongly advise against starting your essay with a statement like “I am most proud of taking a weeklong solo camping trip, because…” You must maintain some mystery to bring the reader into your experience and hold his/her attention. In this case, what spurred “you” to take this trip? How did you perceive the risks? How did

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 the trip play out? Of course, this is a very specific example, but the point is that whatever your chosen story or theme, the admissions committee wants to learn about you through your actions and your thought process.

Remember, this question has two parts—the school also asks how what you are proud of shapes who you are today. To successfully discuss the “shaping” aspect of your selected topic, you need to show an element of before and after, illustrating the effect this part of your life has had on you. Do not merely throw out a hokey final line to summarize this element. You must truly explore the impact of the experience(s) and demonstrate that you can be thoughtful about your life and have a good sense of self-awareness. We recommend that you devote 75 words to this reflection, at a bare minimum.

If you are thinking of writing on a theme, you may be concerned about the originality of that theme, but as we always say, the admissions committee is not expecting you to have a fully unique angle that has never been conceived of before. Rather, the school wants you to share your authentic story of what you are “most proud” of in your own, individual way. Your words and your voice will imbue the essay with all the originality it needs.

What is your desired career path and why? (up to 250 words)

Because personal statements are similar from one business school application to the next, we have created the mbaMission Personal Statement Guide (http://shop.mbamission.com/products/personal-statement-guide), which helps applicants write this style of essay for any school. We offer this guide to candidates free of charge.

Download your copy today!

Optional Statement: This section should only be used to convey information not addressed elsewhere in your application, for example, completion of supplemental coursework, employment gaps, academic issues, etc. Feel free to use bullet points where appropriate.

The phrasing of this optional essay prompt is broader than most in that Ross does not specifically limit you to discussing problem areas in your candidacy. That said, in most cases, this is still your opportunity to address any lingering questions that an admissions officer might have about your profile—if you need to—such as a poor grade or overall GPA, a low GMAT score, a gap in your work experience, etc. In our mbaMission Optional Essays Guide

(https://shop.mbamission.com/products/mbamission-optional-essays-guide), we offer detailed advice on when and how to take advantage of the optional essay, with multiple examples, to help you mitigate any problem areas in your application.

However, because the question can be interpreted rather broadly, it does open the door for you to discuss a strength or attribute that has not yet been highlighted elsewhere in your application and that you think may be pivotal or particularly compelling. We caution you about simply trying to fill this space because you fear that not doing so would somehow count against you. You must have a crucial aspect of your background/experience/profile that you would be bringing to light—remember, by submitting an additional essay, you are asking the admissions

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 committee to do extra work on your behalf, so you need to make sure that time is warranted. If you are using the essay to emphasize something that if omitted would render your application incomplete, take this opportunity to write a very brief narrative that reveals this key new aspect of your profile.

The Next Step—Mastering Your Michigan Ross Interview: Many MBA candidates find admissions interviews stress- ful and intimidating, but mastering this important element of the application process is definitely possible—the key is informed preparation. We therefore offer our free Interview Primers to spur you along! Download your free copy of the Michigan Ross Interview Primer today at http://shop.mbamission.com/products/michigan-rossinterview-primer.

mbaMission’s Exclusive Interview with Soojin Kwon, Director of Admissions for the Ross School of Business

July 2009

mbaMission: I’d like to start with a standard question we’ve been asking all the admissions directors: what should

Ross be known for that it is not currently known for?

Soojin Kwon: We’re a lot more international than prospective students realize. Globalization is integrated throughout the whole MBA experience, from courses to independent study and internships. I think more than half of our students travel overseas each year. As an example, our MBA Class of 2008 spent more than 6,000 days collectively in over 30 countries outside of the United States as a part of their coursework—that doesn’t include internships.

They have international opportunities through our Multidisciplinary Action Projects, or MAP. We’ve got a course called “Global Projects” and then a number of other courses that have included fieldwork in places like Cuba, Tur- key, Ireland, the Netherlands, China, India, just to name a few. We’ve also got a center for international business education that has semester abroad opportunities with 11 schools in nine countries in Europe, Asia, and Africa, so there’s a plethora of international opportunities. People think that we’re bound to the Midwest, and that’s just not the case.

mbaMission: How are those international opportunities sourced?

SK: Well, a lot of them are through MAP. We do have a MAP staff that go around the world, talking to companies and alums to source the projects, but because we’ve been doing it so long—since 1992—we’ve got a really strong roster of companies that have done repeat projects with us, and word of mouth gets out there as well. We’ve had over 600 organizations partner with us to sponsor MAPs. We’ve done over 1,300 projects around the world. And then our development officers also talk to alums to source MAPs, and faculty members will do country-specific research projects in which they will offer a class or do research projects associated with it.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 mbaMission: Is Ross currently focused on strengthening any particular academic areas or offerings?

SK: Well, we’re, as you know, a general management school, and we have been true to our general management focus. But even during these tough times, when short-term cost cutting has been the goal on everyone’s mind, we’ve continued to hire new faculty in a variety of areas, including accounting, finance, operations, management and organization, and marketing. So we are staying as broad-based as we always have been, and it’s our way of putting an investment into the research issues that are important across the business spectrum.

mbaMission: You’ve mentioned Ross’s international aspects and opportunities. When evaluating applicants, how do you screen for whether someone has genuine international interest and whether they would be effective in the international environment?

SK: Well, we’re not necessarily screening for whether someone will be effective internationally, but we are looking for people who are, in general, open-minded and will be able to do well in any kind of environment in a diverse setting, whether it’s in another country or another region of the world, or another region of the United States that they hadn’t been in before, or working in a different industry. So we’re looking for an open-mindedness to diversity in a variety of dimensions.

mbaMission: Obviously, there’s been a pretty significant downturn in the economy in the last little while, and I’m curious about how you view candidates who discuss a primary and a secondary career goal in their essays.

SK: We think that [having two possible goals] is realistic. Any given individual will not have just one passion. We always advise our students to do a thorough career self-assessment and then rank their top three or four career goals so they can understand which ones they’re best matched with. And then we encourage them to reassess as they go along, amend it. So this year was really no different than other years in that we don’t just say, “Go after that one industry or that one function.” Do have at least one backup in mind and be prepared to interview well for that as well.

mbaMission: In the Ross essay question that asks, “If you were not pursuing the career goals you’ve described, what profession would you pursue instead?” do you expect applicants to offer something that’s kind of an ideal or something more pragmatic? For example, “If I don’t become a banker, I’d like to go into corporate finance” versus

“I recognize that fundamentally, I’m successful as an educator of others, so if I weren’t to become a banker, I would become an elementary school teacher instead.”

SK: I think that’s the question that gives applicants the hardest time. We’re not looking for a specific type of answer. I think there are some people who think, “Oh, I’ve got to keep it all within business.” Either, to the example that you used, if I’m not going to be an investment banker, then my alternative career would be something that’s related to that, maybe like corporate finance. That could be the right answer if that’s truly what you were pas-

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 sionate about. Or it could be that there’s this other side of you that wouldn’t have come out if we didn’t ask this question. It could be as far away from business as teaching, dancing, art, whatever.

And I’m not saying it needs to be a creative-art kind of thing, but we’re looking for people to, for one thing, tell us what they are really excited about, and that could be, instead of IT [information technology], it’s finance, or for some people, it could be totally different things. And the other thing we’re looking for is someone who can make the connection between that interest and how that’s going to make them a better member of our community inside the classroom, being a teammate, and going out into the workforce and being effective, because they’ve got this other side of them.

mbaMission: How does Ross view class visits?

SK: We don’t require them. We do encourage prospective students to visit. I’m sure every business school would encourage the same. It benefits the student in multiple ways. One is that they can make informed decisions about which school to apply to and ultimately attend, because they’ll get a better sense of fit. Some schools are going to be a better fit based on someone’s personality and goals, and you can’t really make that determination based on view books or Web sites or rankings, so you really need to experience it firsthand and see what the classroom dynamics are and what the student culture is like. That’s not something that can be done virtually.

That said, we understand that budgets and schedules are tight, and it may be tough for prospective students to visit all the schools they’re considering. So at a minimum, prospective students should try to talk current students and alumni at each school. On our Web site, we’ve got profiles of student ambassadors posted, and ambassadors are students who have volunteered to answer questions. I would imagine that most schools have that. And prospects should email these ambassadors to find out what the school is like from a student’s perspective. I wouldn’t use students to ask questions about the admissions process, because they have nothing to do with the admissions process. They’re there truly as ambassadors, to answers questions about what it’s like to go to school here.

What are some of your favorite classes, or what clubs are you involved in—that kind of thing.

mbaMission: Do you have any information as to the number of applicants admitted and the number who came to campus to visit?

SK: We do track the number of visitors, and we do track the number of admits, but we do not compare visitors to admitted students, because we don’t want to create a perception that there’s a correlation between if you visit, you have a higher likelihood of being admitted.

mbaMission: Right. As you alluded to earlier, different schools have different personalities. What kind of personality would you say is attracted to the Ross community?

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 SK: What I’ve heard our students say—and you’ll hear this from students at many other schools—is that it’s about the people. I think when you’re looking at the top ten programs, they’re all going to offer you very competitive business preparation, all the foundations of business, very unique experiences in a variety of functions and industries and academic areas. What is different is what the student culture feels like. I think a lot of students elect to apply to schools that feel right to them.

I would describe our student body as collaborative, very team oriented. They are ones who take a lot of initiative.

Our community is very student driven, from the clubs to our conferences to some of the recruiting on campus and the classes that are here. A lot of it is driven by student interest and student initiative. So people who tend to have the best time here and the people we really look for are students and applicants who really want to get involved in things and not just come to business school and let it happen to them and go to classes and get good grades and go to interviews and that kind of thing. But those who want to get really involved in the entire community, from running clubs to conferences to getting involved with faculty research, leading new treks, whether it’s for extracurricular purposes or for recruiting purposes, finding new markets for us to explore. Students who really want to get out there and make a difference and have an impact are the ones that tend to do well in the application process as well as at the school.

mbaMission: And how do you think candidates can reveal those kinds of traits in their application?

SK: Obviously, the essays are a great vehicle to reveal fit. Recommendation letters are also very helpful in giving us a third-party perspective on your level of initiative and impact. The interview certainly plays a very important role, too. Interviews are conducted by MBA students, our staff, and alumni around the world, and they have a good sense of the kinds of students we’d like to have in school or who we’d like to have as part of our network. And then also to some extent, through some of the kinds of positions and extracurricular activities that someone’s had. It speaks to someone’s initiative and interests. So it’s really the whole application almost that reveals fit. Even on the application form itself, where you list extracurriculars and that kind of thing, each part of it does help put a piece into the mosaic of each applicant.

mbaMission: Can you talk a little bit about the interview experience at Ross and what an applicant can expect? Are there any differences between an on-campus interview, an alumni interview, and a student interview?

SK: To begin with, our interviews are by invitation. We make the invitations based on an initial review of the application, to see whether this is someone we want to get to know more about and on a personal level. As I mentioned, interviews are conducted by students, alums, or staff. The on-campus and the off-campus interviews are weighted equally. They have different benefits. Interviewing on campus obviously gives you an opportunity to visit, sit in on a class, meet with students to ask questions, get a sense for what the school’s vibe is. Interviewing off campus with an alum gives you the opportunity to actually talk to an alum and ask questions at the end about what was their experience like: “Now that you’re living here, how do you find the network? Are there other students from this area, or other alums from this area? How do you feel Ross is represented in this particular area?”

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 And interviewing with a staff member, generally, that’s on campus. Some of them will be off campus, but they’re all weighted equally, and they all offer opportunities to ask different kinds of questions.

mbaMission: What is the process of evaluating an application at Ross? Can you walk me through the different phases?

SK: Since last year, we review our applications electronically, so we don’t have to wait as long for the reviewers to start the review process. That said, when we’re receiving over a thousand applications per round, we can’t look at them simultaneously, so there is a queue, in no particular order, through which we review applications. We don’t sort by any criteria. We are looking at all applications randomly and assigning them to different members of the admissions committee. So each application will get multiple reviews. Some applicants will be invited to interview with us after the first evaluation, while others are interviewed after the second evaluation. And what we’re looking for in the application review is whether someone has the academic ability to do well in our program as evidenced by their GMAT and their transcripts. We’re also looking for what they’ll bring to the table in terms of professional and personal experiences. We’re looking for students who will have something to teach their fellow students. And thirdly, we’re looking for whether they’ll be a good fit in our community, based on their essays, recommendation letters, etc. Both the evaluations are looking at the applications along those three major dimensions.

The interview is another gauge of fit as well as a gauge of communication skills. The applications, as I mentioned, are reviewed by staff; interviews are conducted by second-year students, alumni, and staff; and the interviews are conducted blind, meaning interviewers won’t see the candidate’s application. All they will see in advance is a copy of their resume. Once the application reviews and interviews have been completed, then the admissions committee will make recommendations about each applicant as to whether we should admit, deny, waitlist. Then

I’ll review all the decisions as a whole, by round, to see what the class is shaping up to look like and make decisions on the overall composition of the class, and then I pass it all along to the associate dean for her review.

mbaMission: When you sit down to read an application, where do you start, and what is the order you follow?

SK: I do look at the resume first. I view that as kind of the introduction to the applicant. I use that to get a sense of the big picture. What’s their work experience, their education, their interests, their extracurriculars? Hopefully that can be summarized in one or two pages. We don’t need a ten-page version. Then I look at their GMAT score and their transcript to get a sense of where they are on our academic spectrum, and then I turn to the essays. While all four of them are important, I use the first essay—the why MBA, and why Ross—to assess whether they can make a compelling case to be part of our class. I’m looking for a sense of authenticity. Or does it read like someone trying to tell me what they think a B-school student should sound like? I probably go in that order and then I look at the recommendations to make sure they’ve not been created by the applicant him- or herself.

mbaMission: I think you touched on this a little, but can you share some of the common mistakes people tend to make in their applications?

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 SK: There are two main things that come to mind. On their resumes—often they don’t tell us what their contribution or impact on their organization was. Many of them will give us a job description or a set of responsibilities, and that doesn’t tell me why you were important in that organization. And by important, I don’t mean what position did you hold or how much money did you make, but what impact or contribution did you have there?

And the second thing, which I alluded to a little bit earlier, was that oftentimes, applicants in their essays will tell us about us. They cite a laundry list of our classes and our clubs and faculty in their essays and interviews, and use that as evidence of research about the school without really understanding what they’re about. We already know what we’re about. What we want to know is what the applicant is about and how they can picture themselves fitting into our community and benefiting and giving back.

mbaMission: These days, it’s not uncommon for people who are applying to business school to have been laid off. What would you say to someone who’s been laid off, possibly even months ago, in terms of applying to Ross?

SK: They should still definitely consider applying. They shouldn’t think this is going to be a black mark on their application. We understand that great employees at all levels within an organization can get laid off, especially during times like this, so there’s no need to feel like your chances are automatically less than [those of] someone who hasn’t been laid off. We’re going to look at an applicant’s entire professional history and not just the last year.

And we’re going to look at all the pieces of the application, not just the work history. So I wouldn’t worry too much about, “Oh my God, I’ve been laid off in the last six months. Am I going to be less competitive than someone who is continuing to work?”

As with all applicants, we’re going to want to know how the MBA fits into your goals and why now, but we will be wary of applicants who decide to apply to the school simply because they’ve been laid off and don’t have another job lined up. So we’re going to want to know what you’ve been doing since the layoff. And that can be addressed in the essay, in the interview. A layoff can be an opportunity to showcase your initiatives, your maturity, and your resilience. Some folks have taken this time to get more involved in volunteer work or investigate a career path that they’re passionate about. The important thing is to address it and show us how you’ve dealt with it.

mbaMission: Great. What can you tell us about the school’s new building and the kind of impact it has had on the

Ross community?

SK: Oh, it’s been great. It’s a fantastic new building. It’s very open, very conducive to community-building. We’ve got a great big winter garden space that lets in a lot of light and has a lot of seating that lets people gather informally.

We also use that for big events. There are great classrooms that are state-of-the-art. We also have a lot of group- study rooms, which is very important to the way we approach business education. I think each classroom has one or two group-study rooms attached to it, so that teams can work on projects immediately outside of their classroom.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 We’ve also got a great new gym dedicated just for our business school community—students, faculty, and staff— that has all of the latest equipment. Students don’t have to go very far. Once students get to school, they can eat here. We’ve got a great new café that sources a lot of our food locally. The building is LEED certified, which is in line with our focus on sustainability. Very group oriented, as I already mentioned. And there’s a lot of great artwork around the building, too. Our dean’s [Robert Dolan’s] wife has been an art consultant to the school, and she has brought in a lot of amazing pieces to make it feel not so sterile. It feels more like a community. It’s very inviting.

mbaMission: Speaking of an inviting community, do you expect to see more applicants this year? Do you have any predictions as to what will happen going forward?

SK: That’s hard to say, given this past year. It was really a mixed bag for us. We did see an increase in our domestic applications and a decline in applications from abroad. Given that the credit and international student programs were cancelled earlier this year, many international students looked closer to home to get their MBAs. That said, we are looking to be about as international as last year, with a third of our incoming class so far coming from outside the United States.

As far as next year, I think it’s too early to tell. My hope is that we will continue with this growth in domestic applicants and not lose ground on international, and I think the quality will still be there, with a lot of people now considering an MBA, given changes in their work status. I think this is a great time for people to consider it. And also, because of our new building, we have the ability to increase our class size, and so we are moving in that direction starting this fall.

mbaMission: How many more students do you think you’ll be admitting for this fall?

SK: Last year’s incoming class was about 430 students. This year’s incoming class we’re anticipating to be about

480, and with room to increase that a little bit beyond, as well—that was by design. Our new building can accommodate classes that are larger in size, so we’ve got that wiggle room.

mbaMission: Are you focusing on any particular countries to yield additional applicants?

SK: We want to have geographic diversity, of course. We continue to see a lot of applications from Asia and India, and we would love to get more applications from Europe, Africa, and Latin America. Latin America has been a good region for us. We would love to see more from Europe and Africa, in particular.

mbaMission: Can you talk about the international student loan situation right now and what’s going on specifically at Ross with regard to this issue?

SK: We’re in a position of having secured a loan program through the University of Michigan’s credit union to cover our incoming international students with very good terms. That will be for our current and incoming international

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 students. We’re also in the final stages of another international student loan program with a different bank to cover students who will be coming in next fall, in 2010.

mbaMission: What can you tell us about the discrepancy in application volumes between Round 1, Round 2, and

Round 3 at Ross? I think more and more candidates are feeling compelled to apply early, and I’m wondering whether you would encourage that or whether you feel the opportunities are relatively equal for applicants across all rounds.

SK: Percentage-wise, we get about a third of our applications in Round 1, about 60% in Round 2, and the remainder in Round 3, and I don’t think that’s because of encouragement from us saying, “Please apply in Round 2.” But it’s because that’s when students feel ready to submit an application. By the time you get around to completing the essays and getting your recommendation letters lined up, I think a lot of people would rather take the extra time, over the holidays especially, before they hit the Submit button. We encourage people to submit their application when they feel that it is the best possible application that they could submit.

As much as we’d like to see more applications in Round 1, the percentages change in Round 1 versus Round 2. I wouldn’t want to read applications that are not at their best. So, if you can get everything lined up and completed and you feel really good about it by October 10, then I would love to get more people to apply by our first deadline, but if it takes you a little bit longer, and you want to take the time to look at [your application] again and have somebody else look at it, then Round 2 is fine, too. For international applicants, we do really encourage them to apply in Round 1 or Round 2, definitely not Round 3, because there may not be enough time to get visas lined up.

All of our scholarship considerations are made in Round 1 and Round 2, so it’s to everybody’s advantage to apply during one of the first two rounds.

mbaMission: While you have an audience of about 35,000, is there anything else you would like people to know about Ross?

SK: Sure. It seems to be a growing trend for business schools to be doing field activities or hands-on learning experiences, and in that regard, Ross, I think, provides the best opportunity to have a hands-on learning experience.

With MAP in particular, the Multidisciplinary Action Project, students work with peers and faculty on strategic and operational issues for companies, nonprofits, and start-ups all around the world. About half of our projects are international, the other half in the United States. While many schools have field study opportunities, I believe we’re the only one that requires it as part of our core curriculum. In other words, it’s not an elective, it’s a requirement, and we dedicate seven weeks of the first year to the Multidisciplinary Action Project full-time—no other classes during that time.

We think that this way of applying the theory makes it easier for students to really own the knowledge they’re learning in the first 21 weeks of the first year, and it also makes them better equipped to deal with the uncertainty of working in the real world, where problems and solutions aren’t defined for you. You learn how to ask the right

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 questions, identify the real challenges, and solve problems. From a practical perspective, action-based learning and MAP in particular are helpful for career switchers and for students with less than an average year of full-time work experience, plus it gives them seven weeks of full-time experience in an industry or a function. And that’s comparable to a lot of summer internships, which are often ten weeks. So seven weeks of full-time work—no other classes, this is all you’re doing—is a really meaty, hands-on experience. And I think because we’ve been doing it so long, we’ve really got the experience to get projects that are good from an educational perspective as well as valuable for the sponsors.

mbaMission: Great. Thank you for taking time to speak with us about Ross.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Appendix: Ross Facts and Figures

Note: Facts and figures in this section are prone to change. Occasionally, conflicts may exist between the school’s publications and its Web pages. Applicants are urged to recheck facts and figures for the most up-to-date information.

Basics

Year Established: 1924

Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan

Dean: Scott DeRue (2016)

Director of Admissions: Soojin Kwon (2006)

Programs:

• Full-time MBA

• Evening MBA

• Weekend MBA

• Executive MBA

• PhD

• Global MBA

• BBA

• Master of Accounting

• Master of Management

• Master of Supply Change Management

Joint Degrees: The University of Michigan is known for its flexibility in creating dual degrees. Many combinations

are possible at Ross, which offers more than 20 established dual-degree programs across numerous disciplines:

• Area Studies: Asian Studies

• Area Studies: Japanese

• Area Studies: Modern Middle Eastern

• Area Studies: Russian and East European

• Area Studies: South Asia

• Area Studies: Southeast Asia

• Education: Architecture

• Education: Educational Studies

• Education: Health Services

• Education: Higher Education

• Education: Information

• Education: Law

• Education: Management of Patient (Nursing)

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 • Education: Medicine

• Education: Natural Resources and Environment

• Education: Public Policy

• Education: Social Work

• Education: Urban Planning

• Engineering: Construction Engineering

• Engineering: Industrial and Operations

• Engineering: Manufacturing

Class Profile (Class of 2018)

Class Size: 415

Average GMAT: 708

GMAT Range (middle 80%): 650–750

Women: 40%

Minorities: 24%

International Students: 31%

Countries Represented: 33

Employment Statistics (Class of 2016)

Graduates accepted positions in the following industries:

• Consulting: 32.2%

• Technology: 20.4%

• Financial Services: 13.6%

• Consumer Packaged Goods: 9.8%

• Health Care: 6.8%

• Manufacturing: 5.6%

• Other: 4.8%

• Energy: 4.1%

• Education/Government/Nonprofit: 1.5%

• Transportation: 1.2%

Graduates accepted positions in the following functions:

• Consulting: 36.1%

Strategy Consulting: 27.5%

Internal Consulting: 3.3%

General Consulting: 2.4%

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Information Technology/Systems and Human Capital Consulting: 1.5%

Operations/Process Consulting: 1.5%

• Finance: 21.6%

Corporate Finance: 9.5%

Investment Banking: 6.8%

Asset Management: 5.3%

• Human Resources: 2.4%

• Marketing/Sales: 18.3%

Brand/Product Management: 9.8%

General Marketing: 5.6%

Sales: 1.8%

Other Marketing: 1.2%

• Other (includes Corporate Social Responsibility [0.3%], Real Estate [0.3%], and Sustainability/Environment

[0.3%]): 5.9%

• General Management: 6.5%

• Operations/Supply Chain Management: 4.7%

• Strategic Planning: 3.0%

• Information Technology: 1.5%

Graduates accepted positions in the following locations:

• Midwest: 35.4%

Chicago Metro: 19.0%

Minneapolis/St. Paul Metro: 6.5%

Detroit Metro: 5.0%

Other: 4.9%

• West: 24.2%

Seattle Metro: 10.9%

San Francisco Bay Area: 9.2%

Los Angeles Metro: 2.1%

Other: 2.0%

• Northeast: 20.8%

Tri-State Area: 17.8%

Boston Metro: 1.8%

Other: 1.2%

• Southwest: 5.0%

Dallas Metro: 1.8%

Denver Metro: 1.8%

Other: 1.4%

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 • International: 7.7%

Asia: 5.6%

Europe: 0.6%

South America: 0.6%

Australia and New Zealand: 0.3%

Mexico: 0.3%

Middle East: 0.3%

• South: 3.6%

• Other: 1.8%

• Atlanta Metro: 1.5%

• Miami Metro: 0.3%

• Mid-Atlantic: 3.3%

Washington DC Metro: 2.1%

Philadelphia Metro: 0.9%

Other: 0.3%

Top Hiring Companies:

• Amazon: 31

• PwC: 24

• McKinsey & Company: 16

• The Boston Consulting Group: 14

• Deloitte: 14

• Accenture: 12

• Citi: 9Bain & Co. Inc.: 8

• A.T. Kearney: 7

• Bank of America Merrill Lynch: 7

• PepsiCo Inc.: 6

• Dell Inc.: 5

• Google Inc.: 5

• JPMorgan Chase & Co.: 5

• Barclays PLC: 4

• DaVita Inc.: 4

• Procter & Gamble Co.: 4

• American Express Co.: 3

• EY: 3

• Whirlpool Corp.: 3

• General Motors Corp.: 2

• Goldman Sachs Group: 2

• Ford Motor Co.: 2

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 • Wells Fargo & Co.: 2

• ZS Associates: 2

• KPMG LLP: 1

• RBC Capital Markets: 1

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Bibliography

Publications

“2009 Ross School of Business Reference for Recruiters and Corporate Partners.” Ann Arbor, Michigan: The

Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, 2009.

“2010 Ross School of Business Reference for Recruiters and Corporate Partners.” Ann Arbor, Michigan: The

Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, 2010.

“2011 Ross School of Business Reference for Recruiters and Corporate Partners.” Ann Arbor, Michigan: The

Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, 2011.

“Alison Davis-Blake Elected to Tower International Board of Directors.” Tower International Press

Release. October 17, 2014. http://investors.towerinternational.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=235362&p=irol-

newsArticle&ID=1979009

“Alison Davis-Blake Named New Dean of Ross.” Ross School of Business Press Release. February 15, 2011.

www.bus.umich.edu/NewsRoom/ArticleDisplay.asp?news_id=21701

Allen, Nathan. “Ross Names ‘Favorite Son’ Its New Dean.” Poets&Quants. May 20, 2016.

http://poetsandquants.com/2016/05/20/michigan-ross-names-new-dean/

“The Best 295 Business Schools.” Princeton Review. 2014 edition. October 8, 2013. www.princetonreview.com/

business-school-rankings.aspx

“The Best 296 Business Schools.” Princeton Review. 2015 edition. October 7, 2014. www.princetonreview.com/

business-school-rankings.aspx

“The Best 295 Business Schools.” Princeton Review. 2016 edition. October 6, 2015. www.princetonreview.com/

business-school-rankings.aspx

“The Best 294 Business Schools.” Princeton Review. 2017 edition. September 20, 2016. www.princetonreview.com/

business-school-rankings.aspx

“The Best Business Schools 2012.” Bloomberg Businessweek. November 15, 2012. www.businessweek.com/

articles/2012-11-15/the-best-business-schools-2012

“Best Business Schools 2011 Rankings.” U.S. News & World Report. March 12, 2012.

http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-business-schools/

mba-rankings

“Best Business Schools 2013 Rankings.” U.S. News & World Report. March 13, 2012. http://premium.usnews.com/

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“Best Business Schools 2014 Rankings.” U.S. News & World Report. March 12, 2013.

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Davis-Blake, Alison. “Connecting with Ross Alumni across the Globe.” University of Michigan Ross Dean’s Blog.

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Davis-Blake, Alison. “Positioning Ross for the Future.” University of Michigan Ross School of Business Dean’s

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Davis-Blake, Alison. “Shaping a New Era of Business Decision-Making.” University of Michigan Ross School of

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Freed, Ben. “University of Michigan Regents to Consider $135M Plan for Business School.” MLive. February 17,

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“It’s Official: Michigan Ross’ New Building is Open, and It’s Stunning.” Ross News Blog. October 20, 2016.

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interview-tips-and-insight-how-we-view-team-exercise

“Living at Michigan.” University of Michigan Housing Information Office. Available online at

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MBA Employment Profile, Full-Time MBA Class of 2015, The Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of

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“MAP - Multidisciplinary Action Projects: Real Problems, Real Solutions.” Michigan Ross School of Business.

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“Michigan Growth Capital Symposium Creates Investment and Growth Opportunities for Startups Across

Midwest.” Ross News and Media. April 18, 2011. www.bus.umich.edu/NewsRoom/ArticleDisplay.asp?

news_id=22034

Ross MBA Housing Guide 2016–2017. VeryApt. https://s3.amazonaws.com/veryapt-downloads/guide/VeryApt+

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Sable, Scott. “Dean Davis-Blake Updates MBAs on Ross Strategic Vision.” Monroe Street Journal. December 4,

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the Associate Director of Ross Admissions.” About.com. http://businessmajors.about.com/od/

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Teruel, Javier. “Dean Dolan talks about his tenure at Ross and what’s to come.” Monroe Street Journal. September

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Thorson, Carrie. “25th Annual Ross Follies.” Monroe Street Journal. February 7, 2011. www.themsj.com/

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“Top 100 U.S. MBA Programs of 2014.” Poets&Quants. November 26, 2014. http://poetsandquants.com/2014/11/

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“Top 100 U.S. MBA Programs of 2016.” Poets&Quants. November 21, 2016. http://poetsandquants.com/2016/11/

21/2016-poetsquants-mba-ranking/

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michigan.html

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 “University of Michigan’s Annual Entrepalooza Symposium to Feature Rob Pelinka of Landmark Sports Agency.”

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university-of-michigans-annual-entrepalooza-symposium-to-feature-rob-pelinka-of-landmark-sports-

agency-272130601.html

“University of Michigan’s Zell Lurie Institute to Host Annual Private Equity Conference.” Ross School of Business

Press Release. October 25, 2011. www.zli.bus.umich.edu/news_publications/press_releases/Release_PE%20

Conference%202011%20FINAL.pdf

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School.” MLive. February 21, 2014. www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2014/02/university_of_

michigan_business_school.html

Web Sites

2011 Ross General Management Conference: www.rossgmc.info

2011 Ross Net Impact Fall Conference: www.purposedrivenprofits.org/pdp/

Alumni Association of the University of Michigan: www.umdc.org

Entrepalooza: www.epalooza.bus.umich.edu

“Experience the Ross MBA” Video: www.bus.umich.edu/Admissions/MBA/Whyross.htm

Go Blue Rendezvous Housing Guide: www.bus.umich.edu/gbr/housing/index.html

India Business Conference: www.rossibc.org

M-Trek: http://mtrek.org

Michigan Growth Capital Symposium: http://michigan-gcs.com

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 The Michigan Journal of Private Equity and Venture Capital Law: http://mjpvl.org

The Monroe Street Journal: www.themsj.com

Net Impact Conference: https://netimpact.org/conference/

Ross Admissions Blog: http://rossblogs.typepad.com/admissions/

Ross Partners Club Housing Survey 2015–2016: http://ross.campusgroups.com/uploaD/ross/2015/doc_339474_

rpchousingsurvey20152016_331225356_331225356.pdf

The Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute: www.zli.bus.umich.edu

The Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan: www.bus.umich.edu

The Tauber Institute for Global Operations: www.tauber.umich.edu

The University of Michigan India Business Conference: http://rossibc.org

The William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan: www.wdi.umich.edu

The Yaffe Center for Persuasive Communication: www.yaffecenter.org

Interviews and Other mbaMission Student Survey. Online via SurveyMonkey.com. December 5, 2102.

Membership Marketing Coordinator, Alumni Association of the University of Michigan. Personal Interview. April

10, 2012; May 22, 2012.

Ross Alumnus. Personal Interview. April 15, 2009.

Ross Alumnus. Personal Interview. March 24, 2009.

Ross Alumnus. Personal Interview. March 31, 2009.

Ross First-Year Student. Personal Interview. February 28, 2011.

Ross First-Year Student. Personal Interview. March 8, 2011.

Ross First-Year Student. Personal Interview. February 7, 2012.

Ross Second-Year Student. Personal Interview. March 10, 2010.

Ross Second-Year Student. Personal Interview. March 15, 2010.

Ross Second-Year Student. Personal Interview. March 16, 2010.

Ross Second-Year Student. Personal Interview. March 19, 2010.

Ross Second-Year Student. Personal Interview. March 5, 2012.

Ross Second-Year Student. Personal Interview. April 5, 2012.

Ross Second-Year Student. Email Exchange. April 22–23, 2015.

Ross Web Marketing Coordinator. Email. April 20, 2012.

mbaMission Insider’s Guide: Stephen M. Ross School of Business · 2017–2018 Headed to b-school?

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