Master of Business Administration (MBA)

General Overview of the MBA Program

The MBA program at the Maine Business School is designed to provide students with the skills and understanding to achieve long-term success in the complex, rapidly changing, global economy. Our program provides an education grounded in the fundamentals but one that also prepares our students for expanding management roles that require skills in communication, adapting to change, and of course leadership. The program emphasizes experiential, hands-on learning, teamwork, and critical thinking. The University of Maine MBA program produces graduates with practical business skills and a global perspective, but more importantly, produces business leaders who can think strategically and critically, adapt and foster change, inspire and lead, and create and convey a vision. The Maine Business School is accredited by AACSB, the most significant accreditor of business schools. Thus you know that we provide quality programs taught by high-quality faculty. We are extremely proud of our faculty, many of whom are well known nationally and internationally. The program is available as a fully online/distance format, and well as on-campus in a blended format where the student takes half or more of their courses live and the rest online. Our online MBA program is referred to as the “Essential MBA” because it is designed to provide students with superb leadership, management, and analytical skill sets with a background in finance, accounting, and global engagement for the competitive work environment. Please go the UMaine MBA website for more information. The core courses in our program consist of BUA 601 – Statistical Analysis and Modeling for Organizational Operations; BUA 605 – Creating and Capturing Value in the Digital Economy; BUA 609 – Financial Statement Analysis; BUA 620 – Law, Business, and Society; BUA 626 – Management of Contemporary Organizations; BUA 651 – Financial Management; and BUA 649 – Management Policy (the capstone course in the program). Students can take three elective courses, including an international field study (BUA 596) which goes to a different part of the world every year and an internship (recommended for students without work experience). By Fall 2016 all courses will be available online once per year. The foundation for the program (prerequisites) consists of courses in accounting, economics, and statistics. Some applicants will already meet some or all of these requirements. For those who do not, the University of Maine offers accelerated online courses in accounting (BUA 400) and economics (ECO 410) for students without prior courses in these areas. Students may take a statistics course from the University of Maine or elsewhere (online is available). Once matriculated, we offer non-credit tutorials in finance, marketing, and management for those who need these. Students may study full-time or part-time and matriculate for the Fall, Spring, or Summer semesters.

Program Format

The University of Maine Online MBA can be taken from virtually anywhere in the world as long as students have a sufficient internet connection. However, we strive to have an engagement program in which our distance students interact with the professor and the campus students and work with these students on projects. Thus, it is not a completely asynchronous program in which students do not interact real-time with the professor and potentially other campus students. Some classes require the synchronous participation of varying degrees. For instance, at times distance students will have to be online at specified times (always at night, eastern U.S. time). For some classes this is weekly; for others the synchronous requirement is less frequent. And many classes have no synchronous component. Our faculty are cognizant of the requirements of working professionals and understand when work occasionally interferes with class presence. But the student must be aware that a class interactive presence will be required for some courses.

APPLICATION INFORMATION

Applications are reviewed on a rolling admission basis, meaning that once the application is complete, the admission evaluation process begins. The application can be completed online or downloaded at http://www.umaine.edu/graduate.

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

Core Courses (21 credits): All candidates for the MBA degree must complete the following seven core graduate courses:

• BUA 601: Statistical Analysis and Modeling of Organizational Operations 3cr.
• BUA 605: Creating & Capturing Value in the Digital Economy 3cr.
• BUA 609: Financial Statement Analysis 3cr.
• BUA 620: Law, Business, and Society 3cr.
• BUA 626: Management of Contemporary Organizations 3cr.
• BUA 649: Management Policy 3cr.
• BUA 651: Financial Management 3cr.

Electives (9 credits): Electives include: A faculty-led field experience in an international environment. In recent years, our students have participated in international study courses in countries such as Japan, Brazil, Germany, France, Bulgaria, China, Vietnam, and the Czech Republic.

• BUA 596: International Field Study 3cr.

An internship in a profit-making firm or a nonprofit organization, or being part of a consulting team from the Business School working on a project for a firm.

• BUA 641: Organizational Consulting 3cr. or
• BUA 695: MBA Internship 1-4cr.

Online electives currently include:

• BUA 561: Knowledge Management and Decision Support Systems 3cr.
• BUA 668: Electronic Commerce 3cr.
• Climate Change special topics course 3cr.
• SIE 557: Database System Applications 3cr.
• SIE 515: Human Computer Interaction 3cr.
• SIE 516: Virtual Reality: Research and Applications 3cr.

What can I do with a Master of Business Administration (MBA)?

Nearly every field includes some form of management position. Many top management positions in corporations, non-profits, and government agencies either require or strongly favor those who hold an MBA over other applicants. Graduates of MBA programs learn the management skills to work in administrative and leadership positions in fields like healthcare, engineering, and education. A January 2015 Financial Times article says that “… US-based MBA graduates tend to be better at building successful businesses.” Even Physicians are beginning to see the value in obtaining their MBA as they run their offices and manage their employees, finances and electronic records. MBA degrees frequently lead to upper management positions in the business field, with the non-profit sector and in consulting and entrepreneurship. Popular career options for graduates from an MBA program include accountant, advertising executive, business manager, marketing director, human resources director, finance officer, CIO, product manager, management consultant, financial analyst and many more.

Duration

30 credit hours

Cost & Fees

• $418/cr. in-state and
• $523/cr. out-of-state

Miscellaneous

Fall / Spring / Summer

Founded in 1865, the University of Maine is a land, sea, and space grant institution and the flagship campus of the University of Maine System. Located in Orono along the banks of the Stillwater River, this vibrant and dynamic university serves Maine, the nation, and the world through its teaching, research, and outreach mission. UMaine students come from every county in Maine, more than 49 other states and 81 countries. UMaine offers more than 100-degree programs through which students can earn graduate certificates, master’s, doctoral or professional science master’s degrees. Opportunity for all members of the University of Maine community and its constituents is a cornerstone of our mission.

The University of Maine offers a strong traditional education at an affordable price. UMaine is one of New England’s premier universities. We help students create success stories — with a wide variety of programs and opportunities — and we do so with world-class faculty members, internationally recognized research, first-rate facilities, and a friendly, safe atmosphere located near some of the best year-round recreation sites in the nation.