The Executive MBA Program
The College instituted the Executive MBA program in 1975. This degree program is the 13th oldest Executive MBA program in the United States, out of some 180 in existence. The program was initially called "The Executive Program." This two-year AACSB-accredited 36-hour MBA degree program began jointly with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. At that time an applicant needed to have an undergraduate degree and a minimum of ten years' business experience. Originally the Lincoln and Omaha campuses offered the program on alternate years. In 1987, the program was shifted to Omaha to be offered annually. The work experience requirement was lowered to eight years.
In 1989, the program established a unique capstone international business consulting project designed to facilitate integration and application of the classroom knowledge. That addition to the program was recognition that global commerce constitutes a major part of Nebraska's production of agriculturally-based exports. This program utilizes corporate-sponsored, real-world projects, typically foreign market entry studies. It utilizes teams of 3-5 faculty-supervised students over the last four to six months of their respective study and includes two weeks of on-site research in the target country. Since inception of the capstone project course, UNOmaha Executive MBA student teams have completed 50 international project in 22 countries.
By 1994, the program had switched from a weeknight to a weekend format and required six years of progressively responsible work experience from the organization-sponsored middle and upper level managers, and business owners seeking admission to the Executive MBA Program. Since 1987, laptop computers have been required of all students. The executive classroom was wired to for laptop usage to support student project presentations and access to the Internet.
A limited, Internet-based distance learning capability was placed in operation in 2000 to facilitate program completion by students who had been transferred to other locations, e.g., Menai, NSW, Australia. Also added was a second wired executive classroom along with a wired student conference room with fax and multiplex-conferencing telephone capabilities.
Executive MBA graduates now number over 400. The tuition cost of the program remains in the bottom quartile of all U.S. Executive MBA programs. It is the least expensive program in the five-state Midwest region of Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, Kansas, and Colorado. The Executive MBA program retains much of its academic vitality through an on-going curriculum review process. This process helps insure the program's focus, content, and delivery continues to accommodate the needs of students, and the region's business community. The goal of UNO's College of Business Administration is to develop the Executive MBA program to be recognized as the regions' preferred source for graduate-level education for business.