The Master of Business Administration is the crucial credential for working professionals seeking career advancement and the opportunity to develop additional skill sets and wider expertise in current positions.   APU’s MBA supports students’ goals by emphasizing a broad understanding of successful business operations and critical skills needed to be an effective leader in today’s complex and dynamic business world. Under the guidance of faculty mentors and industry leaders with experience in a wide variety of fields, students have many opportunities to collaborate on real-world projects with professional peers, preparing program graduates with an enhanced resume, strong network, and advancement opportunities in roles as corporate managers, executives, policy leaders, and entrepreneurs.

Program Outcomes

Upon completion of the degree, students will have:

• Gained an appreciation of the local, domestic, and global environments as they relate to business management
• Enhanced their business judgment and identified sound management methods including the ability to think critically and strategically
• Attained an understanding of, and ability to appropriately leverage interpersonal relationships and team work
• Developed analytical expertise and functional frameworks drawn from a broad range of managerial skills including accounting, finance, economics, marketing, management, and law
• Acquired an ability to incorporate appropriate quantitative and qualitative data, including an appreciation for the value and costs of obtaining data, into management decisions
• Established outstanding, multi-method communication skills
• Recognized the value of effective and ethical leadership so they can lead themselves, others, and organizations

Admissions

The general requirements for admission to graduate studies at APU are found in the Admissions section of the catalog. In addition, there are several specific requirements for the MBA, MBA-Finance, and MBA-HSA programs as follows:

1. A current resume
2. Three letters of recommendation dated within the past year
3. Completion of an admissions interview with program area faculty
4. 500-800 word essay addressing personal and professional goals related to the MBA, the MBA with Concentration in Finance, or the MBA with Concentration in Health Services Administration.

Admissions decisions are generally based on academic records of undergraduate, upper division, and graduate work, or alternative indicators of success including innovative leadership or accomplishments in a career field, civic activity, or professional achievement.

Prerequisites

Students are adequately prepared for MBA entry if they have a bachelor’s degree in business or a related discipline which includes courses in accounting, finance, economics, and management, with math competency through algebra and statistics. The faculty encourages students with a wide variety of undergraduate experiences to apply for admission. Students with non-business majors are welcome. If, however, a student’s undergraduate transcript does not demonstrate adequate preparation in quantitative skills and business content, the student may be admitted and required to take prerequisite courses. Prerequisite courses do not count toward the MBA, MBA-Finance, or MBA-HSA degrees. Students may also demonstrate that they have acquired prerequisite knowledge through work experience or self-study.

MBA Format and Program Delivery

The MBA program is designed for flexible completion.  Students can complete the program in 4-5 semesters of full-time enrollment, or can spread enrollment across multiple semesters to accommodate work and other conflicts.  Maximally, students have 7 years to complete the program.

The format for MBA courses is a combination of on campus intensives and synchronous elearning sessions.  For a 3-credit MBA couse, students can expect the schedule to include:

• 6 weekly elearning sessions; 2.5-hour per course, per week, facilitated in web-conferencing system
• a 3-day intensive, with full-day meetings on campus;  intensives are scheduled usually Friday-Saturday-Sunday; for some courses, the 3-day intensive is split across two weekends
• for courses with fewer than 3 credits, numbers of elearning sessions and numbers of intensive days are reduced accordinging