Students can earn an MBA faster while saving money through new accelerated program offered by Wright State’s Raj Soin College of Business

The Accelerated Business Essentials program offered by the Raj Soin College of Business will make an MBA more accessible and cost-effective for students.

To expedite the pathway for students to earn their Master of Business Administration (MBA), Wright State University’s Raj Soin College of Business has implemented a new program that reduces the time and costs to obtain an advanced degree.

The Accelerated Business Essentials program will make MBA education more accessible and efficient for students, leveraging faculty expertise to deliver essential business knowledge flexibly and cost-effectively, said Kristina Healy, academic services director in the Raj Soin College of Business.

The program allows students to complete modules for each of the five foundational MBA courses: Economics, Accounting, Finance, Business Law and Business Statistics.

The program was developed by College of Business faculty members who will rotate as course instructors to support students.

The Accelerated Business Essentials program is a five-week online asynchronous program with an intensive review and testing of the MBA foundation program material. At the end of each week, students take a test on that module and if passed are waived from that MBA course. Students who do not pass the test must take the foundation course. At the end of the program, students can retest one module they had not passed. Students can only retest on one module.

The accelerated program launched in July with a cohort of 16-18 graduate students.

Brandon Morris, Ph.D., associate professor of finance, likened the program to a boot camp and said he designed the finance section by going through the foundation course and pulling out the information he believed most critical for students to learn. He said the program is a low-cost way to get all the essentials students need to earn into the MBA program.

“That’s what this is built for. … It’s designed to allow more people into the MBA program so they can get an MBA from Wright State for less money,” said Morris.

Brandon Morris, associate professor of finance, helped design the Master of Business Administration Accelerated Business Essentials program.

He added that the Raj Soin College of Business has seen an uptick in interest in its MBA program from students overseas with the inception of the Accelerated Business Essentials initiative.

“It’s a big pull to our MBA program,” said Morris. “An MBA can open a lot of doors for people who may be looking for a new job or to start their own companies.”

Traditionally students, particularly those from non-business backgrounds and others who did not test out of foundation classes, had to pass the classes to enter the MBA program, which adds an extra semester or two to their graduate education. With competing schools offering alternatives or waivers to these requirements, Wright State launched the accelerated program to attract more students.

Students can also test out of individual foundation courses. Of those in the initial cohort, Morris said only a couple completed all five sections.

Inaugural participant Laura Harr graduated in 2007 from Wright State with a bachelor’s degree in business management while pregnant with her oldest child. She took time off from her professional career to raise two children and re-entered the civilian workforce at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in February.

The online course schedule and accelerated pace are a perfect fit for a goal-oriented working mom of two teenagers, she said.

“I decided to participate in the ABE program because it’s a great opportunity to refresh my business skills while also earning the necessary waivers for my foundational courses,” said Harr. “It’s a great cost and time savings to me.”

Harr chose to pursue a Master of Business Administration at Wright State because of its flexible nature and location. Moreover, it’s a great partner to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and provides scholarship opportunities to its employees, she said.

“Anything is possible, and Wright State is helping me achieve those goals,” said Harr.