University of California - Davis - Graduate School of Management

The well-regarded MBA program Graduate School of Management at the University of California, Davis offers three different options and a strong quantitative background for students with work experience under their belts. Whether enrolled in the full-time program at Davis, or the part-time night and weekend programs at the campuses in the Bay Area and Sacramento (which teach all of the same material as the full-time program), students are afforded a “great combination” of challenging and rewarding classes, “very supportive atmosphere,” and “many opportunities to expand our experiences well beyond the classroom.”

The “stellar faculty” is “very well-informed” and offers “a variety of interesting current world topics.” They “are willing to talk to you about anything and will spend as much time as you want discussing how to use things from class at work,” and even “sit with the students at meals and will join in at happy hours.” The school is also “doing a really good job bringing in experienced business people to teach electives”; the curriculum is a “great mix of classes” that also provides multiple opportunities to apply theoretical knowledge in practical setting, including “study trips, projects with actual companies, individual and group studies, internships and much more.” Additionally, classes are up-to-date and provide both historical and recent cases and business examples that allow students to gain a better understanding of the concepts and curriculum.

The administration is similarly “student-oriented.” It “works very hard to listen to and communicate with the students,” and the Dean’s Student Advisory Board meets once a quarter (“The Dean is impressive and obviously on a diehard mission to put our school in the top ten”). However, given the unique nature of the part-time schedule (i.e. Friday/ Saturday classes), scheduling of classes can be messy, and “it is often difficult to pair core classes with popular electives.”

This program “has a reach into many regions beyond Sacramento” thanks to the Career Development Office’s ability to reach out into markets that students are most interest- ed in and their “willingness to develop something to further student’s success.” Most everyone attending Davis part-time is already employed, but the networking opportu- nities across students in different industries and the ability to work with classmates in consulting projects outside of school are “amazing.” “We have people from San Jose, Oakland, Pleasanton, and as far as Ukiah commuting to the program, which makes it a large network of students in Fortune 500 companies,” says a student. “We all study together, we eat together, and we bond together, which builds a strong student network of trust and accountability.” Some students do think that the school’s efforts to facilitate networking with actual companies themselves could be stepped up; in the past three years, the students themselves “have put together an alumni networking event that has successfully facilitated job and career changes.”

This bunch is “willing to learn and help each other out.” Most also have lives outside of school and work so are quite busy, so at times “they can appear stressed.” But, they are all “good-natured, friendly, and approachable people.” There are “a ton of activities and clubs” that can help “to improve your business acumen,” and across all of the programs, students “interact, work on projects, socialize outside of class.” “My classmates quickly became a tight-knit group,” says one student. Lunch and/or dinner is provided for the Bay Area weekend program (during which time announcements are made), which “promotes a cohort model that closely replicates the total-immersion experience offered by full time programs.” “With three campuses offering very similar courses at different times of the day and week, you can work around your professional schedule,” says a student.

For those who can carve time our of their academics, life, and extracurriculars, it is worth noting that the city of Davis “is an amazing jewel in the Central Valley…there is an amaz- ing offering of athletics and healthy living businesses, and boasts a very large proportion of small businesses, as opposed to chains.”