Baylor University - Hankamer School of Business

Baylor University, a popular Southern institution located halfway between Dallas and Austin, appeals to those looking for "a small program" with "a cozy atmosphere" and "a lot of emphasis on ethics." With both a concentration and a dual degree program in healthcare administration, Baylor is also a strong draw for those looking to make their mark in the nation's transforming healthcare sector. Those students have high praise for the program, asserting that "it will be ranked among the top programs" soon. "Hospital CEOs speak to our class approximately nine times per semester," writes one student, extolling the "incredible healthcare administration speaker series." The program includes a placement experience during which students "work directly with a CEO and become an actual hospital administrator for seven months."

There's more than healthcare to Baylor, though. MBAs call the strategy and organizational behavior courses here "some of the best in the country." Students also tell us that the program provides "the freedom and opportunity to engage in any activity that would benefit your personal development." "Whether it's spending an entire day with Warren Buffett, working in China for a semester with top global firms, traveling to Austin every Friday to learn and explore capital investment analysis, or going to a local prison to decrease the recidivism rate by going over business plans with inmates, you can do it at Baylor," one student writes. Another cites an MBA class devoted to inter-program case competition, for which Baylor not only offers a course but also pays participants' cost of participation, including "room, entry fee, flight, etc." (The team took third prize at the competition hosted by George Washington University in 2010.) Business education neophytes praise the Integrated Management Seminar, "a semester specifically designed for non-business undergrads to provide a fabulous foundation before the core MBA program begins."

Baylor employs career placement professionals who work exclusively with the school's approximately ninety MBA students as well as with alumni. Students tell us that "the career professionals are planning to take the case to businesses more aggressively than bringing the businesses to Baylor (although…some of that will [still] take place)." Students say this strategy makes sense considering that "Baylor is not competing right now with Texas, Rice, and SMU" when it comes to on-campus recruiting, in part due to the small size of the program. Some complain that "the [placement office's] focus is on Texas, and if you're not looking in Texas, good luck!"

Employers who most frequently hire Baylor MBAs include: Accenture, American Express, Anadarko Petroleum, Bank of America, Baptist Health Center, Bearing Point, CITGO, CNA Insurance, Comerica, Community Bank And Trust, ConocoPhillips, Deloitte & Touche, Echostar Communications, Edward Jones, Ernst & Young, ExxonMobil, FBI, First City Financial, First Preference Mortgage, Hatteras Yachts, H.E.B. Grocery Company, Intecap, Internal Revenue Service, Johnson & Johnson, JP Morgan Chase Bank, Keller Williams, Kersher Trading, KPMG, Merck, Microsoft, Middleton, Burns & Davis, Occidental Services, Inc., Perot Systems, Perryman Consulting, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Protiviti, Quala-T, Steak 'n Shake Operations, Inc., Sterling Bank, Sungard Consulting, TXU, Texas Farm Bureau, U.S. Department of Labor, UBS Financial Services, Inc., and Wal-Mart.

"Student life in the MBA program is excellent," with "ample opportunity to meet interesting business leaders outside of the classroom, attend case competitions, and participate in intramural sports. Additionally, many students find that there is a healthy work-life balance at Baylor 's MBA program." The university "gives free tickets to all sporting events for graduate students, which is a big deal in the Big 12 Conference, and that includes football and basketball games. Business school students often attend the games together." Some students say Baylor is "a conservative Baptist school" that "does not encourage…drinking or partying," so those unaccustomed to a more conservative setting may find the extracurricular scene here "limited."

The Baylor campus features "several resources available for use [by] graduate students only, including a graduate lounge and breakout rooms with access restricted to grad students, which facilitates the ease of group work." When there are "breaks during the day, students usually hang out in the graduate lounge playing ping pong or talking and catching up on each other 's weekend."