University of Massachusetts—Lowell - Robert Manning School of Business

Providing a “good balance between reputation and affordability” to business grads in and around the northeast corner of Massachusetts, the University of Massachusetts— Robert Manning School of Business offers an MBA “tailored to meet the busy working person’s schedules.” With “evening classes,” a “practical approach to tests and assignments,” and, most conveniently of all, an “excellent online program” that “allows you to blend online with on-campus courses” (or even take all classes online, if you prefer), a Lowell MBA offers enough “freedom and flexibility” to suit its student body, which largely consists of professionals.

The curriculum also includes seven core courses in accounting, finance, analysis of customers and markets, MIS, operations, managing organization design and change, and strategy. Students have the option to pursue nine MBA concentrations or a general MBA.

UML professors “are excellent and helpful,” “not pretentious,” and “demanding, which helps students do a better job.” The school works hard on the service end; professors and administrators “are hands on, always follow up, and contact you regarding any questions.” That said, UML is a state school, so naturally “sometimes there is non-applicable red tape, like when I was asked for proof of immunizations even though I take all my classes online.” All in all, students appreciate what they have here, reporting that “administrators do the best they can on limited staff and resources.” "You have to remember that you are paying less than a third of what you would have paid at any private college [and] you still get a highly accomplished and dedicated faculty [that] works hard to embed the right kind of morals and values into your brain. The course textbooks, HBR case studies, and other miscellaneous materials are mostly the same as the ones used by the Ivy Leagues. The discussions are intense, and many ideas are innovative. I really don’t think therefore that there is anything lacking academically.”

The UML Career Services Office provides counseling and placement services to all undergraduates, graduates, and alumni of the university. The office organizes a vari- ety of job fairs throughout the school year. It also provides mock interviews, counsels students on resume writing and job-search skills, schedules corporate information ses- sions on campus, and offers access to online job search engines such as MonsterTRAK. The office coordinates the efforts of the University Career Advisory Network, which is essentially an online community of alumni and current students. Employers who most frequently hire UMass Lowell MBAs include: Bank of America, TD Bank, Fidelity, Putnam Investments, Raytheon, Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, EMC, Cisco, US Air Force, and U.S. Government.

Over the years, online course offerings at Lowell have steadily grown in popularity. Students report “great opportunities for building relationships with professional networks,” and others note that “there are many clubs and organizations for students to join. The office of student activities does a great job in matching students with their activities.” These options are only really pursued by the program’s few full-time students or by part-timers who don’t also hold demanding full-time jobs.

Most here don’t fit those descriptions. They’re “working professionals” who “have at least a few years of professional experience and are part-time students who work full- time jobs.” Their experiences “help in discussions in the class, as most of the arguments given are very practical and time-tested, and there is a lot to learn from everyone’s experiences.”