A year before the opening of the Kellogg School of Management’sfirst independent venture next October in Miami, schooladministrators are busy recruiting students, making corporatecontacts and securing faculty for the newest off-campus branch.
The Kellogg Executive MBA–Latin America program will launch inOctober 2005 with a class targeted at about 40 students.
“Clearly the gateway to Latin America is through Miami,” saidJulie Cisek Jones, assistant dean and director of Kellogg’sexecutive MBA programs. “It has always been part of our long-termstrategic position of the Kellogg School to include the LatinAmerican market.”
The executive MBA program began expanding outside itsNorthwestern home in 1996 with a joint international executive MBAprogram at Tel Aviv University in Israel and later added branchesin Germany, China and Toronto. The joint degree programs allowKellogg to partner with academic institutions in other countriesand strengthen the university’s reputation, Cisek Jones said.
“It gives you an opportunity to expand the global reach of yourfaculty,” she said. “And by having a greater exposure withininternational markets, it creates value for the institution.”
The Miami branch marks the fifth off-campus location of theexecutive MBA program, but it is the first time Kellogg will notpartner with another institution. The two-year program isstructured toward mid- to senior-level managers from Latin Americawith about eight to 10 years of professional experience. Studentsin the inaugural class will graduate in June 2007 with a master’sdegree in business administration.�
“There comes a point within your career where you realize howmuch you don’t know,” said Cisek Jones. “To move your career evenfurther, you need further training and you come back and dosomething like your MBA.”
Because the average student already is employed and could needto take some time off work, corporate sponsorship and support isintegral to the program, Cisek Jones said. Classes will not be helddaily to accommodate students’ work schedules; they will insteadtake time off work and commute to Miami for a long weekend eachmonth and for two intensive week-long sessions during the year.
“It needs to be carefully orchestrated but it’s doable,” CisekJones said.
Formal recruiting for the Miami program begins in November witha series of visits throughout Latin America and recruiting eventsin the Miami area. Although applications will not be accepted untilJanuary 2005, Cisek Jones said Kellogg is looking for students from”a nice blend of traditional corporations, smaller organizationsand family-run businesses.”
Tuition for the Miami program will be identical to the cost ofattending the executive MBA program on the Evanston campus — about$114,000 for two years, including housing, books and materials.Cisek Jones said that “the vast majority” of student’s tuition issupplemented completely or in substantial part by theiremployers.
Kellogg professors will commute from NU to teach in Miami.Students will be required to complete 25 core courses and fourelectives to graduate.
“I said ‘yes’ right away,” said Al Isenman, professor ofmanagement and strategy at Kellogg. “I believe in the school’sstrategy of establishing a global footprint in South America. Itsounds like an interesting and engaging way for me professionallyto make a contribution.”
Isenman has taught at Kellogg for more than 20 years and said heexpects to teach the general management course in Miami. He hasalso participated in the joint venture programs in Germany, Chinaand Canada. Isenman said he has heard people refer to Miami as thecapital of South America and expects to see a class with strongrepresentation from the major economies in Latin America.
“If it’s more likely that that’s going to happen in Miami,” hesaid, “then what a unique opportunity for a teacher to get thatkind of diversity in the classroom.”
Reach Andrea Chang at [email protected].
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