I thought that today, rather than writing on a single political issue of note I would take the time to write about a place that has become both my academic and professional home for the summer, UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.
Founded in 1919, as the Department of Commerce, Kenan-Flagler is a world class Business School located in Chapel Hill, NC and Bangkok, Thailand (Kenan Institute Asia), offering internationally ranked undergraduate, MBA, EMBA, MAC, and Ph.D. programs. The school was named after Mary Lily Kenan-Flagler and her husband, railroad baron, Henry Morrison Flagler who during their lives endowed numerous professorships for the growing University of North Carolina, in 1991. The change came after a very large gift by Frank Kenan, who wished to honor his family’s legacy and see the Business School located alongside the Kenan Institute for Private Enterprise in Chapel Hill.
Since that time the school has expanded greatly, opening an Asian campus in 1996, and relocating to a world-class facility in 1997 named after alumnus Hugh McColl. Today the school is home to around 1700 students (630 BSBA) (680 MBA) (320 EMBA) (55 Ph.D.), 153 Faculty, and numerous career, marketing, and IT support staff.
The Programs:
Undergraduate (B.S.B.A.): The undergraduate program at Kenan-Flagler is a two year B.S. degree in Business Administration and is made up of 16 courses (11 core, 5 electives) that give students a basic foundation of business operations, finance, marketing, and communication. Student in this program are allowed to focus their elective studies into one/two area(s) of emphasis (consulting, entrepreneurship, finance, international business, marketing consulting, marketing management, real estate, sales) that give insight into possible career fields. Students wishing to major in Business are required to take a series of pre-requisite courses and apply for admission to the business school their sophomore year. Admission is competitive with only around 50% of UNC-CH students accepted each year. Accepted students then enter the business school their junior year and are given specialized advising and career services housed in McColl building. The program is highly ranked nationally by both US News & World Report (6th) Businessweek (11th) with special notice being given to the marketing and management centers.
Graduate: (Full-Time M.B.A.): The full-time MBA program at Kenan-Flagler is a 21 month, highly intensive, nationally ranked program that prepares students for the challenges of business life. Centered around three core areas, the program consists of 63 credit hours designed to build critical teamwork, inquiry, and management skills through case-studies and team activities. Students entering the full-time program are able to focus their degree to one of 8 concentrations designed to incorporate more detailed and content oriented aspects to the curriculum. Classes are small, with the largest never being more than 70 people and most averaging 20-30 students. While admission is highly selective, those chosen gain access to the Kenan-Flagler alumni network and faculty that are consistently ranked in the top 10 nationally for academic quality and personal experience. In recent years, the program has spent significant resources building the international offerings for MBA students and now offers numerous international programs, partnerships, and visits for those students wishing to gain a broader perspective. The program is currently ranked in the top 20 nationally by all major publications (WSJ 6, FT 20, BW 17, Forbes 15, USNews 20) and in the top 50 programs globally. Additionally, Kenan-Flagler is ranked 14th globally for its triple bottom line initiatives on sustainability and social impact.
Located in Chapel Hill, NC the program is ideally situated next to the Kenan Institute for Private Enterprise, Research Triangle Park, and the state capital of Raleigh, NC. In several courses, students are often taken off-site to visit cutting edge R&D corporations in RTP and meet closely with executives. In addition, cost of living in the Triangle area is very reasonable and an attractive attribute for applicants considering top-MBA programs because of the improved housing and family options available vs. big cities.
Graduate: (Executive M.B.A.): Kenan-Flagler offers three of Executive MBA programs for people wishing to study while maintaining their careers. These programs include Evening, Weekend, and the Global OneMBA. Students in these programs graduate with the same MBA as full-time students but meet in far more flexible manners. Applicants for the EMBA programs usually have between 7-12 years of work experience and are already well established in a career industry. Evening and Weekend programs are offered in Chapel Hill, NC at Kenan-Flagler’s main campus while the OneMBA program is based out of Washington, DC with one weekend in Chapel Hill at the Rizzo Conference Center.
Founded as one of the first truly global MBA programs the OneMBA program brings together five of the world’s premier business schools on 4 continents behind a common curriculum. Students in the OneMBA program learn from a core set of global courses that are taught at each of the participating schools and then are enrolled in a series of regional courses designed to improve their knowledge of local conditions. In addition to having a global curriculum developed by 5 schools, the OneMBA program brings together students from each school together through 4 week-long global residency programs where students come together to experience global business. Through these interactions student gain a true sense of global business, generate global connections, and build an international network of leaders. During the course of the program, students will work in global teams to tackle common issues and build teamwork skills. People interested in this program should check out the OneMBA website at www.onemba.org .
Graduate: (MAC): The Masters of Accounting at Kenan-Flagler is a top 10 program designed to give students a much deeper understanding of corporate accounting and methodology. The program lasts 1 year and is composed of 4 modules (similar to quarters) and a summer session. One highlight of the program is the Global Immersion Elective that allows students the unique opportunity to learn first hand, with professors, how accounting works in other nations. Through a highly flexible program, Kenan-Flagler is able to cater to a students personal accounting interests.
Graduate: (Ph.D.): Kenan-Flagler’s Ph.D program, like many top business schools, is very small (12-15 students per year) and is offered in one of 6 concentrations (accounting, finance, marketing, operations, organization behavior, strategy/entrepreneurship). Students in the Ph.D. program are required to complete a faculty evaluated research paper, a comprehensive course examination, various teaching endeavors, and a dissertation. Students seeking entrance to the Ph.D. program should have some advance course work and high marks in these areas. The program usually takes 4/5 years to complete, with course work taking the first 2.
Through these programs, world-class faculty, facilities, and staff, and a rich history of successful alumni Kenan-Flagler has established itself as one of the worlds premier Business Schools and will continue to lead in areas of entrepreneurship, sustainability, and finance.
