Executive MBA

Program focus

The program focuses on an exceptional educational experience, with the quality and challenge you expect of a well-established, fully–accredited executive MBA program that emphasizes ethical entrepreneurial leadership in a global environment and provides opportunities for relationship building.

Excellence

We have worked for a long time to bring the Pamplin Executive MBA program to market in order to meet the educational needs of managers with a vision for growth in a dynamic environment. The college and its faculty are committed to providing you excellent value for your time and investment.

Ethical leadership

We believe that organizational leaders should possess integrity, not just an entrepreneurial mindset. Guided by consultations with top business leaders and our faculty and alumni, we have designed a curriculum that emphasizes ethically conscious management. We believe that this ethical component in our curriculum makes for a well-rounded business education.

Reputation

For more than 25 years, we have offered a top quality MBA program on our main campus in Blacksburg and in the Washington, D.C. area. We bring this extensive experience and an outstanding faculty to the Pamplin Executive MBA program.

Relationship building

A well–rounded business education is as much about building relationships as it is about leveraging knowledge for organizational performance and growth. Our program is intended for a select group of individuals with significant experience and with a high potential for continued success in their organizations. Students are encouraged to share their professional experiences in class discussions, so you will benefit not only from our teaching and research expertise but also from the other business leaders in the program.

International management

The program prepares students for global business challenges through study–abroad programs that include faculty-led trips to Africa, Asia, and Europe each year. Programs cover a variety of topics including "European Approaches to Information Technology," "Marketing in Turkey and Greece," "Networking and E-Commerce in the European Union" and "Finance and Marketing in Asia." The college also offers a global business minor and a program in the fall and spring semesters at Virginia Tech's Center for European Studies and Architecture in Riva San Vitale, Switzerland.

The Pamplin Executive MBA Program includes a faculty-led program abroad that is part of the course, "International Strategy and Culture." Experiences from the trip will be the basis for some classroom discussions. Students will meet with and learn from business executives at leading international organizations and foreign government offices. Students may also participate in lectures and seminars conducted by our faculty members at our international partner institutions. The residency will be limited to 10 days in consideration of the intense professional demands on Executive MBA students by their employers. The cost of this trip is included in the overall program fee.

Degree Program Curriculum

We designed the Pamplin Executive MBA's interdisciplinary curriculum to provide you with a formal core of business education in the areas of accounting, economics, organizational behavior and decision theory. Followed by the core courses are courses in the more traditional functional areas of business: information technology, marketing, finance, and operations management. An international perspective underlies several of the advanced courses, as does a strong focus on high technology management. Entrepreneurial leadership and change management are key components of the curriculum and are designed to leverage your leadership qualities in a day–to–day business practice, irrespective of your area of specialization or job function.

The range of topics covered ensures that AACSB International requirements are satisfied. (AACSB, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, is the main accrediting agency for U.S. business schools.) These topics stress our program's primary strengths: ethical leadership, information technology, and international business. Our curriculum is constantly updated to keep pace with the growing educational demands of today's dynamic business environment.

Our faculty members bring their research expertise as well as their non–academic professional experience into the classroom. Through case analyses and group projects, you are constantly encouraged to apply what you learn. Class discussions allow you to share your workplace experiences, enriching the learning environment even further. On some occasions, two faculty members may lead a class so that course content can be integrated to create a true business-like environment. Guest speakers from industry and government will be invited to discuss their professional experiences with students. All this fits well with our goal of fostering a challenging learning environment that helps leverage the skills of our faculty as well as our students.

Application Requirements

• Application form
• Resume
• Essay
• Interview with EMBA staff
• Official transcripts (from all institutions attended). We look for a 3.0 GPA in the last 60 credit hours of undergraduate coursework. The minimum 3.0 GPA requirement can be waived if the applicant has a Master's or Ph.D. degree, or has completed at least 12 credit hours of graduate coursework with a minimum GPA of 3.0. Official transcripts for graduate work are required. A GMAT score of 550 may be required if the undergraduate GPA on the last 60 credit hours is below 3.0.
• Application fee $90 payable to "Treasurer, Virginia Tech" (waived for Booz Allen Hamilton employees
• Two letters of recommendation
  Corporate sponsor letter indicating: Financial support (recommended but not required), time off for 4-day orientation, some Friday afternoons, and a 10-day international trip)