Chairman's message: Information Systems in the W. P. Carey MBA climbs in rankings

Business schools are in the midst of rankings season and magazines like U.S. News & World Report have announced their most recent verdicts. At the W. P. Carey School, graduate school rankings are not considered an end-all, but they are important markers of the School’s continued progress in achieving its mission. The IS Department’s graduate MBA specialty program ranking in U.S. News & World Report jumped six spots to 13 from 19. We are pleased with this jump as it reflects the hard work we’ve done to consistently update and upgrade curriculum to ensure we meet and exceed the needs of our recruiters. There are two IS-related options for full time W. P. Carey MBA students – a specialization or an opportunity to earn a second degree – the dual MBA/Master of Science in Information Management (MSIM) route. Both options are tightly integrated with MBA curriculum.

Business schools are in the midst of rankings season and magazines like U.S. News & World Report have announced their most recent verdicts. At the W. P. Carey School, graduate school rankings are not considered an end-all, but they are important markers of the School’s continued progress in achieving its mission.

The W. P. Carey School’s top 30 “best graduate schools for business” ranking for the fifth year in a row by U.S. News & World Report was recently appraised by School Dean Robert Mittelstaedt: “We’re especially pleased because this ranking is determined, in large part, by our peer business schools and corporate recruiters who offer our students jobs.” The magazine ranked the W. P. Carey MBA at No. 30, and the W. P. Carey School is the only Arizona business school to make the top 50. The IS Department’s graduate MBA specialty program ranking in U.S. News & World Report jumped six spots to 13 from 19. We are pleased with this jump as it reflects the hard work we’ve done to consistently update and upgrade curriculum to ensure we meet and exceed the needs of our recruiters. We credit our jump to our faculty’s commitment to the program and to all of the assistance and engagement we’ve enjoyed from industry partners on our Executive Advisory Board and partners from Phoenix metropolitan area professional organizations like the Arizona Society for Information Management, the Phoenix Chapter of the Project Management Institute and the Phoenix Chapter of ISACA (formerly the Information Systems Audit and Control Association but now known its acronym only).

There are two IS-related options for full time W. P. Carey MBA students – a specialization or an opportunity to earn a second degree – the dual MBA/Master of Science in Information Management (MSIM) route. Both options are tightly integrated with MBA curriculum. The dual degree option includes MBA students - for some of their coursework - in cohorts with students from the Evening 12 month MSIM program where enrollees have an average of 8-10 years of experience in information technology-related fields.

MSIM students are almost all working professionals who take what they learn in class and apply it the next day in their jobs. These comingled cohort classes are fascinating to watch unfold, and our faculty members enjoy teaching them. MBA students often comment on the value of the seasoned IT management perspectives they are exposed to, and MSIM students credit their MBA peers with helping to sharpen their strategic and analytical skills - and their overall business savvy. Shared coursework is a win-win. To those of you out there who have helped us achieve this ranking bump – and you know who you are – we sincerely appreciate all that you do. It’s not an end-all, but it does feel pretty darn good!