Why Quality Professors Are an Important Component to an MBA Education

Earlier this week, Ernst & Young LLP awarded five top business school faculty members with the first-ever Inclusive Excellence Awards, recognizing their work helping to create a more diverse learning environment that will ultimately help students succeed in today's global workforce.

We at MBA Podcaster are thrilled to hear the news about this new award recognizing star business school faculty. We know how big a role professors play in creating a quality MBA education for business students. That's why it's important to review the strength of the faculty at the business schools you are applying to. The good ones will often leave lasting impressions on your personal and professional life.

In our podcast, Star Professors, we interview some of the experts from top business schools about how to make sure you find the best professors to learn from. Here are some highlights from that show:

• Getting to know the faculty and their teaching methods can help you find the school that's a good fit for you.
• Showing that you are familiar with the faculty on your application will help your chances of getting in.
  
• Most schools have faculty evaluations available online. One example of a helpful resource is ratemyprofessor.com.
  
• Many professors are former executives from big companies that may have helpful connections when you are looking for a job or internship.
• Most faculty members make themselves available outside of class time to get to know students personally and provide additional advice.

Do you know any star business school professors? Share them with us here and tell us what makes them so outstanding!

U. of Chicago GSB: Listen to a Day in the Life on Campus

We visited Chicago GSB to shadow a current student, speak with the Dean, the admission's director and other people on campus to bring listeners a "day in the life" perspective. Listen to the show on iTunes, or on our site, and get a behind the scenes look at life and times on campus:
http://www.mbapodcaster.com/DayInLife/CHICAGO_DayInLife.asp

Guest List:

• Jen LaBelle, MBA Student
• Allan Friedman, Communications Director
• Stacy Cole, Deputy Dean
• Julie Morton, Associate Dean for Career Services
• Rose Martinelli, Associate Dean for Student Recruitment and Admissions
• John Lawrence Etame, MBA Student and Member of the Chicago African Business Group
• Jeffrey Anderson, Associate Dean for LEAD Program

We are the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. Since 1898, we have produced ideas and leaders that shape the world of business. Our rigorous, discipline-based approach to business education transforms our students into confident, effective, respected business leaders prepared to face the toughest challenges. As part of the world-renowned University of Chicago, we share the university’s core values that shape our distinctive intellectual culture. At Chicago GSB, we constantly question, test ideas, and seek proof. This extraordinarily effective approach to business leads to new ideas and innovative solutions. Six of our faculty members have won Nobel Prizes for these ideas - a record no other business school has matched.

We are proud to claim an unmatched faculty, degree and open enrollment programs offered on three continents, a global body of nearly 39,000 accomplished alumni, and strong and growing corporate relationships that provide a wealth of lifelong career opportunities. As the second-oldest business school in the world we are consistently ranked among the top business schools in surveys with an enrollment of 1,100 full-time MBA students, 1,400 evening and weekend MBA students, 480 executive MBA students and 120 PhD students. Visit University of Chicago Graduate School of Business website here.

Getting A Rejection Letter: What To Do?

There's been an uptick of MBA applications in recent years and this means more competition. As more candidates are vying for the same number of seats at business schools, more applicants are unfortunately getting rejected. Some schools encourage you to reapply while others don't. This time, we'll learn from admissions officers about the re-application process, where you can find feedback, and how you can recover from rejection and re-energize your application to get accepted next time.

Listen to our most recent show on Re-Applying to Business School After Being Rejected.

Guests include:

* Caroline Diarte Edwards, Director of Admissions, Marketing, External relations for MBA programs, INSEAD
* Monica Farrell, Assistant Director for MBA Admissions, USC Marshall School of Business
* Beth Flye, Director of Admissions and Financial Aid, Full-time MBA program, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
* Tina Mabley, Director of MBA Admissions, McCombs School of Business, University of Texas at Austin

Do you have experience with re-applying to business school? Let us know!