Introducing new MBA concentration in entrepreneurship
September 2, 2009
MBA students can now specialize in developing their entrepreneurial potentialRutgers Business School’s newest MBA concentration in entrepreneurship was designed for students who want to develop skills to launch new businesses, or take on business development and other leadership roles at growth-oriented organizations. The new concentration encourages students to generate new sources of enterprise, come up with innovative business ideas, and create new jobs. “Our deep dive into entrepreneurship combines fostering an entrepreneurial culture wherever you work, whether it be a small firm or large enterprise,” said Susan Gilbert, Executive Director and Associate Dean of the MBA Program. “We want our MBA students to create new sources of wealth, jobs, and revenues in New Jersey and around the world.”This fall, six courses in entrepreneurship concentration will be offered, and ten will be offered in the spring of 2010. “Students will be able to tailor their Entrepreneurship Concentration with various course options including: Technology Ventures, Social Entrepreneurship, Urban Entrepreneurship and Economic Development, and Evaluating New Business Ventures, among others,” said Assistant Professor of Management and Global Business, Jeffrey Robinson. “These courses provide students with an opportunity to understand the dynamics of starting and running different types of ventures.”Rutgers Business School provides the ideal location and resources for MBA students who wish to prepare themselves for an entrepreneurial career. With active research centers like The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development at Rutgers Business School (CUEED) working with small business owners near campus in Newark, NJ, students have just as many resources outside the classroom as they do inside. CUEED, the first center in the country of its kind, brings city organizations, private investment, and academics together in a real-world example of entrepreneurship and economic development for students.RBS involvement with the Business, Engineering, Science, and Technology Institute (BEST) provides some financial resources for students who have a promising venture proposal. BEST has created an environment that cultivates entrepreneurship by accelerating the commercialization of Rutgers’ intellectual property, and promoting educational programs that teach and train Rutgers students in all aspects of entrepreneurship and innovation commercialization, both theory and practice.“Within the subject of entrepreneurship, we have a focus on urban development with The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development at Rutgers Business School (CUEED) and commercializing new scientific discoveries with the Business, Engineering, Science, and Technology Institute (BEST),” said Gilbert. “We also have rich sources of scholarship and teaching content in creativity and managing technology and innovation.”Many MBA students have become excited about their newest concentration option. "I became interested in the concentration in entrepreneurship when I saw the long list of courses offered under it,” said Nicole Ricchione, part-time MBA student entering this fall. “I want to be better able to recognize new opportunity and embrace creativity in a competitive market. I feel that by developing these entrepreneurial skills, I will be of great value to my company.”The entrepreneurship concentration is the seventh one available to MBA students. The others are finance, information technology, management & global business, marketing, pharmaceutical management and supply chain management. Students also have an option to customize their MBA concentration.This new addition to RBS is just one example of the school’s unique multidisciplinary approach to business education. By involving research centers that focus on technology and business innovation and entrepreneurship, RBS is truly delivering the business, science, and technology credentials demanded by global corporations.Hannah Redmondhredmond@business.rutgers.edu
