For some people, having a Ph.D. would be the end of their higher education journey. Jeff Anderson earned his doctorate in chemistry from Washington University and has a job he loves as the director of Clinical Data Analytics Platform at Mayo Clinic. Yet he says, “I felt there was a gap in my business knowledge.”
So Anderson did what lifelong learners do, he began researching how he could expand his understanding of the business world. That’s when he found the Labovitz M.B.A. program on the Rochester, Minnesota, campus.
“The fact that UMD's Labovitz School of Business and Economics is accredited was a decider for me,” Anderson says. “The U of M is very recognizable. That’s important, and the program was convenient,” he added. The program’s format offers Friday afternoon and Saturday morning classes that take place on alternating weekends. “We had live lectures and a lot of in-person interaction.”
There was group work both in class and outside of class. “I enjoyed developing personal relationships with other students.” The cohort included people who were a year ahead of him and a year behind him.
“There was diversity – not geographically – but in age, gender, ethnicity, and stage of career,” Anderson recalls. “Most people were in mid-career, but some were further on in their professional lives.” In addition to Mayo Clinic, students were employed by IBM, Hormel, and other organizations.
Anderson found the capstone project very relevant. “A lot of MBA programs have students create a mock company. Our capstone project involved developing winning strategies for existing companies. These were real companies with real challenges and opportunities. This was very helpful to me. Not many of us work for start-ups,” he said.
“It was interesting to take all of the things that I’d learned through the program and pull it all together. We all took the capstone seriously. It was absolutely realistic.”
As the father of six children, work-life balance is important to Anderson. “Even with kids and a demanding job, I found the program was manageable. It definitely stretched me, but it was enjoyable.”
While he was in the program, Anderson was awarded two fellowships. “I was really fortunate to receive the LSBE Graduate Student Tuition Fellowship in 2018–19 and the Maki Graduate Tuition Fellowship in 2019–20.
Anderson, who graduated in August 2020, would recommend the program to anyone interested in expanding their business knowledge. “I absolutely loved it. It was a confidence builder, and the instructors were amazing. It definitely benefited my career.”
Learn more about the Labovitz MBA in Rochester.