Editor's Note: BusinessWeek collected graduate comments in 2000 during its ranking of full-time MBA programs. The next ranking is scheduled for fall, 2002.
Overall, experience was relatively patchy. There are some excellent courses taught by outstanding faculty, and there were some pretty dismal ones, too. However, I feel it was a great experience all considered. --Finance
I have thoroughly enjoyed and benefited from my MBA experience. Having completed my undergraduate [degree] at a relatively large school (Penn), I did not realize before coming to Rice how invaluable the small school atmosphere would be to me. I can literally name every single person in my B-school class of 135, and will most likely keep in touch with the vast majority of these people after graduation. Moreover, the professors here are truly focused on teaching and their students. Almost all of them are not only are professors, but also our mentors and friends. --Nonprofit
Rice is making great strides toward becoming a top tier school, but it has much to do before it would be worthy of such a rating. My greatest grievance is that too many unpaid adjunct professors teach the second-year electives. Typically, all of the interesting elective courses will be offered only as night classes, due to adjunct faculty -- that's not what I had in mind when I quit my job to attend a full-time MBA program. If the students are full-time, so too should be the faculty!! --Marketing
The first semester was extremely difficult with an almost impossible workload. The administration, however, was very responsive in making some adjustments to rectify this through better coordination and a more level workload, which improved the program dramatically. The action learning project (ALP) in the second semester was one of the best experiences I have had in business. The entrepreneurship, IT, and e-commerce programs are excellent! Despite Rice's VERY strong finance program, I was drawn to a concentration in IT based on the quality of the instructors, relevance of the material, my love of IT in general, and the MANY networking experiences provided by the program. The program allowed me to move away from my strict manufacturing background to become COO of an Internet startup. I couldn't be happier!!!!!! --Information Technology
Good teamwork environment; good finance instructors; small classes, easy interaction; affordable tuition and living expenses. --Finance
If you want to go into the energy business, there is NO better school in the nation to attend. Technology is a fast-developing interest area. Several students are going to high-tech companies. Through the Houston Technology Center, the school has developed a strong connection with local startups, even hosting recruiting events. The first-year class this year was also loaded with investment banking talent. Their internships vary from Goldman Sachs to Chase to Robertson Stephens to DLJ. --Finance
I have really enjoyed my time at the Jones Graduate School of Management. It's a great program that is improving every day. The small class size enables you to develop a lot of great relationships with classmates. --Consulting
I thoroughly enjoyed my MBA experience, even tough I had a minimum amount of work experience in a program where the average experience was four to five years. I came into the Rice program when it was going through a transition. The curriculum changed drastically, and classes were added that focused on the human side of business, classes such as negotiation, leadership, and change management. Of course these classes helped me build my HR skills, but when coupled with the traditional business classes, I was given an edge.
Things were not all perfect at Rice. The curriculum during the first year is extremely a heavy, and some teachers disregarded the fact that students had been assigned a great deal of work in other classes. I felt overwhelmed many times during my first year, and at one time I contemplated dropping out. The school is building a new facility to be opened in 2002, but the building we are currently in is cramped. There are not enough rooms for team meetings, and at times I had to come early to get a decent seat in my classes. During a finance project, my team members became so frustrated with my lack of understanding that they eventually began ignoring my questions and finished the project without me. I had to practice finance with another group. However, the administration at Rice did try to work through the students concerns. --Human Resources
I am extremely satisfied with my overall experience at Rice. There are certainly areas for improvement, but they are being addressed in a very aggressive manner. The dean is a shining star and really has got the program moving in the right direction. The new director of career planning is a tremendous asset to the school, and I have every confidence he will improve what I consider the weakest aspect of the school. The new building should only further serve to improve the school's upward momentum. Rice is noted for its architecture, so I am sure it will be an excellent facility.
The professors are top notch and extremely accessible. This year we have a marked increase in people who have chosen marketing, and many of them have gotten jobs with excellent companies. This is a major change from a school which used to predominately provide finance folks for the oil & gas industry. This diversity in job function will serve the school well in the future. --Marketing
Rice is a good program with good students and some excellent professors. The size of the school limits the number of electives offered. The number of electives available to be offered is further reduced because of the faculty offering classes to both full-time and executive MBA students. Rice is very open to suggestions and made some of the executive MBA classes available to full-time students. Additional hiring of full-time faculty would help reduce the stretching thin of faculty in the future. --Finance
The primary recommendation I have for Rice would be to change the order of the curriculum. The first year is heavily weighted with "soft" courses such as leadership, ethics, and a class titled Power and Politics. While important, I could have been taking advanced classed in finance that would have better prepared me for summer internship interviews in spring. As it was, students from schools that taught finance electives in the spring had a huge advantage over Rice students. One that proves difficult when trying to break into Wall Street with Rice's other inherent disadvantages (not Ivy League). --Finance
The Rice University MBA program creates a climate of success. The courses are demanding and the workload is intensive, but the interaction between students and teachers creates an environment that allows everyone to grow. The culture is such that students actually challenge professors to push harder. I feel very confident that this program will prove to have given me the skills to exceed the expectations of my superiors. --Consulting
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Copyright 2001 , by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved.
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