The Fuqua School was full of rigor and dedication to improving decision-making. The people were genuine. While everyone tried to excel, it was full of teamwork.--Marketing
Fuqua's program did an excellent job of allowing a mid-level manager to gain a quality degree while still being able to balance work and personal life. It was not easy, but the program administrators and faculty went the extra mile to make sure that all of our needs and concerns were addressed.--Operations
The reputation of the school, curriculum, and geography were the most important factors in selecting a school. I knew that I wanted a general management curriculum, and I wanted to remain in the Mid-Atlantic area. These criteria alone made Duke the best choice.--Operations
I attended Duke Univeristy's Executive MBA program and found it to be an extremely good choice, even if it weren't located in my own backyard. Its professors and staff were all committed and successful in their own right, the facilities were excellent, and its reputation top-notch.--Strategy
[Faculty strengths/weaknesses?] They challenged me with relevant business problems and encouraged me to share experiences from my company to enhance learning. The only weakness was the lack of recent business managerial experience.--Marketing
[Faculty strengths/weaknesses?] Strengths: Taught from a "real world" perspective about current issues in business. Their content was not dated. The assignments really applied what we learned in a meaningful way. Weaknesses: Since the program moves so fast, it was very difficult to dive deep into specific topics.--Operations
[Faculty strengths/weaknesses?] I believe well over 80% of the instructors were leaders in their respective field (i.e. tenured faculty, with significant reseach/contribution in their field). The balance had significant industry experience, which enriched the classroom experience as well.--Supply Chain
[Improvements?] I was travelling from out of town during class weekends. It just so happens that a lot of my classmates were in the same boat. The school was slow to respond to individual requests for better room and board accomodations for nights outside the program. It wasn't until a group of us approached management that we got what we needed.--Operations
[Changes to program?] At times, discussions were allowed to get out of control. This was especially true for courses where a high component of the grade depended on classroom participation. I believe this style of learning is very effective in smaller groups, but with our class sizes of around 50 students, we ended up wasting time.--General Management
[Improvements?] I would like to have seen more formal family events. A spouse weekend was planned. However, my spouse could not attend, and there were no other formal events planned. Students were encouraged to bring their families anytime, so I don't believe that we missed out on anything. However, a formal event ensured that there would be many spouses in attendance with which to share experiences.--Program Management
[Corporate support?] My company could have given me projects to work on at school that could have benefitted the company. They could have conducted a post-graduation debriefing to find out key knowledge I took away from the program that would help the company.--Marketing
[Corporate support?] My greatest disappointment is that my company does not have a very robust tuition-assistance program for this type of educational endeavor. I'm certainly grateful that an assistance program exists at all, but at 14% of the program's overall costs, it's really not set up for an EMBA.--Strategy
I recommend EMBA programs for people who want to immediately apply what they have learned in the classroom to the workplace and for those who don't want a two-year gap in their work history.--Manufacturing
The program really exceeded my expectations and enriched me greatly, both professionally and personally. I would have gladly paid more for this program.--Venture/Management Consulting