1999 Profile Update
School Statistics
Graduates' Comments
SURVEY DETAILS
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Carnegie Mellon's business school jumped three places in 1998, to No. 14, from No. 17 two years earlier. The rise is due to an 11-place jump, from 26th to 15th, in the corporate poll. Recruiters were thoroughly impressed with CMU grads' technology and operations abilities, rating them second-best in both categories. They also ranked CMU seventh-best for its students' analytical skills. Graduates, for their part, were also quite happy with their two-year experience, voting their school fifth in the graduate poll. They were ecstatic about the info-tech component of their program, rating it numero uno in the Top 25. Given their appreciation, it's not surprising that they ranked CMU first for its computer knowhow and second for bolstering their abilities to use technological tools.
Another reason for CMU grads' satisfaction: their placement outlook. CMU is the only school to assign each of its students an alumni mentor -- that may have helped students secure employment. On average, each received 3.7 job offers, fourth-most in the elite grouping, while nearly 95% had a job at graduation. Those that netted jobs received an average total comp package worth $128,457 -- a sum that placed them in the middle of the Top 25. But more impressive is the 98% increase in base salary the average grad experienced from his pre-enrollment levels ($81,257 vs. $41,070), tied for the second-highest in the Top 25. On a down note, however, CMU could stand to increase its student-body diversity. With underrepresented minority students making up just 3% of current full-time enrollment, the school ranked dead last in the Top 25; and a meager 24% female student enrollment landed them second from the bottom (ahead of only Chicago). But internationals take note: As a class percentage, CMU enrolled the most foreigners in the Top 25 (tied with Maryland at 39%).
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STRATEGY FOR APPLICANTS
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Minority applicants should take an extra-long look at Carnegie Mellon, since they may have an important advantage here. The reason: Of all the Top 25 B-schools, GSIA is dead last in the number of minorities enrolled in its master's program. Only 3 percent of full-time MSIA students are African American, Hispanic-American, or Native American, despite Dean Douglas M. Dunn's efforts to build relationships with traditionally black universities and the availability of special scholarship moneys for minority students. The dean says he hopes to enlist industry's help by figuring out ways to pre-admit minority students straight from undergraduate programs who would then work at firms for a period of time to build experience before arriving at GSIA.
Dunn has had better luck attracting women, upping the school's female enrollment from a paltry 19 percent in 1996 to a more respectable, but still somewhat low, 24 percent in 1998. Students pitched in as well, with the Graduate Women in Business Network establishing an outreach program to contact all women admitted into GSIA to answer questions about the program and student life. "Our women graduates have been very successful, and in fact our top student awards for two of the last three years have gone to women," Dunn says.
The school says it seeks "highly motivated individuals with superior intellectual capabilities," and applicants are advised up front to keep GSIA's quantitative focus in mind: "The rigorous curriculum at GSIA will challenge you, push you, and help you to achieve more than you ever thought possible." Translation: Be prepared to work your butt off. A demonstrated capacity for mathematics is essential; students are required to have completed not one, but two, semesters of calculus before enrolling -- if not by application time. Applications are considered in three decision periods, with replies anticipated about a month after each deadline; after March 12, applications continue to be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis until the class is filled. The application can be mailed in on paper or filled out and submitted via computer by linking to the school Web site.
Interviews are strongly recommended, and can be conducted by admissions officers on campus, at candidate forums held in selected cities across the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Latin America throughout the fall. If you come to campus, you can be paired up with a student host who will give you a tour, buy you lunch, and escort you to a class. International applicants who may be nervous about attending school in the U.S. should be aware that Carnegie Mellon offers a Summer Institute before first-year classes start to ease the cultural and academic transition, with intensive classes in communications and presentation skills, teamwork, and classroom interaction. Students also analyze a case, participate in a mini-simulation game, take classes in accounting, organizational behavior, and financial and strategic decisions, and make company visits.
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CURRICULUM
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Electives available in 1998: 113
New electives in past three years: 30
The core curriculum was last revised in: 1994
Accelerated MBA program offered?
No
New Courses in Past Three Years
Cultural Factors in Business, Electronic Commerce and Virtual Business, Machine Learning for Business, Meeting the Challenges of Corporate Leadership, The Global Economy, Venture Capital and Private Equity, End-User Programming for Virtual Businesses, International Business Management, Strategic Finance Decisions and Control Lab, Theory and Policy of Modern Finance, Interpersonal Managerial Communications, Modeling for Management Science, Business and Social Evaluation of Requiring Reformulated Gas, Business Environmental Management &, Green Design, Commercialization of New Product Technology, Computer Industry II, Co. Strategy in Finance, Entrepreneurial Decision Making, Entrepreneurs and American Economic Growth, Introduction to Entrepreneurship, Manufacturing Strategy, Leadership in the Modern Corporation, Production Plan in Global Environment
Most Popular Electives
Corporate Restructuring, Studies in Corporate Finance, Competitive Strategy, Business Leadership in Changing Times, Options, Pricing, International Finance
Most Popular Professors
Robert Dammon, Bryan Routledge, Jeffrey Williams, Shridar Tayur, Chris Telmer, Ron Wilcox
Majors or Concentrations Added in Past Three Years
None
Teaching Methods
Lecture: 40%
Case Study: 20%
Other: 40%
| Full-time faculty members: |
|
86 |
| Adjunct or visiting faculty: |
7 |
| Average core class size: |
80 |
| Average elective class size: |
30 |
Laptop computer required?
Yes
Grading System
All core courses are graded. Each semester students may take two electives on a pass/fail basis.
Exchange Programs or International Campuses
Aoyama Gakuin University (Japan); Koblenz School of Management (Germany); Lyon Gradaute School of Business (France); Manchester School of Business (United Kingdom); Wirtschaftuniversitat (Vienna, Austria)
Best Areas of Study
General Management, Production Operations Management, Finance, Information Systems, Entrepreneurship, Quantitative Methods
Areas School Would Like to Improve
All
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1998 PLACEMENT
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On-campus recruiters for graduates: 245
On-campus recruiters for first-year internships: 89
On-campus student full-time job interviews: approx. 2,729
On-campus student internship interviews: 1,239
Job opportunities posted via the Internet or E-mail: 3,773
Top Employers/Number of 1998 Hires
| Coopers & Lybrand |
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15 |
| Intel |
11 |
| Deloitte & Touche |
10 |
| Citibank |
8 |
| Anderson Consulting |
6 |
| Columbia Energy Co. |
6 |
| PNC Bank |
6 |
| A.T. Kearney |
5 |
| Booz Allen & Hamilton |
5 |
| Ford Motor Co. |
5 |
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ALUMNI NETWORK
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Number of living alumni: 4,890
Alums who gave to the school during the 1997/98 academic year: 30%
Median alumni gift: $100
Number of alumni clubs: 49
Number of dues-paying members: N/A
Number of staffers devoted to MBA alumni relations: 3
Placement services offered for alumni?
Yes
Description of Alumni Placement Services
Alumni have access to all of the school's placement services with the exception of on-campus employee interviews.
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1999 Profile Update
School Statistics
Graduates' Comments
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Key Contacts
School Web Site
E-Mail:
gsia-admissions@andrew.cmu.edu
Address:
Graduate School of Industrial Administration
Schenley Park
Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890
Dean:
Douglas M. Dunn
(412) 268-2266
Director of MBA Programs:
Fallaw Sowell
(412) 268-3769
Director of Admissions:
Laurie Stewart
(412) 268-2273
Director of Alumni Relations:
Michon Kerlin
(412) 268-6227
Director of Financial Aid:
Lauren Tracey
(412) 268-7581
Director of Career Services:
Jean Eisel
(412) 268-2277
Application Deadlines:
U.S.
March 15, 1999
International
March 15, 1999
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