Ross School of Business

-This program takes the input from the students seriously and has made steps for improvement. The lodging and classroom facilities were excellent, networking opportunities were created and fostered by program management, the professors were very engaged with the classes, and the hands-on/on-location international experience with the three month long ExecMap program was both a valuable professional and personal experience. The one weekend per month structure made it more "doable" in managing school, work and family. Lastly, I walked away from the program with a great understanding of how to apply what I learned from a managerial/executive standpoint - it allowed us to step back from the detailed theory and apply it in a different setting.

-The grading system was a joke. The program would benefit from moving to a pass/fail system. Often times, we had no idea how the professor graded as we were going into the final exam. This detracted from my learning experience because time was spent worrying about ambiguous grading that could have been spent on learning.

-I truly enjoyed our classroom discussions and debates, a big part of the learning experience - our group was very lively, highly participative. There was the right amount of theory and practice - I felt that all the tools and frameworks were directly actionable in my daily work, especially in strategy, marketing, finance and leadership. The execMAP provides an opportunity to work in an entrepreneurship/start-up environment, however the entrepreneurial classes could be further developed (I know this is in the works, based on student feedback during our program, the Ross EMBA team added entrepreneurship sessions to our program with a highly experienced VC/Marketing faculty professor - this was a real plus/bonus to the program).

-The degree of customer service at Ross is truly outstanding. It seemed as though the administration always knew what was coming next and equipped us for it before we had to ask. While small in number relative to the scale of the full-time program, we EMBAs were truly made to feel a part of the Ross community.

-One of the reasons I attended Michigan was because of the summer ExecMAP program. The experience exceeded expectations. Our team was able to develop a strategic marketing plan for U.S. entry with an Israeli start-up, while working in Paris for one week. The ExecMAP creates an opportunity to apply what we're learning in strategy, marketing, and finance classes to an actual company while working in an advisory role. The experience was life changing. The ExecMAP is another touch that makes the program world-class.

-I would have benefitted from increased curriculum focused on the areas of strength - finance, marketing and strategy, rather than dedicating as much time as we spent on leadership and personal development.

-I cannot think of a more supportive team and structure (logistics, room, amazing new building and very comfortable executive residency). The EMBA team was extremely devoted to all participants and fostering teamwork, and a sense of community...even (and especially) after hours! I liked the fact that all classmates had to spend the night at the executive residency and hence were always available for after class networking, dinners, etc.

-The school needs to continue to scrutinize applicant pool and faculty/lecturer pool. While technology and facilities are strong attractions, the people of Ross (cohort and educators) were the most valuable drivers for my experience. Career resource expansion would also be helpful, as many students now self-fund with the economic downturn and are in need of deeply experienced and well-connected search experts from executive-level agencies.

-The Ross Executive MBA program clearly exceeded my expectations (quality of the faculty, level of expectation, ExecMAP project, diversity and caliper of participants, team work). The program could certainly attract additional international participants, building on the Ross / University of Michigan global brand. I hope it will remain a highly selective program in the future and continue to attract the best participants from all industries. I highly recommend the Ross Executive MBA.

-I’d like to see more keynote speaker programs with industry titans or captains of leadership and more exposure to full-time program offerings or partnerships.

-Michigan has improved dramatically to offer career services. However actual job placement for applicable executive positions would be more helpful as a larger portion of EMBA's are funding tuition on their own and looking for a career change.

-The class requested more insights into entrepreneurship, which was addressed by a two-day session during the final weekend. It whetted the appetite of many in the class on the topic that future curriculums should include. Human resources is another topic that could be addressed in future curriculums in more detail.