Courtesy/University of Maine System
J. Michael Weber, dean of the University of Maine School of Business, expects the incoming spring 2020 class to be the largest ever, at around 65 students.
Updated: January 24, 2020
Rebranded MaineMBA program soars in national rankings
Courtesy / University of Maine
Enrollment in the University of Maine System's rebranded MaineMBA program has gone up 85% in 18 months.
A year and a half after the University of Maine System's graduate business degree was rebranded as the MaineMBA, the program shot up 43 places in a national ranking.
U.S. News & World Report, in its latest scorecard of online MBA programs published last week, puts the MaineMBA at No. 47 out of 335 schools in the country. It rose from No. 90 in 2019 and No. 131 in 2018.
Programs were evaluated on criteria including student engagement, expert opinion, faculty credentials and training and student services and technologies.
The new ranking puts the MaineMBA in a seven-way tie with programs at Baylor University in Texas; Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va.; Pepperdine University in Los Angeles; the University of Delaware; West Chester University of Pennsylvania; and West Virginia University.
J. Michael Weber, hired in July 2018 to lead the new University of Maine Graduate School of Business, on Thursday told Mainebiz he was pleasantly surprised by what he considers "the gold standard' for rankings.
“Investment in innovation has really driven that particular ranking,” he added.
That includes investments in faculty and leadership, so-called smart-classroom technology at campuses in Portland and Orono and the introduction of concentrations.
As of this spring, the program will offer concentrations in accounting, analytics and finance this spring, taught by faculty from the University of Maine, University of Southern Maine and the University of Maine at Presque Isle.
A number of other concentrations are also being planned. They include health care management and hospitality management in collaboration with the University of Southern Maine's Muskie School and outdoor industry management in collaboration with the University of Maine at Farmington.
Weber said the concentrations are being added in response to demand, noting: "We're listening to what the MBA market wants in terms of specificity and content. Employers want that, too."
Joanne Williams,the dean of USM's College of Management and Human Services, had a similar observation, telling Mainebiz that the opportunities to collaborate through the MaineMBA "are tapping into talent and expertise at the University of Southern Maine School of Business, the Muskie School, and across the System."
She added: "We are proving students with more flexibility, access to our connections in the Portland economic region, and rich programs well-aligned with workforce needs and the professional goals of today's graduate business students."
Growing enrollment and applications from away
Weber pointed to the 15-to-1 student-to-faculty ratio as another plus of the MaineMBA program, along with its affordability — costing out-of-staters $563 per online credit hour, or about half the average tuition of the top 50 ranked online programs.
"That's a narrative we will put together as part of our message this spring," Weber said.
Current enrollment is around 180, up from 97 the fall of 2018, and Weber said he expects the incoming spring 2020 class to be the largest-ever at around 65 students.
"What we're seeing is the quality of the inbound student is going up," with higher GMAT scores, higher undergraduate GPAs and more experience in the workforce, he said. Out-of-state applications are also increasing, mainly from elsewhere in New England but also as far afield as Texas and the West Coast, he said.
"We want to make sure we've serving the citizens of Maine," he said, but "we we also have an interest in workforce development, and in bringing people to live and work in Maine."
On a more general note, University of Maine System Chancellor Dannel Malloy said via email, "The early success of the statewide MaineMBA exemplifies how our universities can work together to the benefit of our students and the state. Maine's demographic and workforce challenges are dire,and we are committed to delivering student success and academic innovations that make a difference for our state, its employers and communities."
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