Program Overview
The objective of the Manderson MBA program at The University of Alabama is to prepare high-achieving, high-potential students for successful business careers in a globally competitive environment. The MBA program has a commitment to providing a high value-added experience within a diverse and collaborative learning environment. The curriculum emphasizes fundamental business concepts, knowledge, and skills through an interdisciplinary perspective. Case studies, projects, teamwork, and technology contribute to a dynamic applied learning environment.
MBA Program Formats
The Manderson MBA Program is offered in a variety of formats. The Traditional MBA is a full-time, two-year program that requires a focused area of study and is entered after the completion of an undergraduate degree. The STEM and CREATE Paths to the MBA are five-year programs integrated with quantitative and creative undergraduate disciplines, respectively, at The University of Alabama. The STEM and CREATE MBA programs also require a focused area of study.
Traditional MBA
The Traditional MBA program begins in the fall semester. Students must be enrolled for four consecutive Fall and Spring semesters that span over the two-year program. During the intervening summer, students are expected to be involved in meaningful internships to further enhance their professional experiences. Students take a prescribed program of courses and cross-discipline work that blends the analytical tools of management and the functional areas of business into a general management perspective. Topics include accounting, economics, finance, management, marketing, operations, strategy, communications, information systems, and statistics. In addition, each student pursues elective courses leading to a mandatory focused area of study. Course selections for the focused area of study are made with the advice of faculty and staff advisors. Teaching methods combine cases, lecture-discussion, and projects. Small class sizes allow faculty members to use a variety of techniques for enhanced learning.
STEM Path to the MBA
The STEM Path to the MBA is a five-year program designed for entering University of Alabama freshmen majoring in a STEM area (science, technology, engineering, or mathematics). This program integrates business honors courses with the STEM undergraduate degree and culminates in the MBA program. Students in the STEM MBA program begin the MBA by taking online courses in the summer semester after the completion of their junior year of their undergraduate major. Students will complete another summer semester of online MBA courses after finishing their STEM undergraduate degree. Students will then enter a full year of MBA program study (in-person) to complete their MBA degree. During the two summertime periods, students are expected to be involved in meaningful internships to further enhance their professional experiences.
During each semester of their four years of undergraduate study, students enroll in a 1.5 credit-hour Business Honors course. These honors courses focus on communication and leadership skills. Students work in teams on community projects to develop both an appreciation for and a basic understanding of the importance of management skills in science and technology careers and to create an opportunity to interact with other STEM/CREATE students, as well as with executives from technology companies and MBA faculty members.
The Business Honors courses are taught by a faculty member who is assigned to the cohort in the freshman year and works with them through their senior year. This provides continuity of contact and allows the faculty mentor to track the students through the program.
During the sophomore, junior, and senior years, STEM discipline students can expect to be off campus and involved in internships, cooperative-learning experiences, and other online learning activities. The Business Honors courses include extensive use of digital technology: streaming video of presentations from guest speakers, teleconferencing for student presentations and class meetings, and the use of course management software that allows off-campus students to remain engaged and participate in coursework.
CREATE Path to the MBA
The CREATE Path to the MBA is a five-year program that targets students majoring in one of the various creative disciplines, including, but not limited to: art, music, fine arts, literature, fashion retailing, advertising, apparel and textiles, interior design, modern languages and classics, theater, and dance. This program integrates business honors courses with the CREATE undergraduate degree and culminates in the MBA program. Students in the CREATE MBA program begin the MBA by taking online courses in the summer semester after the completion of their junior year of their undergraduate major. Students will complete another summer semester of online MBA courses after finishing their CREATE undergraduate degree. Students will then enter a full year of MBA program study (in-person) to complete their MBA degree. During the two summertime periods, students are expected to be involved in meaningful internships to further enhance their professional experiences.
During each semester of their four years of undergraduate study, students enroll in a 1.5 credit-hour Business Honors course. These honors courses focus on communication and leadership skills. Students work in teams on community projects to develop both an appreciation for and a basic understanding of the importance of management skills in science and technology careers and to create an opportunity to interact with other STEM/CREATE students, as well as with executives from technology companies and MBA faculty members.
The Business Honors courses are taught by a faculty member who is assigned to the cohort in the freshman year and works with them through their senior year. This provides continuity of contact and allows the faculty mentor to track the students through the program.
The program is centered around innovative solutions to real-world problems and runs parallel to its sister program, the STEM Path to the MBA. Using nontraditional classroom methods and experiential learning opportunities, students on the CREATE Path to the MBA have the opportunity to grow both academically deep into their chosen major and functionally broad across different areas like communication, leadership, and professionalism. An added benefit from running parallel to the STEM Path to the MBA is that CREATE MBA students will gain exposure to the technical backgrounds of their peers, further diversifying their frame of reference for problem-solving.
Dual Degrees
JD/MBA Joint Degree Program in Law and Business
The University of Alabama School of Law and the Manderson Graduate School of Business offer students, who are interested in combined business and legal career opportunities, a law and MBA curriculum culminating in the awarding of the juris doctor (JD) and MBA degrees within four years. Admission is required into both programs. Further information about the joint JD/MBA Program may be obtained by contacting the director of the MBA Program and/or the Law School admissions office as well as by visiting the respective websites.
MBA Dual Degrees in Engineering
The Manderson Graduate School of Business and the College of Engineering offer students from an engineering background an opportunity to receive both their MBA and Master of Science in engineering (Civil or Mechanical) within two calendar years. Prospective students must be admitted to both programs before being allowed to pursue the dual curriculum. Further information about the dual MBA/ENG programs may be obtained by contacting the director of the MBA Program and/or the Engineering admissions office as well as by visiting the respective websites.
MBA/MFA Dual Degree
The Manderson Graduate School of Business and the College of Arts and Sciences offer students an opportunity to receive both their MBA and their Master of Fine Arts (Theater Management) within four years. Prospective students must be admitted to both programs before being allowed to pursue the dual curriculum. Further information about the dual MBA/MFA program may be obtained by contacting the director of the MBA Program and/or the Theater Management office as well as by visiting the respective websites.
Admissions
Application Requirements
In addition to the minimum Graduate School admission requirements, to be considered for regular admission an application must include:
- Applicant interview
- A resume
- 3 letters of recommendation
- Test Scores
- GMAT or GRE required
- GMAT/GRE exam waivers possible; waiver requests evaluated on a case-by-case basis
- A TOEFL score of of at least 100 or an IELTS score of at least 7.0 for non-native English speakers who are required to submit an English Language test score (see admissions criteria link below)
See the Admission Criteria section of this catalog for more information.
Application Deadlines
Traditional Full-Time MBA
- October 15: 1st round deadline
- January 5: 2nd round deadline
- February 15: 3rd round deadline
- April 15: 4th round deadline
- May 30: 5th round deadline. (Only offered if space remains in the class)
STEM/CREATE Path to MBA
- Deadline: November 15th for all applications
- Term Start: Applicants in the Path program only: Please select the term “Summer” for the year you plan to start (summer after Junior year).
- To qualify for the Path MBA option, students must have a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA and be on track to complete 91 credits by the end of spring for their planned Junior year and enrolled in the STEM/CREATE Path Undergraduate program from your Freshman year at the University of Alabama. In addition, participation in the Path program as a Freshman through Junior year does not guarantee acceptance to the MBA portion of the STEM/CREATE path program.
Curricular Requirements
The Traditional MBA program requires the completion of 57 credit hours and offers seven (7) focused areas of study: Business Analytics, Cybersecurity, Finance, Financial Risk, Real Estate, Supply Chain & Operations Management, and Strategic Management & Marketing. The Traditional MBA program has 36 credit hours of Core Requirements. The remaining 21 credit hours are related to a focused area of study.
The STEM/CREATE MBA program requires the completion of 51 credit hours and offers four (4) focused areas of study: Business Analytics, Financial Engineering, Real Estate, and Supply Chain & Operations Management. The STEM/CREATE MBA program has 39 credit hours of Core Requirements. The remaining 12 credit hours are related to a focused area of study.
The Core Requirements are listed below followed by the Focused Areas of Study (FAS) for the Traditional and STEM/CREATE MBA programs.
Traditional & STEM/CREATE - Core Requirements | Hours |
AC 506 | Concepts Financial Managrl Acc | 3 |
EC 500 | Managerial Economics | 3 |
FI 504 | Financial Management | 3 |
GBA 525 | Business Policy | 3 |
IBA 550 | Global Business | 3 |
MGT 517 | Leadership & Ethics | 3 |
MGT 542 | Management Communication | 3 |
MIS 511 | Management Information Systems | 3 |
MKT 518 | Mkting Mgmt & Decision Making | 3 |
OM 506 | Business Spreadsheet Analytics (OM 500 for STEM/CREATE) | 3 |
OM 516 | Operations Management | 3 |
ST 509 | Stat For Business Appl (ST 560 for STEM/CREATE) | 3 |
GBA 571 | STEM Business Honors VII (STEM/CREATE ONLY) | 1.5 |
GBA 572 | STEM Business Honors VIII (STEM/CREATE ONLY) | 1.5 |
Traditional MBA Focused Areas of Study (FAS)
For all FAS listings, required FAS core courses (if any) are listed first, followed by elective course options. Advice of the designated FAS faculty or graduate advisor should be sought in FAS course selections.
Business Analytics
Business Analytics FAS Core Courses | Hours |
ST 521 | Statistical Data Management | 3 |
ST 522 | Adv Statistical Data Mgt | 3 |
ST 531 | Data Mining I | 3 |
ST 532 | Advanced Data Mining | 3 |
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Cybersecurity
Cybersecurity FAS Core Courses | Hours |
MIS 505 | Enterprise Network & Security | 3 |
MIS 561 | Applied Cyber Security | 3 |
MIS 563 | Behavioral Cyber Security | 3 |
MIS 564 | Org. Security Management | 3 |
MGT 520 | Change Management | 3 |
ST 540 | Stat Prog & Comp with R | 3 |
ST 560 | Statistical Methods | 3 |
OM 525 | Effective Quality Management | 3 |
MKT 542 | Digital/Social Media Analytics | 3 |
Finance
Finance FAS Electives | Hours |
FI 505 | Corporate Valuation | 3 |
FI 506 | Mergers & Acquisitions | 3 |
FI 510 | Financial Management | 3 |
FI 512 | Money And Capital Mkts | 3 |
FI 514 | Investments | 3 |
FI 515 | Quantitative Investment Analys | 3 |
FI 522 | Bank Administration | 3 |
FI 534 | Seminar In Real Estate | 3 |
FI 535 | Real Estate Invest & Develpmnt | 3 |
FI 597 | Special Topics: Finance | 1-6 |
Financial Risk
Financial Risk FAS Core Courses | Hours |
FI 419 | Financial Derivatives | 3 |
FI 515 | Quantitative Investment Analys | 3 |
FI 519 | Financial Engineering | 3 |
FI 520 | Financial Risk Management | 3 |
FI 505 | Corporate Valuation | 3 |
FI 506 | Mergers & Acquisitions | 3 |
FI 510 | Financial Management | 3 |
FI 512 | Money And Capital Mkts | 3 |
FI 522 | Bank Administration | 3 |
FI 531 | International Finance | 3 |
FI 534 | Seminar In Real Estate | 3 |
FI 597 | Special Topics: Finance | 3 |
Real Estate
Real Estate FAS | Hours |
FI 534 | Seminar In Real Estate | 3 |
FI 535 | Real Estate Invest & Develpmnt | 3 |
FI 522 | Bank Administration | 3 |
FI 597 | Special Topics: Finance (Real Estate) | 3 |
FI 597 | Special Topics: Finance (Real Estate Appraisal) | 3 |
FI 597 | Special Topics: Finance (Real Estate Management) | 3 |
EC 597 | Special Topics In Economics (Urban Econ) | 3 |
GBA 515 | Effective Negotiations | 3 |
MKT 537 | Personal Selling | 3 |
LAW 679 | Real Property Security | 3 |
LAW 694 | Land Use Planning | 3 |
LAW 766 | Real Estate Development | 3 |
CE 563 | Construction Cost Estimating | 3 |
CE 567 | Constr. Accounting & Finance | 3 |
Supply Chain & Operations Management
Supply Chain & Operations Management (SCOM) FAS Core Courses | Hours |
OM 517 | Supply Chain Modeling & Analys | 3 |
OM 523 | Inventory Management | 3 |
OM 527 | Purchasing and Sourcing | 3 |
MKT 530 | Advanced Marketing Analysis | 3 |
OM 522 | Production Scheduling Problems | 3 |
OM 525 | Effective Quality Management | 3 |
OM 540 | Systems Simulation | 3 |
ST 532 | Advanced Data Mining | 3 |
ST 561 | Applied Design Expermnts | 3 |
MKT 510 | Prod Design Marketing Strategy | 3 |
Strategic Management & Marketing
Strategic Management & Marketing FAS Core Courses | Hours |
MGT 526 | Strategic Analytics | 3 |
MGT 552 | Project Mgmt & Consulting | 3 |
MGT 520 | Change Management | 3 |
MGT 531 | Employee Recruitment, Selection, and Placement | 3 |
MGT 537 | Strategic Human Resources Management | 3 |
MGT 552 | Project Mgmt & Consulting | 3 |
MGT 582 | New Venture Development | 3 |
MKT 510 | Prod Design Marketing Strategy | 3 |
MKT 511 | Supply Chain Management | 3 |
MKT 522 | Advanced Supply Chain Strategy | 3 |
MKT 530 | Advanced Marketing Analysis | 3 |
MKT 531 | Consumer Insights | 3 |
MKT 537 | Personal Selling | 3 |
MKT 540 | Intro to Digital/Social Media | 3 |
MKT 542 | Digital/Social Media Analytics | 3 |
MKT 543 | Adv Digital and Social Media | 3 |
IBA 560 | Adv. Import/Export Strategy | 3 |
STEM/CREATE Focused Areas of Study (FAS)
For all FAS listings, FAS core courses (if any) are listed first, followed by elective course options. Advice of the designated FAS faculty or graduate advisor should be sought in FAS course selections.
Business Analytics
Business Analytics FAS Core Courses | Hours |
ST 521 | Statistical Data Management | 3 |
ST 522 | Adv Statistical Data Mgt | 3 |
ST 531 | Data Mining I | 3 |
ST 532 | Advanced Data Mining | 3 |
Financial Engineering
Financial Engineering FAS Core Courses | Hours |
FI 519 | Financial Engineering | 3 |
FI 520 | Financial Risk Management | 3 |
FI 505 | Corporate Valuation | 3 |
FI 506 | Mergers & Acquisitions | 3 |
FI 512 | Money And Capital Mkts | 3 |
FI 515 | Quantitative Investment Analys | 3 |
FI 522 | Bank Administration | 3 |
FI 572 | Financial Econometrics | 3 |
FI 597 | Special Topics: Finance | 3 |
Real Estate
Real Estate FAS Core Courses | Hours |
FI 534 | Seminar In Real Estate | 3 |
FI 535 | Real Estate Invest & Develpmnt | 3 |
FI 597 | Special Topics: Finance | 3 |
FI 522 | Bank Administration | 3 |
FI 597 | Special Topics: Finance (Real Estate Appraisal ) | 3 |
FI 597 | Special Topics: Finance (Real Estate Management) | 3 |
EC 597 | Special Topics In Economics (Urban Econ) | 3 |
Supply Chain & Operations Management
Supply Chain & Operations Managment (SCOM) FAS Core Courses | Hours |
OM 517 | Supply Chain Modeling & Analys | 3 |
OM 523 | Inventory Management | 3 |
OM 527 | Purchasing and Sourcing | 3 |
OM 522 | Production Scheduling Problems | 3 |
OM 525 | Effective Quality Management | 3 |
OM 540 | Systems Simulation | 3 |
ST 531 | Data Mining I | 3 |
ST 532 | Advanced Data Mining | 3 |
ST 561 | Applied Design Expermnts | 3 |
MKT 510 | Prod Design Marketing Strategy | 3 |
MKT 530 | Advanced Marketing Analysis | 3 |
Transfer Credit
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Time Limits for Degree Completion Requirements
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Academic Misconduct Information
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Withdrawals and Leave of Absence Information
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Academic Grievances Information
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Grades and Academic Standing
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Graduate School Deadlines Information
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Application for Graduation Information
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