1-year MBA at Lehigh University with 8-Weeks Internship & Coaching Teams

Lehigh University at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania has kicked off 1-MBA, its first 1-year MBA program in January with the promise of a reduction in opportunity costs compared to a 2-year program, an 8-week internship and coaching teams that focus on each student’s professional goals and career aspirations.

The full-time program is aimed at professionals who want to build a career in a business-related area that may not be in their previous field of employment, or accelerate their careers within their chosen field. The rigorous curriculum with a total 50 credits starts with a 2-week pre-program session (5 credits) and moves on to a 7-week session on functional area core knowledge and stakeholder perspectives session of the same duration (7.5 credits each).

A 4-week Integrating Societal Shifts Session follows with 12 credits. The 8-week internship/equivalent experience has 3 credits. Electives are taken care of during the 14 weeks Fall semester with 15 credits.

A dedicated coaching team will be assigned to each student prior to arriving on campus. The teams will comprise a 1-MBA program faculty member, Lehigh alumnus and Career Services staff member. The teams will focus on the student’s professional goals and career aspirations. They will personally serve as mentors and assist students in identifying internship opportunities and subsequent full-time job placement.

“This program was built from the ground-up, with an eye towards success factors necessary in today’s global marketplace,” said Professor Nandu Nayar, chair of the 1-MBA Task Force. “The innovative and rigorous, integrated curriculum recognizes the challenges and solutions required to lead in today’s business environment.”

The academic cycle for 1-MBA is from January through December (inaugural class: January 2017-December 2017). Leigh says starting the 1-MBA in January will provide students with sufficient business background to prepare for a June-August summer internship.

Given that the summer internship is often the path to full employment upon program completion, a December finish allows firms to on-board 1-MBA graduates in January instead of waiting until the traditional start date of May.

Faculty Speak

Georgette C. Phillips, dean of the College of Business and Economics expressed the hope that the one-year duration, cross-disciplinary approach, focus on student experience and the other unique features of 1-MBA will resonate in the marketplace with both students and employers.

“This program was built from the ground-up, with an eye towards success factors necessary in today’s global marketplace,” said Professor Nandu Nayar, chair of the 1-MBA Task Force. “The innovative and rigorous, integrated curriculum recognizes the challenges and solutions required to lead in today’s business environment.”

Participant’s Impressions

1-MBA student Richard London says he is happy with the faculty and staff support. “The professionals at Lehigh have vast experience and they are always willing to share and offer guidance,” he says.

“Before I started back to college, the concept of teaming was very foreign to me. Working in teams with people you don’t know well, but, share a common goal with is what occurs in the real world. Using teaming on a regular basis in the program gives all of the teammates experience for when we get into the real world,” he says.

On internship, Richard says, “From the moment we started we have been working toward getting an internship for the summer. Although the internship will provide valuable experience from the workplace, focusing on the internship right from the start has forced us to start applying the skills we are learning to develop ourselves to stand out from the crowd when employers are hiring.”

Wondering how to apply to our one year MBA program? All the application deadlines and requirements can be found below. We recommend that you start gathering your materials a few months in advance of the application deadline. This ensures that you have enough time to request transcripts from your undergraduate institution, register for and take the GMAT or GRE, and obtain letters of recommendations from past professors or employers.

Application deadlines, Tuition Fees & Other Expenses

The application process for 2018 academic session started from January 1 with Round 1 having ended on March 1. Round 2 deadline is June 1 and Final on September 1.

International applicants who accept the offer of admission must submit a financial guarantee demonstrating sufficient funds to meet educational expenses for the first year of study. Scanned copies of the original bank statement or bank letters are acceptable. The financial guarantee should be no more than 6 months old.

Include a letter of sponsorship if the expenses will be paid by someone other than the student. These documents should be emailed to the Graduate Programs Office at [email protected]. The minimum amount you must cover to show solvency for immigration documents is $79,370 and includes the following costs: Tuition $63,000; Health Insurance $1,970, 12-months living expenses $14,400.

The total amount needed for Financial Guarantee will be $79,370. It is also the minimum amount you must show for immigration purposes. The student’s actual expenses will be greater and the financial explanation of costs per program can be seen on the tuition webpage.

Immigration documents will only be issued upon acceptance of an offer of admission from Lehigh University and verification of your financial guarantee, TOEFL score, and non-refundable $1,000 tuition enrollment deposit has been received.

Asa Packer Social Entrepreneurship Award (APSEA)

The Asa Packer Social Entrepreneurship Award is available for those pursuing a career in a non-profit social enterprise. Lehigh has launched an open competition for the Award, named after the founder of the University. It will provide a full tuition scholarship plus a stipend of $18,000 to aid with expenses during the year-long program.

This competition is open to any social entrepreneur, aspiring social entrepreneur, or leader of a social enterprise, from anywhere in the world. The Award winner will be selected on their potential for creating a positive impact on the world, the scalability of the idea, the leverage an MBA education would provide to help realize your potential, and the viability of the organization.

Applicants must have an undergraduate degree from a recognized, accredited educational institution. Application consists of a series of essay questions and a video submission. The deadline for submission of application forms for APSEA will be June 1, 2017.(Image Source: Google.com)