University of California—Riverside - A. Gary Anderson Graduate School of Management

Combine the Southern California climate with a “fantastic school” offering “generous financial aid, and it’s easy to understand why the A. Gary Anderson Graduate School of Management at UC—Riverside gets such high marks from students. One raves, “I am having the time of my life [and]…feel very privileged to be here.” Many MBA candidates here are taking their first steps in the business world, as applicants are not required to have work experience—which can be a good or bad thing depending on who you talk to. Some feel that the program only offers a “surface-level understanding of business.” Other students laud the “challenging” classes, bolstered by the “very accessible” professors who “care very much about their students’ learning and understanding of the course material.” However, some gripe that a few seem “more focused on research, and not curriculum.”

The six components of an MBA from AGSM are the core courses, an internship, the communication workshop, the electives, a “capstone course,” and a case project or thesis.

Though the core courses take up more time than any other single component, students are most enthusiastic about the “wide diversity of electives,” which are all seminar size and designed to “encourage participative learning.” One student explains, “I love coming to a small school like UCR’s AGSM. You get real interaction with professors, and all of the students know each other, which allows for tighter bonds and networks.” There are ten areas of electives, and students are allowed to take up to nine courses from any area, such as accounting, entrepreneurial management, finance, general management, human resources management/organizational behavior, international management, management information systems, management science, marketing, and production and operations management.

Most students agree that “discussion is greatly encouraged” in class. A fair number of courses “require presentation with business formal attire” and some “even require group debate.” One student notes, “It gives you some pressure, but it’s fun.” Some lament the feeling that the university “does not attach [enough] importance to our business school,” and hope for this to change in the near future. Others, though conscious that the school is a “research-oriented university,” wouldn’t mind getting more “attention from some professors” who they find to be “mostly researchers and not lecturers.”

Aside from recent budget cuts, the thing that has most students at AGSM up in arms is the Career Resources Center. As one student says, “The school desperately needs a stronger Career Counseling Center designed just for the MBA students.” Another adds, “I really think the school should begin to target the school’s alumni more. There are many UCR MBAs in the industry and they could be a real resource and asset to the school.” The MBA now has its own Career Services, which should help alleviate many of the students’ concerns regarding “job placement,” “internships,” and “professional networking.”

In recent years, Riverside, California has undergone both something of a renaissance and an influx of people. Gone are the days of quiet orange groves, and in their place resides the veritable capital of the Inland Empire. Whether your tastes run to the great outdoors or to great shopping, students find “plenty of unique hangouts, interesting shopping, and a wide variety of eats to fit anyone’s desires (and budget).” Some MBA students feel that they “lack social activities” within the program, though in many instances this could be blamed on the large amount of “homework” these students undertake. That said, as the university (and those that surround it) continue to grow, students can expect more avenues to their social outlets to open.

The school itself is housed in a 30,000-square-foot building that features “state-of-the-art research and teaching facilities.” MBA students agree that their “computer lab is very nice” and relish that they, as MBAs, “have priority over all computers in the lab.” Other students gripe that they’re stuck in “a small building that consists of one lecture room and one classroom. Our school has suffered greatly from the previous budget cuts.” Still, the building must have something going for it because “MBA students rarely venture onto the main campus at [UC Riverside], unless it’s to go to the library or bookstore.”

Students report that “most people are very nice, and it is easy to meet new people if you try.” These “very laid-back and friendly” students have formed “a tight-knit community here because our graduate program is so small.” “I pretty much know and am friends with every other MBA student,” says one. Due to the proximity of students, there is “a level of competition between students during academic competitions and presenta- tions,” but most happily note that “it is healthy and in good fun.”