Wharton’s MBA Program for Executives was recently selected as an Apple Distinguished Program for its innovative use of iPads. Wharton CIO Dan Alig talks about this honor and explains how the iPad project began.

There are thousands of iPad pilot projects in schools across the country and we are honored to receive this distinguished honor. Apple recognized our program based on five criteria: visionary leadership, innovative learning and teaching, ongoing professional learning, compelling evidence of success, and a flexible learning environment. It’s exciting to be selected for having one of the more successful and innovative pilots using Apple technology.

Our iPad project began with the vision of literally lightening EMBA students’ loads. We were spending inordinate amounts of money and resources distributing paper materials to students that could be provided digitally on an iPad. And students, who commute to our executive MBA programs in Philadelphia and San Francisco from around the world, were lugging those materials to campus every other weekend. So starting with the incoming class in 2011, every EMBA student began to receive an iPad.

We often get the question “Do you need to be a math major to succeed in Wharton’s EMBA program?”  The answer is no.  As Wharton | San Francisco EMBA alumnus Mike Gipe, WG’05, puts it:  “Wharton’s EMBA program is very rigorous, but students from all types of backgrounds can be successful here.”

Mike - who runs the consulting business xaplap in Saratoga, CA and teaches a weekly tutorial session for core courses in the EMBA program - ran a one-day Quantitative Review Workshop on the San Francisco campus for prospective students.  “Anybody who has applied to our program likely has had most of the math courses they need so it’s more a matter of brushing up on those skills.  How often would a nonprofit manager need to use calculus on a daily basis?  It’s something a lot of people are rusty in and this workshop was designed to help them catch up,” says Mike.

We’d like to thank our Wharton executive MBA students and alumni who have served or are still serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. In honor of Veterans Day, we’ve highlighted a few of their stories in the links below.

Dan Pick & Lisa Nagorny

Ryan Nelson

Charles Pell

Stan Allen

When James Kilpatrick, president of the commercial real estate firm NAI Northern California, was invited to a Wharton executive MBA admissions reception by a friend, he wasn’t really considering pursuing an MBA.  But after attending the event “just for fun,” he was so impressed with the students and alumni -- and how their Wharton education was impacting their careers -- that he began to research MBA programs that very night.

“I saw it as a way to shift the trajectory of my career and move my company forward, but also as a form of personal development.  I found that Wharton’s EMBA program was hands down the right choice because it’s a world apart in terms of the commitment level and culture of the students and the rigor of the curriculum,” recalls Kilpatrick. “It really spoke to me that world-class faculty and students and top companies from thousands of miles away all had this enthusiastic interest in participating in Wharton’s EMBA program in San Francisco.”

Now a first-year executive MBA student at Wharton | San Francisco, he says a highlight of the program has been the guest speakers. “The Wharton brand is very strong and speakers want to come here. We often get one or two major speakers during class sessions, which leads to a jam packed day, but that’s just the way most of us like it. I recently leveraged the Wharton brand and invited my neighbor Tom Perkins to speak. The cofounder of Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers is arguably one of the most successful venture capitalists in the history of Silicon Valley and shared unique insights into the world of VC and entrepreneurship, discussing his views on best practices for investors and entrepreneurs, and answering questions about what types of solutions he might focus on if here were in the shoes of our EMBA class.”

While students in Wharton’s EMBA program commute from all over the world, a highlight of the program is its distinctly residential feel. In part this is due to the requirement for students to stay over on class weekends at either a designated hotel in San Francisco or the Steinberg Conference Center in Philadelphia, but it’s also because of the many social activities that facilitate class bonding.

We asked Wharton | San Francisco first-year student Vivi Lynch, senior production manager at Guess in Los Angeles, Calif., to tell us about how students in her class are making connections.  Here’s what she said:

When students graduate from Wharton’s EMBA program, their partners also receive a degree of sorts. We call it a Master’s of Understanding, and it’s our way of showing partners how much we appreciate their support. Students juggle full-time jobs and school along with all of their other personal responsibilities, and partners are an essential part of their support networks.

We asked two partners to share their experiences and offer a few tips for the partners of prospective students:  Lauren Tanzer, whose husband Matt just graduated in May from the Philadelphia program, and Susan Weems, whose husband Nathan just graduated from the San Francisco program.

Wharton | San Francisco has grown quite a lot since its first class of 65 students arrived in 2001. Eleven years later, the program is now located in the historic Hills Brother Plaza and is welcoming a record number of 102 students.

The West Coast incoming class is comprised of approximately a quarter women with almost 18% of the class commuting from outside California. Those students are based in locations such as Georgia, Minnesota, Colorado, Florida, North Carolina, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Texas and even Mexico and Hong Kong.

It’s an exciting and important achievement to graduate from Wharton’s MBA Program for Executives in San Francisco and Philadelphia and join Wharton’s 88,000-member alumni network.

During their two years at Wharton, students juggle demanding jobs and a rigorous curriculum as well as family and community responsibilities. They commute from near and far – sometimes even internationally. And many of their families grow. In this year’s graduating West Coast class, we’ve celebrated four weddings and the birth of 14 babies. In our East Coast class, we’ve had 10 weddings and celebrated the birth of 18 babies.

The 83 students in the Wharton | San Francisco graduating class work in a diversity of industries, such as semiconductors, technology, consulting, energy, aerospace and entertainment. The majority commuted from Silicon Valley, San Francisco and the Bay Area, but others came from Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Utah and Washington.  After graduation, one student is planning to join the FBI, four are moving to China, and one is potentially moving to Africa.

The West Coast program’s graduation ceremonytook place May 6 at Herbst Memorial Theater in San Francisco and featured commencement speaker Carol Bartz, former CEO of Autodesk and Yahoo! Graduating student Dr. Howard Willson gave the student speech.

A team of Wharton executive MBA students in Philadelphia was awarded first-place in Wharton’s Business Plan Competition. Second-year classmates Eric Heil, a venture capital associate at Domain Associates in Princeton, N.J., Matt Tanzer, an associate director at Shire Pharmaceuticals in Wayne, Penn., and Mrinal Bhasker, vice president of technology and principal at Audacious Inquiry in Baltimore, Md., won the $30,000 grand prize for their plan for RightCare Solutions.

When Prof. Peter Cappelli says that times have changed in terms of careers, he isn’t exaggerating. At a recent online live webcast from Wharton | San Francisco, Prof. Cappelli spoke to prospective applicants about why it’s more important than ever to take charge of your own career.

While it was once common to expect employment at the same company for your entire career, that is clearly not the case anymore. The same can be said of succession plans and workforce planning. Companies are more likely to replace talent from the outside and spend fewer resources grooming employees for long-term employment.

As for employees, they are changing jobs on a much more frequent basis. But at the same time, people are staying in the same function longer. This raises the issue of how do you get out of your silo? And if you stay at your company, how do you continue to add value when the company can’t be sure it will need your particular skillset down the road?

An MBA degree, he said, is a good avenue to consider. “It’s up to the employee to get the skills needed and keep those skills up to date. Employees have to manage their own careers and that is a difficult thing to do. It’s something that requires initiative, but often the opportunities are in front of you and you just have to figure out how to negotiate for them.”

This may mean spending time thinking about how to ask for sponsorship since companies in today’s economy may not have tuition reimbursement programs in place. “But if you can figure out what skills will be hot then you can make the case for going back to school. And if you can get those skills into your tool belt then you’ll be in a great position to take better control of your career,” he said.

Watch the replay of the webcast, which includes a tour of Wharton’s new facility in San Francisco and a Q&A session with alumni from both the East and West Coast EMBA programs.

Wharton’s EMBA program is known for having a global focus with its International Seminar; however the addition of global modular courses has taken this to a whole new level. Launched in 2010, the week-long  mini-courses offer students opportunities to learn about topics such as financial institutions in Abu  Dhabi, supply chain management in Shanghai, innovation in India, and leadership and conflict resolution in Rwanda.

Having recently returned from the course in Rwanda, we asked EMBA students Marla Bleavins and Bill Williams to tell us about their experience. Here’s what Marla, a second-year student at Wharton | San Francisco who is a special projects manager for Los Angeles World Airports, had to say:

“Most Americans know about Rwanda because of the tragedy of genocide that happened there in 1994, but we aren’t as familiar with the progress the country has made since then. It’s the fastest growing economy in Africa and one of the safest and least corrupt countries on that continent so I was intrigued to learn more about it through this course, which was taught by Prof. Katherine Klein and called, ‘Leadership, Conflict, and Change.’

Philadelphia deadline:   Wed., 2/1/12 at 11:59pm EST
San Francisco deadline:  Mon., 2/6/12 at 11:59 PST

Please call the office of the program to which you’re applying if you need to arrange an extension of the deadline.  Phila: 215-898-5887 / SF: 415-777-1000

Ins and Outs of Interviews for Wharton EMBA Candidates

If you are applying – or thinking of applying – to Wharton’s MBA for Executives program, call us soon to schedule an interview.  Don’t wait until you’ve finished your application to schedule an appointment because slots on class days are filling up fast.

Get insights on the future of jobs from a top Wharton professor, learn more about our EMBA program from Philadelphia and San Francisco alumni, and see what our new campus looks like in San Francisco, then make sure to join us for a virtual reception on Mon., January 23 from 9:00pm-10:00pm EST / 6:00pm-7:00pm PST.

Hosted by Vice Dean Anjani Jain, the event will feature a presentation by renowned labor expert Prof. Peter Cappelli on how the global economy is impacting careers and what this means for the future of employee development. Prof. Cappelli, who teaches negotiations, also will share tips that may help you secure support for your MBA studies and career development.

Afterward, a panel of alumni from our Philadelphia and San Francisco EMBA programs will discuss how the Wharton MBA and network have shaped their careers.  You’ll have an opportunity to ask questions of both Prof. Cappelli and the panelists via your computer or mobile device.

In addition, West Coast COO Bernadette Birt will take participants on a virtual tour of our beautiful new San Francisco campus.  A 21st century learning environment, you’ll see how our technologically advanced facility was designed to provide the most cutting-edge and connected classrooms possible.

To register for this live webcast on Jan. 23, click here.

 University of Pennsylvania will be closing on Fri., Dec. 23rd at 12:00pm EST.  If you have any immediate admissions questions, please contact our offices before that time.  Our Philadelphia office will reopen on Tues., Jan. 3rd at 9:00am EST. Wharton | San Francisco will close at 12:00pm PST on Dec. 23rd and reopen on Jan. 3rd at 9:00am PST.

As you work on your application over winter break, here are a few things to keep in mind:

Congratulations to East Coast second-year Executive MBA student Mike Patterson for winning a National Science Foundation Innovation Corps Award!

Patterson and his teammates from the University of Pennsylvania were selected for their venture, Graphene Frontiers.  We asked Patterson to tell us about what it means to have won this award and how he became involved with this startup. Here’s what he said:

“Winning the NSF award was great.  Not only did we win $50,000 for our postdoctoral fellow Zhengtang Lao to work on the venture full-time, but we gained credibility.  The NSF picked only a handful of teams nationwide, and so the award is a validation that we’re onto something big.

The University of Pennsylvania will be closed from 12:00 noon on Wed., November 23, 2011 until 9:00 AM on Mon., November 28, 2011 (local time, in both Philadelphia and San Francisco). Happy Thanksgiving!

Wharton Executive MBA students have a lot on their plate with school, work and personal obligations.  So why do they need MBA Exec Career Management Services?

“Everyone can benefit from learning how to manage their career over the course of their lifetime,” says Mary Gross, director of MBA Exec Career Management for Wharton’s East Coast program.  “Students may have a great job now, but they want to continue to grow in their career, so we help them learn to identify next steps and the actions they need to take to get there.”

Steve Hernandez, director of MBA Exec Career Management at Wharton | San Francisco agrees, describing their role as career coaches.  “Career management is not just about moving up the ladder or changing jobs, but rather the ability to determine goals whatever those may be and then to go after them.”

We’re all excited about Wharton | San Francisco’s move in January to the Hills Plaza Building on the San Francisco Embarcadero. Not only will it provide us more space, but the facility will also feature “a 21st century learning environment.” To learn more about the technology going into the new space as well as other technology initiatives in Wharton’s MBA Exec program, check out Wharton CIO Deirdre Wood’s latest blog on the Wharton Magazine site:

“Kicking off a new academic year is always an exciting time, but that is particularly the case this year as we’re immersed in designing and building classrooms of the future. Wharton’s upcoming move to a new San Francisco facility has provided us an opportunity not only to design the most cutting-edge and connected classrooms possible, but also to bring that technology back to our campus in Philadelphia. As a top business school, our constituents expect a 21st-century learning environment, and we are providing that on both coasts.” more...

Bruce Crocker, a legal advisor and trustee for the Hillman family in Pittsburgh, applied to Wharton’s MBA for Executives Program in Philadelphia not only to enhance his understanding of the investment landscape, but also because he thought the rigorous academic program would be good for his “60-year-old brain.” So far, he’s gotten a lot more from the program than he originally planned, including a vast knowledge about India’s healthcare system, new friends in India, and first-hand experience as a consultant.

We proudly congratulate our newest Wharton MBA alumni!

They’ve accomplished so much in the last two years, balancing work, family, and the rigors of school. They commuted from near and far, many have gotten married, even more have expanded their families, and everyone has made life-long connections.

Coming from a diversity of backgrounds, the 96 students in our Wharton | San Francisco graduating class include successful entrepreneurs as well as executives working in fields like healthcare, technology, energy, consulting, and investment management.  During the program, four got married and 15 had babies with several more due this summer.

Most of these Wharton | San Francisco grads live in Silicon Valley, San Francisco and the greater Bay area, but many commuted from southern California as well as Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Nevada, Texas, and Washington.  And just under 40% of the class was comprised of international students.

Graduating in a May 8th ceremony at Herbst Memorial Theater in San Francisco, their featured commencement speaker was Larry Baer, President and COO of the San Francisco Giants.  29 of those graduates also attended the MBA graduation ceremony in Philadelphia, held on May 15th at the University of Pennsylvania’s historic Franklin Field, with many gathering at the Inn at Penn for a special celebratory breakfast with friends and family.  The East Coast ceremony featured keynote speaker Vikram Pandit, CEO of Citigroup.

The Philadelphia based East Coast class of 114 graduating students also represents a wide variety of industries including consulting, financial services, healthcare, aerospace, and real estate.  Similar to the West Coast class, many students expanded their families during the EMBA program, with seven students who were married and nine babies born.

Most of the Philadelphia class came from Northeast Corridor – Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C., but several commuted from Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas and even Ontario, Canada.  International students represented more than 35% of the class.

Graduation is an exciting and important achievement and we wish everyone the best of luck!   Please stay in touch!