Amazing Opportunities Provided by Walton

I have written many times about the amazing success of Walton's small business plan teams. They have racked up many victories over the years. A new team, Picassolar, went to the Solar Power International conference in Orlando last month. As you can see, they met a rather well-known individual while there. He was quite impressed that a group from Arkansas was working on such exciting solar technology.

Pictured are: Michael Miller (MAcc), Trish Flanagan (MBA), Bill Clinton, Matthew Young (MicroEP PhD), Seth Shumate (MicroEP PhD). 

Stay tuned for updates on Picassolar and the other Walton teams. They will compete in the spring.  

Professional Development

A unique component to the Walton MBA is professional development. The curriculum includes 5 hours of professional development. These hours are fulfilled through a variety of activities. It is very important that our students do not leave Walton only academically prepared; students will leave us as well-rounded and polished professionals. Students will work with the Career Center throughout the three-semester program. Resumes will be fine-tuned and mock interviews will be held. Another option is to meet with an image consultant.

For more information, visit: http://gsb.uark.edu/profdev.asp.

Here is the list of topics for this semester:

Seeking a full-time job post graduation
Negotiating for a competitive advantage: Leveraging conflict best practices
Diversity in the workplace
Etiquette dinner
Microsoft 2010 advanced powerpoint
Microsoft 2010 advanced excel
Six Sigma

The Latest and Greatest from Fayetteville

Those of you who have not visited Fayetteville, AR are truly missing out. I am not a native Arkansan so I feel as though I offer an unbiased opinion. I was born in Coffeyville, KS and raised in Oklahoma. I have also lived in Alaska, Colorado, and Missouri. Fayetteville is a unique community. Check it out at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Afe7yaBRzRU&feature=youtu.be

Fayetteville's Farmers' Market was recently voted as America's favorite - http://www.fayettevilleflyer.com/2012/09/07/fayetteville-wins-2012-americas-favorite-farmers-market-contest/.

US News & World report just released their undergraduate business school rankings. Walton College ranks #26 among public schools of business - http://newswire.uark.edu/article.aspx?id=19138.

The University of Arkansas has an all-time high student population of 24,000+ this year. Parking is challenging and traffic is frustrating. Scooters have become a popular mode of transportation. This parking lot is right beside our building. I had to share this pic.

On sunny days, students enjoy lounging on the fountain in the Shollmier Plaza. The Plaza lies in between our building and the other business building. I am envious when I walk by the window and see this:

My Fall Travel Schedule

Fall has arrived in the Ozarks, thank goodness. We have had unseasonably hot temperatures this summer with many days hitting 100+ degrees. Today is beautiful, sunny, and much cooler. We are expecting a high in the low 80's. The trees will soon start to turn colors. This is truly a wonderful time to be in Fayetteville. I'll post pictures of the fall foliage soon.

My travel schedule this semester is as follows:

September 12, 9:00-11:00-UofA Law School - I have seen increasing interest in the JD/MBA joint degree programs. I will be recruiting at the Law School. I hope to generate even more interest.

September 19 - Career Fair - Tulsa University

September 20 - Career Fair - Oklahoma State University

September 24 - Career Fair - Missouri State University

September 25 - Career Fair - UofA Walton College

September 26 - Career Fair - Missouri Southern State University

September 27, 9:00-11:00-UofA Law School

October 3 - Career Fair - UofA - Pine Bluff

October 4 - Career Fair - UofA

October 17 - Corporate Visit - Walmart's ISD

October 18 - Career Fair - UofA - Fort Smith

October 25 - Information Session - Rogers

October 31 - Career Fair - Arkansas Tech

November 1 - Open House and Social - UofA Walton College

November 6 - Career Fair - University of the Ozarks

November 7 - Career Fair - UCA

Be sure to come see me if I am in your neighborhood. Email questions to gsb@walton.uark.edu.

And Let the New Semester Begin

Classes started on Monday. The month of August is intense in the Walton Graduate School of Business. We are finalizing our fall classes and conducting all of the new student orientations. Deb and I also made a quick trip to Las Vegas last week to attend the ALPFA conference. Today was the annual fall welcome back Block Party. This is a fun event where students can grab a bite to eat and talk to staff and students from many organizations on campus.

Final application deadline for the Walton MBA is September 15. This program begins each January and is completed in 3 semesters and 16 months. Learn more at http://gsb.uark.edu/mba and our application requirements are at http://gsb.uark.edu/admissions.asp.

Teams at Work

New Walton MMBA students are working in teams today during orientation. Tomorrow they will compete in a case competition.

 

MMBA Orientation

We are in Day Three of our part-time MBA program orientation. This program is designed for very busy working professionals. It is completed in two years by taking six hours a semester for six semesters. Students are in class in Fayetteville only one Saturday each month. You can learn more about this opportunity as well as see the schedule for the upcoming academic year at http://gsb.uark.edu/mmba.

The Walton MMBA starts each August with a four day orientation. This year's schedule looks like this:

Thursday, August 2
7:45-breakfast and pictures for meetbook
8:15-welcome by Dean Eli Jones
8:30-introduction of GSB staff by MBA Director Vikas Anand
8:40-icebreaker
10:30-break
10:45-technology training
12:00-lunch with current students and alumni
1:30-program overview
2:00-orientation to online learning
2:30-break
2:45-lecture-introduction to value chain-Dr. Vikas Anand
3:30-lecture-continue topic-Dr. Jeff Murray
5:00-dismiss

Friday-August 3
7:30-breakfast
8:00-lecture-continue topic-Dr. Chris Hofer
10:00-break
10:15-Walton Career Center
10:45-introduction of fall professors
11:30-lunch at Union and student ID's
1:00-lecture-continue topic-Dr. Jason Arentz
3:00-break
3:15-case overview-Dr. Chris Hofer
4:00-hand out competition case
4:30-dismiss
5:00-7:00-networking event at Powerhouse Seafoof & Grill

Saturday, August 4
7:45-breakfast
8:00-case competition rules and team assignments
8:15-case preparation
12:00-lunch
5:00-case presentations due

Sunday, August 5
8:00-breakfast and presentation order revealed
8:30-heat 1
9:10-heat 2
9:50-heat 3
10:30-heat 4
11:10-judges deliberate
11:30-lunch and judges decision revealed
12:30-final round of competition
2:00-judges deliberate and winner announced

This class consists of 55 outstanding students. They work at Walmart, Tyson, JB Hunt, Sam's Club, Coke, Nielsen, Nabholz Construction, ABF, Pfizer, Cobb-Vantress, Kimberly Clark, Johnson&Johnson, Arkansas Electric, the US Military, Fastenal, Fidelity National, and many more.

They attended college at The Ohio State University, BYU, Texas A&M, UofA, Oklahoma State, Miami Univ, SMU, Louisiana Tech, North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Georgia Tech, Villanova, Texas Christian, Westpoint, and many more.

If you want to become a part of the next class, early application deadline is April 1, 2013 and final deadline is July 1, 2013. Application requirements can be found at http://gsb.uark.edu/admissions.asp. Email questions to gsb@walton.uark.edu.