The University of Tennessee’s Martin Online MBA

If you’re a business professional in the banking industry or in some form of financial services role with at least two years of work experience, you’re ripe for the University of Tennessee at Martin’s Online MBA Program for Financial Services Professionals. The program is geared toward people with an undergraduate degree in business and, particularly, those who work in banking and other finance areas.
On the other hand, if banking, wealth management, or some other finance-related industry isn’t your forte, don’t let that deter you from applying to UT-Martin. The school says its online MBA program is open to students in all fields. What’s more, there are multiple ways to go about getting an MBA there even if you don’t have prior business experience or a work history that’s rooted in finance.

Students who don’t have an academic or professional background in business can enter the online MBA program, but the school will require you to take foundational, prerequisite courses in Financial Accounting, Statistics & Probability, or Operations Management within the first two semesters.

Another option is UT’s Hybrid MBA, also offered through UT-Martin’s College of Business and Global Affairs. No business background is required and students complete the program through a combination of online and hybrid courses. They can opt for a General MBA or an MBA with Agricultural Option.

GO AS YOU PLEASE
The online program is conducted 100% online. Not only do students never set foot on campus, but they’re able to log in and do course work whenever and wherever they please so long as weekly deadlines and assignments are met on time. The program does not require any live class time and all the degree requirements can be…

If you’re a business professional in the banking industry or in some form of financial services role with at least two years of work experience, you’re ripe for the University of Tennessee at Martin’s Online MBA Program for Financial Services Professionals. The program is geared toward people with an undergraduate degree in business and, particularly, those who work in banking and other finance areas.
On the other hand, if banking, wealth management, or some other finance-related industry isn’t your forte, don’t let that deter you from applying to UT-Martin. The school says its online MBA program is open to students in all fields. What’s more, there are multiple ways to go about getting an MBA there even if you don’t have prior business experience or a work history that’s rooted in finance.

Students who don’t have an academic or professional background in business can enter the online MBA program, but the school will require you to take foundational, prerequisite courses in Financial Accounting, Statistics & Probability, or Operations Management within the first two semesters.

Another option is UT’s Hybrid MBA, also offered through UT-Martin’s College of Business and Global Affairs. No business background is required and students complete the program through a combination of online and hybrid courses. They can opt for a General MBA or an MBA with Agricultural Option.

GO AS YOU PLEASE
The online program is conducted 100% online. Not only do students never set foot on campus, but they’re able to log in and do course work whenever and wherever they please so long as weekly deadlines and assignments are met on time. The program does not require any live class time and all the degree requirements can be completed in under two years.

For current student Adam Bucci, this was the big draw to enrolling in an online MBA. With two young children and a full-time career, the New Jersey resident said the thought of three hours a night, two nights a week for four years was overwhelming for him. “Unless you’re early in your career, it’s very difficult to spend four or five years trying to get an MBA,” he says. Bucci entered the program with 10 years work experience as a financial analyst working in consumer products. The MBA was something he always wanted to do, but it was just a matter of committing to it. “I thought online was the best approach as it would allow me to do work on lunch breaks and while the children were sleeping. At UT-Martin, specifically, getting an MBA from an accredited school in just 20 months is a positive.”

FORMAT AND DELIVERY
In those 20 months, students complete 38 total credits. Students take two courses per semester — one at a time — each ranging about six weeks with a one-week break in between. While cohort based by design, students are not confined to a specific cohort by any means and can take just one class in a semester if needed.

Course work is a combination of both live and pre-recorded content. According to Ashley Kilburn, MBA Coordinator and a marketing professor in the program, it’s about a 50/50 split that mostly depends on the professor and the content that’s being taught. “Finance, accounting, and economics classes tend to incorporate more live working sessions as professors work through problems or case analyses and they provide live office hours,” she says. Still, the live sessions aren’t mandatory. Rather, students can be present during live gatherings or simply review them during a time that’s more convenient for them. For classes that are more theory based, Kilburn says professors typically pre-record lectures and upload them for students to glean from.

As with many programs, group work is also an essential part of UT-Martin’s online MBA experience. Group presentations are done using the popular online video conferencing platform, Zoom. “It’s pretty easy,” Kilburn says. “The students coordinate their schedules to pull together their written slides and to record their accompanying oral presentation. Once they submit the recording for grading, we see their slides and we hear their voices. Students are rarely required to present live, through video. It’s less pressure.”

ACCREDITED AND AFFORDABLE
At just $22,116 for total tuition costs, the online MBA offering at UT-Martin is one of the least expensive top ranked programs on the market. Another selling point for students such as Adam Bucci.

“There were several factors I was looking for in a program. I wanted something that was fast, relatively affordable, accredited, and had a good ranking; a school that’s very recognizable. At UT-Martin, the price is very competitive.”
Since its creation in 2008, the school says it’s increased accessibility to the program even more by removing the GMAT/GRE entrance exam requirement and beefing up its focus on years of work experience.

“We started the waiver for exams in 2015,” Kilburn notes. “Oftentimes we’ll waive it for students with 3.0 cumulative grade point average and seven years or more of post baccalaureate experience. With these qualifications, students can submit a waiver application for consideration.”

If an applicant already has a Master’s degree, they do not have to take an admissions exam at all.
“What this means is one less box you have to check in order to get in,” says Kilburn.
For students who may not have the seven years of work experience that the waiver requires, the school looks for a minimum of two years work experience. Kilburn says it doesn’t have to be business. “We just need to see you’re using and leveraging your undergraduate degree through work experience for at least two years before you can stand for acceptance. The program isn’t simply made up of fresh graduates. Everyone can talk about work experiences they’ve had.”

OTHER ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS
Getting into UT-Martin’s Online MBA doesn’t include in interview, but prospective students should be prepared to write an essay describing how they plan to integrate the program with everything else they’re juggling; work life, advancing their careers, and how they see the program supporting their career goals. Two letters of recommendation are also required along with undergraduate transcripts.
If the entrance exam waiver isn’t something an applicant qualifies for, UT/Martin accepts both the GMAT and GRE exams.

LATEST IMPROVEMENTS
Starting this fall, UT-Martin has inserted a new course into the curriculum called Administrative Affairs that serves to emphasize strong written communication and helpful tips for efficient, effective communication. This new offering came about as a result of student feedback and the school’s review to improve its online curriculum.