Business school announces enhancements

Program adds concentration in human resources, shortened pathway to MBA

Mount Mary University’s School of Business will offer undergraduate and MBA students the ability to specialize in human resources management, and has shortened the timeline for undergraduate business students to earn their MBA. 

These new enhancements will become effective in fall 2023.

HR is one of the fastest-growing fields in the United States. Employment of human resource managers is projected to grow 7% by 2028, faster than the 5.2% average for all occupations, according to the national Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). Additionally, HR manager ranked 35th out of 800 occupations in the U.S., based on new employment-projection data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and scored by The Wall Street Journal. 

Mount Mary’s human resources courses will address key HR areas such as staffing, training and development, compensation, benefits and labor-management relations. Coursework is designed around standards set by SHRM, which will prepare students for the association’s professional certification.

‘’Many of our instructors are professionals and experts in their field,” said professor and department chair Kristen Carioti, Ph.D. “Instructors teaching the upper division HR courses are leading HR experts who come to the classroom with direct career experience, just like our students.”

The 4+1 initiative is available for students majoring in business administration and human resources. The 4+1 timeline is part of campus-wide efforts to streamline the pathways for students interested in advanced degrees. Students can earn an undergraduate degree and MBA in just five years.

Undergraduate seniors in good standing are directly admitted into the program and their advanced coursework during their senior year can count toward their graduate degree. Not only does this benefit students by completing their degree in a shortened time, a reduced cost is based on the lesser rate for undergraduate credits. Financial aid and scholarships are also applied during their senior year, reducing the expense still further.

“The re-imagining of Mount Mary’s pathway to an MBA is structured to help students find their way to advanced contemporary practice and prepared for current business and employment dynamics,” said School of Business Dean Bob Schwartz, MID.

For information on the HR track for MBA, visit mtmary.edu/mba. To learn more about the 4+1 initiative and undergraduate HR specialty, click here.