 Earn Your MBA in Twenty-four Weekends at UB
The School of Business at the University of Bridgeport offers a Master of Business Administration degree (MBA) that can be earned in just 24 weekends for those students with undergraduate business or professional degrees. Degree completion normally requires two years of full-time or three to five years of part-time study.
The Weekend Option MBA program is aimed at working professionals who want to further their careers while maintaining a full-time job. Classes are scheduled on alternating weekends and the program admits students on a rolling admissions basis, permitting entry every two months. This program includes students from all levels of management and is ideal for professionals in private practice such as dentists, physicians and attorneys.  Dr. Diana Williams
Diana Williams, a dentist and executive director of a national doctors union who lives in Westchester County, just completed her MBA using the Weekend Option program. "As dentists, we learn a lot of technical information and very little about running a business and the bottom line. The UB program gave me the knowledge and the diagnostic tools to be able to evaluate my business, to see clearly if it is doing well or not and which direction it is going," said Williams.
"My biggest breakthrough came in learning how to hire and manage employees effectively so it becomes a win-win situation for me and the employees," said Williams.
Customer service and managing employees is what differentiates one business from another and labor costs are often the most expensive cost for a business, Williams explained. Having instructors who are sensitive to the hectic lives of working professionals and the fast changing business climate they operate in is an essential component of the MBA program. "The fact that the UB program enabled me to keep working Monday through Friday is what sets this program apart from the others. I had excellent instructors who understand what is relevant for today’s busy professional," said Williams.
The MBA core courses prepare students to analyze business situations, make sound decisions and communicate effectively. Courses include accounting, economic analysis, finance, organization behavior, operations management, basic quantitative methods and principles of marketing.
Currently, the MBA program at the University of Bridgeport has students representing about 50 different nationalities, enabling an inter-cultural experience in the classroom that is vital to understanding today’s global economy. It also provides a chance to network with contacts that are among the brightest entrepreneurs in the region and the world.
"The newest concept in business is understanding cultural diversity, and the UB program has women and men from Africa, Asia, South America, all over. I got a clear sense of what cultural diversity really means and how understanding different cultural clues is so necessary today," said Williams. Teaching emphasizes hands-on involvement with real, current business problems and issues. A wide range of case studies of actual companies in real situations around the globe in employed. Students evaluate business-to-business practices on the Internet and examine current methods of telecommunications applications covering all modalities.
Evaluation for admission requires a Bachelor’s degree in any recognized discipline, two letters of recommendation and an attainment of a satisfactory score on the Graduate Management Admissions Test. Exemptions from that test may be approved for applicants who document three or more years of professional working experience or for those who have earned an advanced academic degree.
Applications for the spring, summer and fall must be submitted two months prior to the date of intended entry. To find out more information call the MBA program directly at 203-576-4363 or E-mail mba@bridgeport.edu. | 
