MBA Programs

Professional MBA Frequently Asked Questions

General

Admissions

Tuition and Fees

Absence from Classes / Missed Terms

Placement Assistance for PMBA Students

General

How is your program structured?

The Pamplin Professional MBA (PMBA)  is a two-year program during which students attend classes one weekend a month, rotating between the Roanoke and Richmond Graduate Centers.  Classes are held all day Friday and Saturday, covering 60% of the "contact" hours; the remaining 40% is delivered via various electronic approaches depending on professor preference.  This program, which replaces the previous Distance Learning (televised) MBA provides the key benefits of completing in two years vs. four and having both professors and classmates in the same room for a more vibrant learning experience.  We have structured course work to ensure that the student has exposure to all the major fields of business.  The diploma received is a Master of Business Administration.  We're committed to offering an AACSB-accredited MBA Program with the same quality and performance expectations as our on-campus program, yet is designed to accommodate schedules of busy professionals.

Is there a mid-year entry?

Unfortunately not. Because the program is cohort-based, meaning all students take the same classes, at the same time, only a fall entry date is available.

Do you accept transfer credits?

We are typically unable to accept transfer credits for admission purposes because we do not allow transfer courses to substitute for our core courses. The program is cohort-based, making it difficult to allow students to take classes outside the structure of the program.

How is the 40% out of class content delivered?

The choice is left up to the individual instructor in each course to decide what approach fits best for that particular course. Virginia Tech makes available online tools such as Centra (group collaboration) and Breeze (one way delivery of presentations) to make this portion of the course smooth and efficient. Two-hour online sessions are scheduled on many Wednesday evenings for delivery of this content.

I have an accounting (or finance) undergraduate degree and work in this field as a professional. Can I be exempted from the MBA Math pre-course requirement?

No. MBA Math covers a wide variety of quantitative skills which our students will be required to understand when classes begin. Due to the amount, and variety of quantitative topics covered in MBA Math we require all entering students to take MBA Math, regardless of previous academic background.

I have a high score on the quantitative section of the GMAT, can this place me out of taking MBA Math ?

Yes. Those students scoring in the top 25% on the quantitative portion of the GMAT exam can be waived out of MBA Math; however, all new students are required to have understanding of all of the material covered in MBA Math. If you have questions about this requirement, we encourage you to please contact our offices.

I'm a Virginia Tech employee. Are there any special considerations of which I need to be aware?

Yes. By university policy, Virginia Tech employees are limited to a credit hour load that is below the requirements of the PMBA. In order to participate in the programs, employees must first complete a request for an exception to this policy, and have this request form approved by his or her department head. Forms can be obtained by contacting the MBA office, and completed forms must be submitted as part of the application package.

What is the exam policy?

The PMBA program draws students from all over the state of Virginia, requiring all students to travel to some extent to attend classes. Exam weekends are scheduled in both the Richmond and Roanoke locations for the weekend after the last class meeting of each term. However, in order to attempt to minimize the amount of travel required of both students and faculty, two alternative delivery methods are often utilized for final exams in the program:

  1. Take-home exams that have a specific deadline but no specified time during which the exam is to be completed. In this format, students are free to complete the exams at their convenience.
  1. Take-home exams that must be completed during the scheduled final exam period. In this format, instructors deliver the exams via Blackboard, opening the view to the exam only during the scheduled final exam period. Students must complete the exam within that window of time and submit the exam using the digital drop-box on Blackboard, which will note the time of submission.

University policy permits instructors to give in-class examinations should they choose to do so. At the beginning of each term, the program administrative staff will request each instructor to select an anticipated method of exam delivery and will develop an exam schedule which will be published to all students in the program. Instructors retain the right to change delivery methods at any time during the term. In such cases, they must inform the associate dean of graduate programs of their intention and coordinate a new schedule for final exam delivery with the associate dean and, if necessary, other instructors. Students will be informed at the earliest possible date of any changes in the established schedule.

What happens in the event of inclement weather?

If the weather is already problematic the night before classes, then the center may make the decision to close at that time. If so, we will send an email to the PMBA listservs as soon as that decision is made so that most of you will be able to avoid unnecessary travel.

It is possible that bad weather may not arrive until early the morning of class meetings. Any decision on closure will be made no later than 6:30am the day of classes in order to allow for that possibility. We may make a different decision for Friday than for Saturday in order to salvage at least some classroom time in this event. For example, if weather on Friday forces us to cancel classes, we may opt to still hold class on Saturday if conditions improve.

If the decision is made to close the center, the information will be made available to you in two ways. It will be posted on the website for the appropriate Virginia Tech center:

Richmond: http://www.richmond.vt.edu/
Roanoke: http://www.vtrc.vt.edu/

and you will also receive an e-mail to the PMBA listservs.

In the event any classes are cancelled, during the following week, we will then announce how the instructors will make up any missed time. Since we can't predict ahead of time whether we would lose one day or two, or all classes or some, decisions will be made when we know the situation. It is unlikely that classes would be made up in person, since both instructors and students may have professional or personal plans, and we will likely leave the decision up to each instructor concerning how to best get the content that would have been covered in class into your hands.

Admissions

I graduated with less than a 3.0 GPA, but I have a lot of management experience with major international companies.  Will I be admitted to your program?

The admission decision does take into account various factors including work experience. The most critical factors are your GPA and GMAT scores and duration and relevance of work experience. If GPA is lower than a 3.0, an exceptional performance on the GMAT could help consideration for admission. Certainly, professional experience with major companies is impressive, but evidence of the ability to succeed academically is also critical. Some students with GPA's below 3.0 are admitted when the strength of other aspects of the application is sufficient to demonstrate a high likelihood of success in the program.

If I do not pass the financial accounting pre-course, will my admission to the program be withdrawn?

No. However, you will have to pass the course before beginning classes and may have to retake the course which could delay your entry into the program depending on the timing of completion.

Tuition and Fees

How much does the program cost?

Current information on PMBA tuition and fees.

Do you know the estimated costs for books/fees in addition to the in-state tuition costs?

Since the program is new and each professor selects the books and materials for his or her class, we don’t yet have a track record for cost of those items.  Our estimate is $3000-3500 for the two-year program, and we anticipate that some terms will be higher and some lower than others (rather than that cost being equal for each term or two-term period).

Is there any financial aid available?

As most students have access to tuition reimbursement plans with their employers, there are no scholarships or fellowships available to students in this program. More information.

Are hotel rooms and books covered in the tuition?

No. Since many students can make other arrangements for lodging through family and friends throughout the Commonwealth, we decided to leave accommodations up to the individual student. We do have preferred hotel rates available in both Richmond and Roanoke. The cost of books are the responsibility of the student, as is the responsibility for obtaining them.

Absence from Classes / Missed Terms

Can I skip a monthly meetings if I am deployed or otherwise unable to attend and I have internet access?

The difficulty in answering this question stems from not knowing the possible frequency and duration of such absences.  Certainly we expect normal absences of perhaps one day of the Friday/Saturday classes due to illness or pressing business commitments, but in the course of the two-year program, we would expect absences to be minimal.  In the case of such absences, accommodations must be arranged with each individual professor concerning making up work.  There is not a program-wide policy, because the requirements of each class are different. Missing one whole weekend is equivalent to missing 1/3 of the in-class time for each course; missing more than one weekend could adversely affect one's academic success in the term.

Can I skip a term due to military deployment or job demands and resume my studies after I return?

The plan of study for the PMBA program is cohort-based and, therefore, it is not possible for one to miss a class and then take it the next term.  Each class is offered only once annually.  The classes are also specifically sequenced to gradually build complexity of the subject matter over the two-year period; i.e., prerequisites for future classes, so missing a whole term could affect performance in future classes.  In effect, the individual would need to wait until the missed term is offered again in the following year to continue. Re-entry to the program may depend on space being available at the time that notification of intent to resume studies is made.

What would be my options in the event a job transfer was required? 

In cases of a permanent transfer, graduate credits earned are good for five years at Virginia Tech, but transfer of credits to other institutions is subject to their policies and usually very limited.

Placement Assistance for PMBA Students

Are PMBA candidates able to attend recruitment seminars or job fairs if they do not have financial support from their employers?  Do PMBA candidates receive placement assistance?

PMBA students are eligible for career advising and placement services.  Students are responsible for their own tuition and fees, which establishes a relationship where the student is our "client”. However, it is important to note that most companies have tuition reimbursement programs to help students continue their education.  The tuition reimbursement is actually a "contract" between the company and its employee, not a client relationship with Pamplin College.  In requesting placement services from the College, students are responsible for ensuring that they comply with the terms of the tuition reimbursement policies of their employers.

PMBA students must understand that, since Virginia Tech’s University Career Services Office is in Blacksburg, the student in a distant location may take advantage of services only to the extent that the student can do so electronically or travel to Blacksburg (such as for actual interviews through on-campus interviewing).