School of Management

SUNY at Buffalo, School of Management History

University at Buffalo/State University of New York at Buffalo, founded in 1846, is a public, coeducational institution. The 1200-acre campus is located in a suburb of Buffalo. Total undergraduate and graduate enrollment is 27,823.

The School of Management was founded in 1927 and is located on the main campus, in its own building, Jacobs Management Center/Alfiero Center. The MBA is offered in the school’s executive format in Singapore and China and the MS Program in India. The basic educational approach is to provide a broad education in all aspects of management together with opportunities to concentrate in 1 or more functional areas. The school emphasizes variety and balance in the modes of instruction, including lectures, case studies, business simulations, and seminars.

SUNY at Buffalo, School of Management Academics

The School of Management offers the Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Science in Accounting (MS), Master of Science in Supply Chain and Operations Management (MS), Master of Science in Management Information Systems (MS), and Master of Science in Finance (MS) as well as a doctoral program in management with concentrations in accounting, finance, human resources/industrial relations, management science, management systems, managerial economics, marketing, and organization, and a joint degree in in law (JD/MBA), architecture (MArch/MBA), geography (MA/MBA and BA/MBA), public health (MBA/MPH), management (BS/MBA), all areas of engineering (BS/MBA), economics, sociology, computer science (all BA/MBA), medicine (MD/MBA), pharmacy (PharmD/MBA), and social work (MBA/MSW). Other programs include 3-2 degrees with state university colleges at Geneseo and Fredonia and Saint Bonaventure University, foreign exchange with Finland, Germany, France, Mexico, the Netherlands, Singapore, and Korea, international internship opportunities in many countries, including Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, and Latvia, and an extensive domestic internship program. The strongest areas of study are accounting, finance, and marketing. The most popular courses are International Financial Management, Investment Management, Financial Policy and Strategy, and Project Management. Regular programs bring distinguished speakers and visiting professors to campus. The Gerald S. Lippes Speaker Series, a cooperative venture between Law and Management Schools, features speakers on topics of current interest in the finance and legal areas, and the Helen and Oscar Sufrin Endowed Lectureship supports annual lectures in finance, financial economics, and accounting.

Sixty total credits are required to complete the MBA, including 30 elective credits. Required courses include:

• Probability and Statistics for Management
• Financial Analysis and Reporting
• Behavioral and Organizational Concepts for Management
• Economics for Managers
• Financial Management
• Marketing Management
• Operations and Service Management
• Strategic Management
• Ethics and Governance
• Business Communications
• Management Accounting

Required courses for the MS in Accounting include:

• Taxation of Business Entities and Their Owners
• Advanced Auditing
• Fraud Examination
• Seminar in Management Accounting
• Seminar in Financial Accounting
• Accounting Research Paper
• Internship

Required courses for the MS in Finance include:

• Investment Management
• International Financial Management
• Financial Policies and Strategies
• Management of Financial Institutions
• Electives: Financial Management orFinancial Engineering Tracks

Required courses for the MS in Management Information Systems include:

• Information Technology or Information Assurance
• Technology Management and E-business
• Database Management Systems
• Systems Analysis and Design
• DSS: Supply Chains and E-Business
• Supervised Research in MIS
• Distributed Computing
• Managing Managerial Processes

Required courses for the MS in Supply Chain and Operations Management include:

• Modeling Managerial Processes
• Financial Planning and Evolution
• Production and Inventory Planning
• Strategic Quality Management
• Management Accounting
• DSS: Supply Chains and E-business
• Supply Chains and Global Operations
• Project Management
• Team Building in Organizations or Communication Skills
• Integrative project supervised by faculty
• 1 industrial engineering course

Business students may take relevant nonbusiness courses in other departments. The minimum time permitted to complete the master’s degree program attending full time is 1 year; maximum, 4 years. For students attending part time, the minimum is 3 years; maximum, 5 years.

There are 60 total full-time graduate business faculty, of whom 95% hold a doctorate; there are 22 part-time faculty, of whom 35% hold a doctorate. Faculty salaries are rated above average for Category I institutions, based on the AAUP rating system. Average number of courses faculty teach is 3; average business class size is 45.

SUNY at Buffalo, School of Management Unique Programs

Library

The university’s main library houses a collection of more than 3 million volumes and 159,739 audio/video tapes/CDs, and subscribes to 22,767 periodicals. The business library is particularly strong in corporate finance and U.S./Canadian trade. Students have access to such databases and networks as Dialog, Dow Jones News Retrieval, and Lexis/Nexis; students also have access to extensive Internet capabilities and 18 commercial on-line services, which provide access to more than 2500 full-text journals and 30 different reference sources. Other opportunities for research consist of interlibrary loan services and membership in the Association of Research Libraries.

Computers

Graduate business students need not have their own PCs. The business school has its own computer facilities, consisting of 50 computers (333 MHz or better) that are loaded with a full suite of software and are completely networked with Internet access. Located in the Jacobs Management Center, the facilities are open 100 hours a week. There is a wireless network in many areas on campus.

Career and Job Placement

Majors most in demand by companies recruiting in 2006 were accounting, finance, and marketing. Average starting salary of the graduating class was $55,149; range was $28,000 to $103,448. The percentage of graduates finding jobs were:

• multinational 38%
• national corporations 26%
• regional corporations 16%
• local large enterprises 11%
• education/government 5%
• local small enterprises 4%

Placement services are extensive. Placement services for alumni include career advisement, networking, web-based job postings, career workshops, and on-campus recruiting. Placement is available through a separate placement office for graduate business students and the university placement office. Seventy-five percent of the most recent graduating class found jobs within three months of receiving their degree.

International Students

International students must take the TOEFL and the SPEAK test, which is administered at orientation (similar to TSE). International students must score 537 on the Paper-Based TOEFL (PBT). They also must submit a translation of their transcripts, proof of health consisting of immunization, and proof of adequate funds to cover 2 years for the MBA, 1 year for the MS in accounting, and 6 years for the PhD of study. Financial aid is available for these students and consists of several scholarships in the $1500 to $4500 range and a very limited number of graduate assistantships, typically in the second year. The application deadline for fall entry is April 1.

Calendar

The school operates on a traditional semester basis. Semesters are 14 weeks long; summer sessions, 6 weeks. Graduate programs are offered during the day and evening.

SUNY at Buffalo, School of Management Admissions

A bachelor’s degree is required. The GRE may be accepted for MS programs in finance, supply chains, and MIS. Most important admissions factors are academic accomplishments and ability, GMAT results, and work experience. A strong mathematics background is required.

The number of applicants for the 2006-2007 class was 1058; 584 were accepted; 369 enrolled. The average GPA was 3.3; average GMAT score was 595. Transfers are not accepted. Minority students are actively recruited by attendance at regional minority recruiting events.

Students may begin the MBA program in the fall only. To apply, students must submit an application form, a transcript, GMAT scores, a nonrefundable application fee of $50, 2 letters of recommendation, a personal statement, and a second essay. The application deadline is June 1 for fall entry. Students are notified on a rolling basis of the admissions decision. The latest acceptable test date for fall entry is May. Once accepted, students may defer admission for up to 1 year upon written request, subject to second review.

SUNY at Buffalo, School of Management Financial Aid

Stipends and programs available for minority students include SUNY’s Underrepresented Minority Fellowships. The FAFSA and TAP (New York State residents only) are required. The application deadline is February 15 for fall entry.

Tuition for in-state residents is $296 per credit, or $7100 per year. Nonresidents pay $472 per credit, or $11,340 per year. On-campus room and board costs approximately $9581; books and supplies, $1534; personal expenses, $3051; and other fees, $1313, for an estimated annual total of $22,579 for in-state residents and $26,819 for out-of-state residents. Graduate student housing consists of a graduate housing complex and single and double rooms in dormitories. There are many rental units near campus. There is a referral service to help procure off-campus housing.

SUNY at Buffalo, School of Management Students

Seventy-two percent of the current graduate business school class are enrolled full time; 85% have had an average of 3 years of full-time work experience prior to entering graduate school, a factor preferred by the school. The greatest percentage of students are from New York (59%). Thirty-three percent are women, 8% are minorities, and 39% are foreign nationals. The average age at entrance is 30; ages range from 20 to 62. Thirteen percent enter directly from undergraduate school. Students’ undergraduate majors were as follows: 46%, business; 20%, engineering; 11%, economics; 7%, math and science; 6%, social sciences; and 5%, liberal arts. About 3% of entering students leave by the end of the first year due to academic or personal reasons; 95% remain to receive their degree. In 2006, 295 graduate business degrees were awarded.