By Lois G. Russell
Alabama State University will offer the Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree starting in the fall semester of 2022.
President Quinton T. Ross, Jr., made the official announcement of the degree program during the May 5, 2022, meeting of the ASU Board of Trustees.
“This is an exciting moment for Alabama State University. Having the MBA program will help to elevate the prominence of our prestigious College of Business Administration,” Ross said. “I would like to thank the Division of Academic Affairs, under the leadership of Provost Carl Pettis, as well as Dr. Tanjula Petty, Dean Hingorani and Dean Bristol and others within the college for their diligence in securing approval for the Masters of Business Administration at ASU.”
The President’s announcement was met by applause by the Board members.
“For all who doubted that we could have an MBA degree at ASU, we can now say, ‘We did it and we did it quickly,’” said Academic Affairs Committee Chairwoman Tiffany McCord. “There has been so much social media chatter from alumni who want to get their MBA from ASU, so this is a great move for the University. We can now say to all of those alumni and others that you can get your MBA from ASU starting this fall.”
The degree program was approved by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) on April 15. The MBA will be offered in the fall as an online program that can be completed in one year.
“We have been working on gaining approval for this program for several years. The process was very rigorous,” explained Dr. Kamal Hingorani, dean of the Percy J. Vaughn, Jr. College of Business Administration. “The approval was delayed until the reaffirmation of the University’s accreditation. Once the reaffirmation was granted, we were able to get approval of the degree from the Alabama Commission on Higher Education (ACHE) and SACSCOC within one year.
“This is a giant step for the College of Business Administration. We will have a graduate program in business that has great demand from our students, alumni, and residents of Alabama and surrounding states,” Hingorani added. “An additional benefit is that graduate programs drive undergraduate enrollment. For ASU and those that we serve, the potential of this program is limitless.”
Hingorani said the GMAT requirement will be waived for the first year of the program.
Dr. Caterina Bristol, Assistant Provost and dean of the Harold Lloyd Murphy Graduate School, said having the MBA is a significant achievement for the University.
“This program means that COBA and ASU will join their peers throughout the state in delivering a high-demand program to our students and the community,” Bristol stated. “The three program options -- Project Management, Enterprise Resource Planning, and the General track -- will position graduates to become leaders in the field. For individuals with this degree and specialization, there are millions of employment opportunities worldwide, which deepens ASU's influence in the global market.”
About COBA
“The Percy J. Vaughn, Jr. College of Business Administration is a college with deep and long-standing connections at the university and the community,” Bristol added. “It is known for the quality of its programs and the successes of its graduates. This new program will continue to demonstrate the level of excellence everyone has come to expect from the college. Experienced, Ph.D. faculty members are ready to deliver the courses and prepare students for the next level of their professional journey. The program will be available fully online and students will be able to apply and begin the program during the Fall, Spring, or Summer terms.”
Bristol said the MBA program has two pathways: one for those that hold an undergraduate degree in business and a second for those that hold degrees in other fields of study. “In other words, no matter what your undergraduate degree, this degree is for everyone that is interested in earning an MBA.”
The program application will open on Monday, May 9, 2022 and will be available through
the Graduate School's website at https://www.alasu.edu/