Full Time MBA

Since 2007, the University of Washington’s business school arm has been known as the Michael G. Foster School of Business. However, the school itself can trace its roots back to 1917, making it one of the US’s oldest business schools, founded at a time of economic growth, when academics and business leaders began to see the need to instill future generations with a wider social and moral sense of the role and purpose of business. This is reflected in the school’s three founding values of integrity, excellence and inclusiveness. The latter point is particularly important, with diversity very much at the forefront of everything the school does. Indeed, the school itself states: “Diversity is woven into the fabric of our academic programs, student experience, and community relationships.”

As one would expect for such an internationally minded organization, the Foster MBA attracts applications from across the world. Of the class of 2018, 39% are from outside the US and 43% are female – clearly, a Foster MBA is an education in cultural understanding, empathy and global solidarity. In line with this, the admissions process is as simple as possible, with candidates required to submit an online form, responses to essay questions, a CV, two references, a GMAT/GRE score, and degree transcripts. In an added twist, however, video interview submissions are also required – these are prerecorded by candidates, rather than being conducted live. This puts all applicants in an equal position, regardless of time differences and location difficulties.

The Foster MBA is conducted over two years. In the first year, core modules and electives are combined to gives students a solid business grounding with a specialist leaning to ensure relevance. The second year is more specialized, allowing students to flex their academic and practical muscle in scenarios that fit their career objectives. At the same time, a range of practical projects, including legal advice clinics, executive mentoring and boardroom experiences, are available, putting all the acquired theory into practice. Tuition fees for all these benefits are at the higher end of the scale, at US$94,440, but there’s a lot of added value beyond the core program components.

What’s more, the Foster MBA puts graduates in high demand among businesses, both local and international. Graduates from the 2016 class earned an average base salary of US$125,805 in the consulting industry, where 22% ended up, and US$113,241 in the tech sector. Companies taking on Foster MBA graduates include Philips, Amazon, Facebook, KPMG and Goldman Sachs. Additionally, 10% of the class of 2016 were military veterans, marking the Foster MBA as a popular and accessible choice for current or former military personnel looking to gain management skills for promotion potential, or to switch careers and put their armed forces experience to different uses.