Michigan Tech MBA coming to Grand Traverse region

Mark Urban, The Record-Eagle, Traverse City, Mich.
·3 min read

Jun. 1—TRAVERSE CITY — Earning a master's degree remotely from Michigan Tech University isn't a new concept.

But pursuing a Master of Business Administration degree from MTU just got less difficult for residents of the Grand Traverse area.

Starting this fall, area students can take TechMBA classes at the university's Traverse City Research Workspace, located in the Traverse Connect building at 202 Grandview Parkway. The hybrid option will allow students to complete most of their coursework online, while interacting with classmates and their instructor in remote meetings once a week.

Jay Meldrum, director of MTU's Keweenaw Research Center and the official point of contact and liaison for Tech in the Grand Traverse area, said the hybrid in-person/remote option should remove obstacles to obtaining the master's degree, particularly for those seeking a group component.

"We're trying to make it easier," Meldrum said.

This will be the first time Michigan Tech's 30-credit MBA program will be offered with a hybrid in-person/remote option for area students. The material will be taught in virtual courses during evening hours.

"It's going to have programming run out of our conference room," Meldrum said. "It will be taught by faculty in Houghton and Zoomed to Traverse City.

"The whole idea is to have a cohort of students in the office in Traverse City working on their MBA together."

The Michigan Tech MBA will continue to be available as a completely online offering where "students complete course requirements fully online and at their own pace" and in-person on the Houghton campus, according to a release. Michigan Tech's fully-online MBA program is also being revamped to better allow "students to complete the degree's requirements on their own schedule," according to a release from the university.

"The Michigan Tech College of Business is eager to bring the TechMBA program to northern Michigan," Dean Johnson, the dean of MTU's College of Business, said in the release. "The TechMBA program is truly unique. Through these delivery options, individuals can select the graduate education that matches their preferences, via an interactive experience in real time through the hybrid option or complete flexibility through the online option."

Northwestern Michigan College's University Center also offers some master's degrees through its partners. According to NMC Vice President for Strategic Initiatives Jason Slade and the University Center website, master's degrees are available in the following areas:

* Central Michigan University — Administration: General, Health Services, HR, Leadership, & Public; Education, Educational Leadership (MA-EL); Public Administration: State & Local Government, Nonprofit, General; Reading & Literacy (BR) (K — 12); Specialist in Education (EdS): Central Office Certificate (post-master's)

* Davenport University — Business Administration (MBA)

* Ferris State University — Social Work: Clinical Practice Concentration

* Grand Valley State University — Education, Educational Leadership (M.Ed.); Education, Special: Cognitive Impairment (CI); Physician Assistant Studies; Business Administration (MBA) online

Michigan Tech's hybrid option was announced during Northern Michigan Startup Week. Prior to the announcement, Meldrum said Michigan Tech reached out to several regional companies to gauge interest in the program expansion under the direction of Johnson and Mari Buche, associate dean of the College of Business. Meldrum said Tech's 4,500 alumni within a 100-mile radius of Traverse City were also contacted.

"This is great news and strengthens the commitment that Michigan Tech is making for the Grand Traverse Area," Meldrum said in the release. "This will be the first of many planned course offerings to be delivered in our new downtown location in the Traverse Connect building."

Michigan Tech is focused on having 12 students in the first cohort, but Meldrum would love to see it climb even higher.

"I'm sure we can handle that," Meldrum said. "I'd like to see 20."

More information on the Michigan Tech MBA is available at mtu.edu/business/techmba or by emailing techmba@mtu.edu.