What to expect from the executive MBA classroom experience

Antonio Bernardo, Professor of Finance, UCLA Anderson School of Management

Before taking the plunge, many people considering an Executive MBA program want to know what they can expect in the classroom.
Antonio Bernardo, a professor of finance at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, has taught in the MBA program for 16 years and the Executive MBA program for the last six. He says the real-world experience of the Executive MBA group creates a lively, collegial atmosphere.
“There are many occasions when the students relate their work experiences to the issues we discuss in the classroom,” Bernardo says. “It shows how real organizations try to execute policies we recommend in theory.”
Smart Business spoke with Bernardo about how the Executive MBA classroom works.
What are the main differences between a full-time MBA course and an Executive MBA course?
One of the big differences between the two programs is the EMBA students immediately see the value of the material we are covering in class and can use it immediately in their careers.
Students will come up to me and say ‘I’m working on this problem right now that is exactly like the material we are covering in class. How would I deal with this nuance?’ People immediately see the value and have applications for it, many of them in real-time.
Another big difference is the classroom discussion tends to be richer. Students have more management experience, they are obviously a little older than the full-time students and the backgrounds are quite diverse. That is one of the reasons why I love to teach in the program. I learn a tremendous amount from the students who bring their own experiences into the discussions.
What is the environment like in an Executive MBA classroom?
One important aspect that is true in all our programs, but especially true with EMBA, is that it is a very collegial environment. The students recognize they need to work together and learn a lot from each other. They have intense demands on their time from their work and family life, so they have a lot to do.
That happens in our full-time MBA program too, but I think the EMBAs recognize it is a matter of survival that they work well together in groups and lean on each other. Everyone sees it as a positive sum game; we can all make ourselves better by helping each other out.