The MBA program at the Chancellor University System will be known as “The Jack Welch Institute” after the former GE powerhouse and will be mostly online. Welch recently paid $2 million to have his name and likeness associated with the program, after meeting lead investor Michael Clifford at a party a few years ago.
According to Bess Levin, Welch was initially skeptical of online education, but he was impressed by the Apollo Group Inc.'s University of Phoenix and Clifford's Grand Canyon University. Last fall, Welch called Clifford and said that he wanted a role in Chancellor. "I'm now a believer," Welch says.
Welch says the MBA program will integrate his philosophy of leadership and human resources into a 12-course curriculum designed for mid-career workers. Welch and his wife, Suzy, are also helping to recruit faculty and planning curriculum; he will record a weekly video for students, according to a recent article.
Paul Glader of the Wall Street Journal (6/22/09) notes that EduVentures Inc. estimates that 11% of the roughly 18.5 million U.S. college students took most of their classes online in the fall of 2008, up from 1% a decade ago. Online higher education will generate revenue of $11.5 billion this year, EduVentures says. But "there is a concern about quality," says EduVentures Chief Executive Tom Dretler, because there's "much, much less selectivity" of students in the admissions process. Clifford and Welch say they want Chancellor's MBA program to be high quality and have met with several Ivy League professors, but declined to disclose names, according to Glader.
Noel Tichy, a professor at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business and former head of GE's Crotonville executive training program, will be the dean of the Welch Institute starting in July.
For more information regarding grad school and MBA programs, check out:
Online MBA program where all pay in-state tuition
The shelter of grad school in a challenging economy
Summer reading for business students
Student loan forgiveness programs to consider
Guard your transcript like a credit report
Janelle is the founder of Edusistance and the creator of the Race to College Success program. You can reach Janelle with comments and suggestions for future articles via email.
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