First Wharton West class graduates

The first class of executive MBA students graduated from Wharton West last month. The two-year-old Wharton West, located in San Francisco, serves as a satellite campus for Wharton's executive education program in Philadelphia. Both Wharton Deputy Dean David Schmittlein and John Lyon, associate director for the Wharton MBA for Executives program, said there are few adjustments that they could foresee making to Wharton West. According to Schmittlein, since the classes offered in San Francisco are of the same caliber as those offered in Philadelphia, no revisions are necessary. The campus offers both degree-granting and non-degree programs. The MBA program for executives takes two years to complete. He also said that the physical campus has already improved greatly since its early days in fall of 2001, when students were taking classes in a hotel ballroom. Currently, Wharton West is housed in the Folger Building in downtown San Francisco. "We feel good about the facility," Schmittlein said. "We may add somewhat to the space, but that's not really driven by the MBA program for executives." Schmittlein also pointed to the increase in the number of Wharton West matriculants as evidence of the program's quality. Schmittlein said that Wharton West is about heightening visibility for students and faculty. "Northern California looked like a very appealing place to have a presence," Schmittlein said, adding that Wharton West has created more opportunities for graduates by forging connections with companies on the West Coast and outreaching to alumni. Though Wharton West is physically separated from the campus in Philadelphia, it remains connected using technology, such as video conferences featuring the same speaker for classes on both coasts. Additionally, 40 members of Wharton's standing faculty, including half of the department chairs, have taught at Wharton West. Lyon said that the evaluation process for the satellite campus is an ongoing one. "We're always pretty much constantly... evaluating the programs we have out here," he said. "So I don't think there's anything specific [to change] now that the class has graduated." He said his office does plan to formally survey students who have just graduated and to closely monitor the results. "The students have overall been very happy with the program out here," Lyon said. Scott Brubaker, who graduated from Wharton West in August, said that he chose the program because of its reputation, as well as its location. "Overall, Wharton's stellar reputation was one of the biggest reasons why I chose Wharton West, but the fact that it could be delivered in a format conducive to my work schedule made it just a perfect choice for me," he said. Brubaker said he was very pleased with his Wharton West experience. "I think that it was a great program, I'm very glad that I did it, and I'm very glad that it's over," he added, explaining that balancing a work life, home life and school life was challenging. Mori Taheripour, another recent graduate of Wharton West, said that if Wharton West did not exist, she would have looked to the East Coast for her MBA classes. "Wharton was the only place I wanted to apply," she said. "I thought that they had the best executive MBA program in the country." Taheripour said that Wharton West far exceeded her expectations. "I already knew that it was going to be an amazing, rigorous academic program," she said. "What I was not expecting was the student life piece.... You create these great bonds and make friends for life." Taheripour added that the only thing she might improve about the program is the number of women participating. "I would love to see more women apply," she said. "I really do think it's an incredible program, and it would be a great benefit to have more women."

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