A Personalized Path: Darden’s Career Approach for EMBAs

EMBA students are a diverse group.

Unlike their counterparts in residential MBA programs, they span a wide swath of ages and backgrounds as well as industries and occupational categories, and are looking for many different outcomes from their educational experience.

“We have 120 EMBA students per class and 120 different career quests,” Jim Collins, Associate Director for Career Education and Advising at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business tells Ivy Exec with a laugh. “What we try to do is create unique, personalized solutions for each individual. One of the essential things is that very early on, we spend at least an hour in a career kickoff meeting exploring in depth their career history and their broader career objectives. Based on that, we devise an initial plan of action covering what they need to do and when they need to do it  during their two years here. And those plans are constantly changing as they move through time.”

To better understand and properly serve this group, Collins breaks them down into a few categories.

First, there are the Climbers.

These are people who are looking to take the next career leap within their own organizations.

“The challenge for this those in this group is to leverage the MBA and identify tactics that will better position them for ascending within their organizations,” Collins says.

Then there are the Switchers.

These are people who are looking to change jobs, functions and/or industries, and includes those who want to transition from military service to the public or private sector.

“The focus here is on helping them define who they are professionally, including their gifts, talents, strengths and the occupational directions in which they want to head. It’s about helping define their path,” Collins says. “And then we help package them for that path with the appropriate documents and communications to help take them to market. So we’re always thinking about their search strategy and their go-to-market plan, as well as helping them with tactical skills and negotiating job offers.”

Next are the Entrepreneurs.

These are the people who come to the EMBA program, perhaps with an idea for a new business venture, or who are already in business for themselves.

“Entrepreneurs, we get to know very well,” says Collins. “We’re a career not a venturing center, but we do have one in the university and a very broad spectrum of resources for that. Once we get a clear idea of the needs and interests of the student, we point them in the right direction and put them in contact with people to help them advance their entrepreneurial agenda.”

Lastly, there are the Enhancers.

These are people who do not have a distinct career agenda, but rather are focused on getting better at a senior position they already hold.

“For the Enhancers…we’ll often refer them to [relevant] people who have a particular area of expertise in which they are interested,” Collins says.

To wit, Collins refers to the school’s incredibly robust alumni network program. To start with, there are over 15,000 Darden grads with whom the students can connect to seek assistance with their career questions and transitions. In addition though, there is a pool of 600+ executive MBA alumni, and more than 150 of them have “enthusiastically volunteered” to serve as resources for current exec format students. As he describes it, any current student can reach out directly to them to obtain their thoughts and advice on any career-related topic.

But for as much expertise Collins has in serving these varied groups, he points out that for the most part, no one student fits perfectly into any one category. Most have multiple career objectives. A Climber might also want to explore his or her career alternatives and seriously consider the possibility of switching. An Enhancer might, deep down, have aspirations of becoming an Entrepreneur.

“We often talk about the two kinds of return on investment that accompany an Executive MBA,” Brett Twitty, Director of Admissions, Executive Format for Darden says. “One is a shorter-term return: the real-time return on investment students experience when they apply what they learn in class on Saturday at work on Monday. The other return is longer term in nature and refers more to the arc or trajectory of a student’s career. By having an MBA, a student can aspire to a different level or category of job than she could without this credential. While our students come from different backgrounds, they share a common aspiration – to lead at a senior level, and in many organizations, an MBA is a prerequisite for such positions.”

Like Collins, Twitty sees key differences in the motivations of EMBA students from the more traditional MBA students.

“There is a lockstep aspect to the career needs of our residential [MBA] students. Each student left his/her job to come to business school and almost all students will be seeking a new job post-MBA – that is not mirrored in our executive format students,” Twitty says. “Our executive format students are working while pursuing their MBA. And while many of them, in terms of career aspirations, fit into three large buckets – Climber, Switcher, Entrepreneur – even within these categories there are variations.”

Twitty estimates that about half of the EMBA program participants at Darden would classify themselves as Switchers.

“Many students who are considering an executive MBA and seeking to make a career change often believe they are an outlier. However, these days, these students are increasingly the norm and a rapidly growing portion of the executive MBA applicant pool. This trend makes sense when you consider some of the broader, macro-trends affecting this group,” Twitty explains of this growing proportion of Switchers in the EMBA program.

For these students, some even want to make their switch during their two years with the program. Others intend to make a gradual switch over the long term, a process that might not be initiated until well after they graduate.

“This is why our two dedicated career advisors who work exclusively with Executive Format students spend so much time talking with students so they can better understand the unique goals and needs of each student and develop a customized career plan for the student,” Twitty explains.

This hands-on approach to tailoring career solutions for students is a particular strength at Darden. More importantly, it is a service that does not end with graduation given the fact that EMBA students may approach their career transitions with a different sense of timing from their counterparts in full-time MBA programs. To serve these alumni best, Darden offers free career services for life to its graduates.

“If I take this as a whole, what makes us unique is that we have a very personalized touch,” Collins says. “We spend a great deal of time before the student even matriculates to make sure we understand where they want to go, develop an initial plan to get them there, and align their expectations with what the program can actually deliver for them. It’s very labor intensive and very personalized and we get wonderful reviews for that—they glow in the dark.”