Cole Lindberg’s BA’24, MBA’25
Industry-relevant skills attracts employers before graduation
In a highly competitive job market, the skills and experience gained through two WU degrees helped Cole Lindberg BA’24 MBA’25 land a job before graduation.
Program Snapshot
- Degree Type
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MBA
- Program Type
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Graduate
- Credit Hours
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60-65
- Time to complete
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2 years
- Campus
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Salem
Student Success
Hadisa Gowhari MBA '23 gained the experience and connections she needed to land her dream job while she finished her degree. After completing two internships with Intel, the tech giant offered her a job as a senior financial analyst.
Hadisa's Story
Internships lead to full-time position at Intel for Hadisa Gowhari MBA’23
Despite owning and managing two businesses in her home country of Afghanistan, Hadisa had to work hard to build a career in the States. She worked with the counselors and resources at Willamette to find an internship that would help her on her professional path.
Alumni Stories
Graduates of the MBA program have gone on to have thriving careers in a variety of sectors. They have taken on leadership and decision-making roles with major brands, government offices, non-profits, and start-ups. Learn more about how our alumni are making their mark.
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Gianna Marchese BA’22, MBA’23
From Willamette to Warner Bros.
Whether she’s brainstorming publicity strategies in LA or coordinating press tours in NYC, Marchese is making her mark in the industry. Most recently, she’s worked on the team promoting The Color Purple.
Curriculum
Our curriculum is built around a strategic combination of required courses that develop a broad understanding of management, the unique first-year PACE program, electives that develop in-depth expertise, experiential learning opportunities, and up to three semesters of internships. The approach helps students develop well-rounded skills and knowledge they can apply throughout their careers.
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GSM 5108 PACE: Practical Applications for Careers and Enterprises
The course begins with a series of broad questions about management and organizations, with direct career and personal applications. As the semester progresses, students form small teams and begin planning a project for real non-profit or public client organizations. The service/consulting project provides a valuable opportunity to put ideas from the first part of PACE into action and to work on your career goals in a more practical situation.
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GSM 6121 Politics and Public Policy for Managers
Public, private, and not-for-profit organizations operate within a framework of rules at the global, national, state, and local levels. This course looks at the impact of customs, policies, laws, regulations, technologies and trends on these rules, how interests in society influence rules informally and formally, and how organizations respond to opportunities and threats these rules create. Students will explore common and disparate features that impact management in a global economy and polity, incorporating the perspective of public service values – including efficiency and objectivity, fairness and respect for the individual, accountability and transparency, and public trust.
Concentrations
To ensure that your degree prepares you for the career you aspire to, you have the option to choose an area of concentration:
Program Values
At Willamette, we emphasize the importance of a multi-faceted education. Our MBA program focuses on developing students’ knowledge of leadership strategies and decision-making while also prioritizing soft skills such as communication. With real-world learning opportunities, students are prepared for the challenges of the workplace.
Introducing Some of Our Faculty
MBA students benefit from a faculty comprised of industry experts who are actively working in a variety of leadership roles. They bring their real-world experience to the classroom, offering students meaningful insights into the world of business, government, and non-profit organizations. Professors connect one-on-one with students and act as mentors, providing career and academic advice.
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Meet Professor Autrey
Dr. Autrey brings a wealth of accounting experience to the classroom, having performed a wide variety of forensic accounting services throughout her career. The recipient of several awards for outstanding teaching, she takes an interdisciplinary approach to educating her students.
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Meet Professor Ringold
Dr. Ringold’s courses cover a range of marketing topics for the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. She is the JELD-WEN Professor of Free Enterprise and has worked with high profile clients including the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and Hewlett Packard.