USN South Jordan MBA Program Now Enrolling

SOUTH JORDAN, Utah – January 31, 2011 – For working professionals or students looking to broaden their career opportunities, start a new job, or gain the essential knowledge for starting a business, a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) degree can be the right step toward success.

The University of Southern Nevada’s (USN) South Jordan campus is now enrolling students in its MBA program. Students can earn an MBA in a few as nine months (for daytime programs) or 18 to 22 months (for evening programs two nights per week). And the program is a great option for professionals who live and work in the South Valley area and are looking for a closer MBA option, rather than commuting to the University of Utah or BYU to obtain their degree.

Representatives from the MBA program will be at the South Jordan campus in February and March for information sessions.

What: USN South Jordan MBA Information Sessions
Date: February 3, March 3, and March 17 (Thursdays)
Where: University of Southern Nevada South Jordan, Utah campus
Address: 10920 S. Riverfront Parkway (in the RiverPark Corporate Center)
When: 12 p.m. – 2 p.m.

Participants are encouraged to register at www.usn.edu/mba.

Information sessions will include answers about the admission and enrollment process, campus tours, advising sessions and information about financial aid. Attendees interested in fast-track consideration can complete an application on site. Refreshments will be served, and the event is open to anyone interested in learning more about how an MBA can provide a competitive edge in a difficult job market.

Since 2004 USN has offered an MBA program for students in the Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) program who want to obtain a dual PharmD/MBA degree.

“We have seen a growing demand at the Utah campus for our combined PharmD/MBA degree in the past few years,” said Dr. Okeleke Nzeogwu, USN MBA Program Director. “Now we want to open that MBA program to business professionals who are looking to broaden their career opportunities, develop leadership and entrepreneurial skills, or even start a business.”

USN is a private, non-profit university headquartered in Henderson, Nev. The South Jordan campus opened in 2006 with a College of Pharmacy offering a Doctor of Pharmacy degree; the Utah campus has expanded to include a College of Nursing, offering a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) and a dual PharmD/MBA degree. In 2011 it will open the first College of Dental Medicine in Utah, offering a Doctor of Dental Medicine program (DMD).

Professors teach using an innovative block curriculum, which allows the students to focus on one subject at a time and master each concept before moving on. The result is highly competent graduates in business and health care fields.

USN is regionally accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU) and the MBA program is accredited by the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE).

MBA Faculty Win Research Awards

Two USN MBA faculty were presented Outstanding Research Awards yesterday at the Global Conference on Business and Finance by The Institute for Business and Finance Research. The conference is taking place Jan. 2 to 5 the Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel. Dr. Gregory Goussak was honored for his research “Leadership Styles of Managers in the Las Vegas Casino-Gaming Industry” and Dr. Brian J. Quarles for “Applying John Rawls Distributive Justice Theory, A Case for a Weak Intellectual Property Regime in Guatemala.” Both Goussak and Quarles will have their research published in one of the IBFR’s peer-reviewed journals.

Congratulations to our MBA faculty for their outstanding achievements.

USN South Jordan Hosting MBA Open House

Dr. Okeleke Nzeogwu, USN MBA Program Director

The USN Master in Business Administration (MBA) program will hold an open house at the South Jordan, Utah campus to discuss how an MBA from USN can help working professionals broaden their career opportunities, start a new job, or gain the essential knowledge for starting a business.

Our MBA is the shortest available in Utah, so students can graduate and get on with their career sooner. The program includes an option for a 9-month daytime program (students attend classes from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily), or an 18- to 22-month evening program (students attend classes two nights per week from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m.).

What: MBA Open House & Information Sessions
When: Thursday, January 20, 2011
Time: 3:00-7:00 p.m. (information sessions start every hour, on the hour)
Where: USN South Jordan Campus
Address: 10920 S. River Front Parkway, South Jordan, UT 84095

The event will include Information sessions with answers about the admission and enrollment process, advising sessions, information about financial aid, campus tours and refreshments. It is open to anyone interested in learning more about obtaining an MBA degree.

Participants are encouraged to register in advance at usn.edu/mba. If you have questions or would like more information, call 801-878-1111 or e-mail mba@usn.edu.

MBA Students Gain HR Insights from LVCVA

On Friday evening, University of Southern Nevada’s weekend MBA students welcomed Mark Olson, Vice President of Human Resources for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, as a guest speaker during their Human Resources Management class.

Olson, who spent 18 years with the White House Communications Agency before relocating to Las Vegas, shared his HR insight, with a focus on his experiences over the years working not only at the White House, but also at the Four Queens, Fiesta and Palms Casinos and the LVCVA.

In his current position, Olson manages the full range of HR duties, including compensation, recruitment and benefits. Additionally, he oversees establishment of policy and provides interpretation and advice to managers. Olson also serves as chief negotiator for contracts and union relations and is a member of the LCVCA president’s Executive Committee.

Olson also shared information about the LVCVA, a quasi-government destination marketing organization that’s funded by a room tax. The LVCVA’s sole purpose is to build and sell the “Las Vegas” brand and attract visitors. In addition to targeting domestic markets, the LVCVA focuses primarily on Canada, Mexico and the UK in addition to second tier markets of Europe, Australia, Japan, Korea and Ireland. Olson also discussed the LVCVA’s work in targeting emerging markets, such as Brazil, India, Russia and China.

USN’s Premiere Webisode

USN is launching video Webisodes featuring the people and events of the university. Produced regularly, each Webisode is up to five minutes long and available on USN’s Blog, YouTube Channel and, eventually, on iTunesU. Webisodes will be produced at both USN’s Henderson, Nevada and South Jordan, Utah campuses.

The premiere USN Webisode follows the university’s weekend MBA students on a tour of one of the World’s most exciting online companies.

MBA Hiring is Up, According to Report

QS Quacquarelli Symonds, a London-based education company, has published its annual TopMBA.com Jobs and Salary Trends Report indicating that hiring of MBA grads is up five percent this year. The Las Vegas Review Journal published an article today about the report and prominently featured one of USN’s current MBA students who recently advanced in his career, partly because of his MBA education. Check out the article.

USN Commencement Ceremonies

Plans for USN commencement ceremonies for College of Pharmacy and MBA students are all set.

Due to severe wind damage, commencement for the Henderson campus will not take place at the Henderson Pavilion as is customary. Instead, ceremonies will take place inside the Palace Ballroom at the Caesar’s Palace Conference Center on Las Vegas Blvd. The ceremonies begin at 9 a.m. on Friday, June 4 and will feature Dr. Peter Vlasses, executive director of the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, as commencement speaker.

Commencement ceremonies for the South Jordan campus will take place at 9 a.m. on Saturday, June 5 at the Capitol Theater in Downtown Salt Lake City. Dr. William Sederburg, Utah’s Commissioner of Higher Education, will deliver the commencement speech.

MBA Classes Start Friday: It’s Not Too Late To Enroll

Is your resolution for 2010 to go back to school? It’s not too late to enroll in USN’s Master of Business Administration program. Classes start on Friday, Jan. 8 and meet on Friday evenings and Saturdays, allowing you to complete our accredited MBA in just 17 months.

The new year is a great time to rethink, reinvent and repackage yourself for employment or career advancement in a struggling economy and tight employment market. USN’s MBA Program Director, Dr. Okeleke Nzeogwu, recommends the classic four “P’s” of any Marketing 101 course as a way to achieve this:

• The Product—that is, you and me; we are the “human investment products” that companies are willing to pay for in order to satisfy their labor services needs. Investment products are goods used to produce other goods. Thus, you must begin to rethink your qualifications, work related experiences, character/personality, skills, etc. It is also important to understand why the current product (you), “as is” now, is prone to getting downsized during recessions. Start thinking of acquiring additional education, training, experience and skills that will help you deliver a new product (you) to the market place. Rethinking and reinventing yourself may take years. Dr. Nzeogwu’s first major retooling effort in the 1980s and that process took him five years, but at the end he had a terminal degree doing what I loved to do, teaching at the college-level.
• The Price—that is, your desired salary, benefits, working conditions, and perks necessary to keep you motivated and fulfilled must match the product. For example, with just a primary school education one shouldn’t expect to command the salary (price) of a Wall Street banker. Thus, if your desired compensation does not match the product, you can rethink and reinvent yourself until you are confident that the product could realistically earn you the price that you want. Nevertheless, remember that the labor market is also global and that your competitors are not just the workers in your city and around the nation—they include workers from other countries around the world.
• The Place—that is, the location, industry, field and career that will give you the maximum advantage for your product. In Dr. Nzeogwu’s case, he wanted to teach at the university level. In order to do that he had to rethink and reinvent the product that will fit the place—field (economics), career (teaching) and industry (education).
• The Promotion—that is, how you will communicate (or promote) to potential employers everything about the new you (product) that you have been working on. The promotion/packaging strategies will include the applications, resume, interview, internships, impressions, salary discounts, networking, personal marketing activities, etc.

USN’s MBA program can help you accomplish the four “P’s,” with its focus on economics, finance, accounting, communication, teamwork, leadership and entrepreneurship. All of these elements help create competent and effective business leaders with the knowledge and skills essential in making well-informed and responsible business decisions.

To enroll in USN’s MBA program, call 702-968-1678. Financial aid is available for eligible students.

USN’s MBA Program Earns IACBE Accreditation

Congratulations to Dr. Okeleke Nzeogwu, MBA program director, and USN’s MBA students, faculty and staff! Following a comprehensive program evaluation and site visit, during a meeting held on Nov. 12 the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE) granted accreditation to USN’s MBA program. At the same meeting the IABCE Board of Commissioners also endorsed a set of commendations of the site-visit team pertaining to the university’s commitment to continuous improvement and program innovation; its commitment to the continuous growth and development of the faculty; and its culture of transparency and interdisciplinary collaboration.

USN’s Weekend MBA Program Now Enrolling for Jan. 2010 Start

USN is accepting applications for the January 2010 start of its Master of Business Administration (MBA) program. Courses are taught on Friday evenings and Saturdays, offering an opportunity for working adults to earn their degree in as few as 14 months, with 17 months typical, while still maintaining full or part-time employment.

“The MBA program at USN provides a tremendous opportunity for people eager to retool and repackage themselves for employment or advancement in a challenging economy,” said Dr. Okeleke Nzgeowu, University of Southern Nevada’s MBA program director.

The program is taught using USN’s block system, which provides students the opportunity to study one course at a time without distractions from other subjects. Combining real-world experience with proven management theory, the MBA program focuses on leadership, teamwork, decision-making and communications skills and develops in-depth knowledge of accounting, finance, entrepreneurship, marketing and management.

Suken Shah, a graduate of the MBA program, said, “Choosing USN for my MBA degree was the best thing I could have ever done. I gained a better understanding of business and people, and I now look at issues and opportunities in a more informed way. My MBA education gave me a whole new perspective on leading people and managing a business.”

The MBA program offered by USN is accessible to anyone with a baccalaureate degree or higher from an accredited institution. Financial aid is available for qualifying students. For more information about the program or to apply, call 702-968-1678 or visit www.usn.edu/mba.