FORGE LASTING CONNECTIONS
People component is a valuable aspect of Dalhousie corporate residency MBA
Jocelyn Scherer and John Gleeson work in vastly different fields. Scherer is vice-president, account executive at Willis Canada Inc., Calgary, one of the world’s leading commercial insurance brokers. Gleeson is vice-president business development at Affinio Inc., a Halifax startup and the leading provider of deep psychographic audience insights.
They both, however, credit their success to the corporate residency master of business administration (MBA) at Dalhousie University, which includes an eight-month internship just six months into the 22-month offering.
“A paid corporate residency in the middle of the degree was huge for me,” says Scherer, who held a bachelor of philosophy in interdisciplinary leadership and came from an environmental consulting background when she applied. “It gave me a chance to test out another industry without leaving my career. That’s very unique and adds up to a program ahead of its competition. I wouldn’t be in the place I am today without Dalhousie.”
For Gleeson, who had a bachelor of arts, mass communications with a minor in business and history, and was the owner of a hockey school when he applied, it was the connections he made during his time in the offering that served as a springboard for post-graduate success.
Having completed the program in 2013 with a secured job, Gleeson went on to become the first hire at Affinio Inc., whose CEO was his mentor while he was in school. He is currently stationed in New York City.
“There were so many connections made in the classroom, through the school and during the corporate residency,” he says. “I even call some of my profs my friends now and they are resources I can turn to when working through difficult problems. The class sizes are small and you get to know people on a personal basis.”
That collegial atmosphere also allowed Scherer to forge lasting relationships. She keeps in touch with many of her peers and says, five years after graduating as part of the first-ever cohort of the corporate residency MBA program, seven of her fellow classmates have moved to Calgary, where they meet regularly and still talk shop.
“We get together and brainstorm if someone has a business idea or a business problem, just like when we were in school,” she says. “That’s been one of the most valuable aspects for me.”
Dalhousie’s corporate residency MBA begins in the summer semester with three core courses that provide students with fundamental business world competencies, and personal and professional effectiveness sessions designed to help prepare them for securing their corporate residencies. During the fall, students attend six more core courses and Year 1 is rounded out with extended placements with leading employers. After debriefing their corporate residences, students enter their second year to complete three remaining core and seven elective courses.
“In terms of content, there was a huge focus on emotional intelligence,” Scherer says. “A lot of schools focus on finance or marketing and, of course, Dal did, too, but what was really valuable was the people component. That’s something you don’t get at many business schools.”
The well-rounded approach also impressed Gleeson, who says the integration of personal and professional elements in the program offers students the strong skills they need to be successful in leadership roles.
“You have to be a leader who motivates and inspires as well,” he says. “The leadership classes really helped with making me self-aware and understand who I am. It’s not like I just got a skill set; there were so many integrations of components coming together that when I graduated I felt rounded and ready to take on any business problem or situation.”
Geared towards “high-potential career launchers” from all degree backgrounds, the diversity of Dalhousie’s corporate residency MBA applicants are often those who are “pivoting” out of different career paths after realizing their current career may not be a fit, or are “blenders,” who have a passion for what they studied in their undergrad and want to build on the strength of that degree. This, Gleeson says, is one of the most unique elements of the offering.
“The people who will get excited about the Dal program are those with diverse backgrounds who have accomplished things, but maybe not in a business sense,” he says. “They may be coming from a degree in science or music, or maybe started a company before and want more of a solid base. The special thing is using your unique experience and shifting it into a managerial context that can be a sought-after skill set.”
For more information, visit dal.ca.
“We get together and brainstorm if someone has a business idea or a business problem, just like when we were in school.”
– Jocelyn Scherer, Dalhousie University corporate residency MBA graduate