Academic Administration
| Dean |
|
Cheryl McConnell, M.P.A., C.P.A. |
| Associate Dean |
|
Richard D. Graham, M.B.A., M.A. |
| Discipline Group Coordinator, Accounting, Economics, Finance |
|
Anthony L. Tocco, Ph.D. |
| MA, MBA, DO/MBA, MSBIA Program Director |
|
Myles P. Gartland, Ph.D. |
| Discipline Group Coordinator, Management, Marketing |
|
Martin H. Stack, Ph.D. |
| Nonprofit Leadership Studies Program Director |
|
Jennifer Rinella, Ph.D. |
| |
|
|
Full-time Faculty
| Professor of Production Operations Management |
|
Shahid Ali, Ph.D. |
| Assistant Professor of Marketing |
|
Tracy Blasdel, Ph.D. |
| Assistant Professor of Management |
|
James F. Dockins, Ed.D. |
| Professor of Finance |
|
Brian D. Fitzpatrick, Ph.D. |
| Professor of Economics |
|
Laura E. Fitzpatrick, Ph.D. |
| Professor of Management |
|
Myles P. Gartland, Ph.D. |
| Executive Professor of Management |
|
Anna C. Lampe, Ph.D. |
| Associate Professor of Management |
|
Jeremy J. O’Connor, Ph.D. |
| Assistant Professor of Management |
|
Xuan Pham, Ph.D |
| Assistant Professor of Management |
|
Kelly A. Phipps, J.D., Ph.D. |
| Professor of Finance |
|
Sudhakar Raju, Ph.D. |
| Assistant Professor of Management |
|
Jennifer Rinella, Ph.D. |
| Associate Professor of Management |
|
Craig M. Sasse, Ph.D. |
| Associate Professor of Management |
|
Randolph E. Schwering, Ph.D. |
| Assistant Professor of Accounting |
|
Jamison Shipman, J.D., C.P.A. |
| Professor of Management |
|
Martin H. Stack, Ph.D. |
| Professor of Economics |
|
Michael J. Stellern, Ph.D. |
| Associate Professor of Marketing |
|
Wenbin Sun, Ph.D. |
| Professor of Economics |
|
Michael M. Tansey, Ph.D. |
| Professor of Accounting |
|
Anthony L. Tocco, Ph.D. |
| Associate Professor of Accounting |
|
David B. Vicknair, D.B.A., C.P.A. |
| Assistant Professor of Economics |
|
Richard Wagner, Ph.D. |
| Executive Professor of Management |
|
J. Turner White, M.B.A. |
| Visiting Assistant Professor of Accounting |
|
Jeffrey R. Wright, M.B.A., C.P.A. |
Advancement to positions of major responsibility today depends increasingly on education beyond the bachelor’s degree. Whether working in public or private institutions, large or small, those seeking achievement of career goals and the long-term success of their organizations often look to graduate education in some area of business administration.
Rockhurst Graduate Business Programs meet this demand for competent, confident leaders with management skills necessary to lead successful organizations in dynamic, rapidly changing environments. Faculty use a wide variety of teaching approaches with emphasis on reality-based action learning case studies, projects, simulations and team-based activities. Courses blend theory and application to ensure both a broad-based understanding of contemporary business, and the capacity to appreciate how technology, globalization and social change are shaping the future business environment.
Rockhurst MBA, MA, and MS graduates possess the business management skills necessary to effectively manage people, processes and programs. They also possess the leader’s ability to discern, envision, empathize, communicate, and lead in an ethical, socially responsible manner.
Helzberg School of Management Vision, Mission, and Core Values
The Helzberg School of Management exists to prepare leaders to make a positive difference in the world. Our mission is to be the driving force in the community to educate and develop leaders of competence and conscience, based upon the Jesuit tradition of learning, leadership and service.
We will teach, practice, and be guided by:
- Reverence for dignity of the human person;
- Respect for the intellectual and spiritual aspects of education;
- Commitment to the community and its progress;
- Honesty, integrity, and ethics in every aspect of the educational endeavor.
- Commitment to engaged learning and applied business interactions.
Program Overview
Since 1933, Rockhurst business education and leader development have been characterized by innovation and responsiveness to a changing environment. Significant “firsts” include Kansas City’s first co-educational business degree for working adults (1933), the city’s first part-time MBA program (1976) and first executive MBA program (1978), and participation in Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences’ ground-breaking DO/MBA Dual Degree program featuring a Rockhurst MBA in Health Care Leadership (2001). In the Spring of 2014, the Helzberg School of Management became the first business school in the region to offer certificates in Data Science and Business Analytics as well as Business Intelligence. For more than 70 years, Rockhurst has met the demand for competent, confident leaders with management skills necessary to lead successful organizations in dynamic, rapidly changing environments.
The Helzberg School of Management offers an accelerated or part-time evening Master of Business Administration (MBA), with concentration areas in accounting, business intelligence, nonprofit administration, finance, health care management, international business, management, organizational leadership, human capital, entrepreneurship, and fundraising leadership. Rockhurst BSBA students with a concentration in accounting may use the accelerated MBA to meet CPA exam requirements. The Helzberg School of Management offers a Master of Arts in Managment with concentrations in organizational leadership and development, health care management, and nonprofit administration. In collaboration with Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences Doctor of Osteopathy progam, the Helzberg School of Management offers a dual degree DO/MBA. The Master of Science in Business Intelligence and Analytics is the newest graduate degree program offered in the Helzberg School of Management.
The Helzberg School of Management offers a unique focus on executive education within the greater Kansas City area through its executive program, the Executive Fellows MBA. As part of its commitment to lifelong learning within the Catholic, Jesuit tradition, the Helzberg School of Management also provides educational and developmental programs for managers within the metropolitan area.
The Helzberg School of Management offers post-graduate certificates which focus on specific areas that Master of Business Administration graduates may further pursue. Certificates are available in finance, health care management, international business, management, and nonprofit administration, data science, business intelligence, organizational development, human capital, fundraising leadership, and science leadership.
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
Helzberg’s MBA Programs are designed to meet the needs of Rockhurst University undergraduates with a minor in Business Administration or BSBA degree wishing to complete their graduate degree and for working professionals. Students come from a variety of professional backgrounds with diverse personal goals. Some are improving their professional skills to enhance chances for advancement; others are preparing for a complete career change. To accommodate the dual role of employee-student, MBA classes are offered in the evenings and include some Saturdays.
MBA Objectives
The Helzberg School of Management strives to be the preeminent applied leadership, general management and competency-building institution in the Midwest. We seek to do this by developing technically competent managers with a broader understanding of their leadership roles as agents of change in solving problems of society and in improving social justice. To educate leaders and to make a positive difference in the world, the Rockhurst MBA incorporates the following six themes in the program: Leadership, Ethical Behavior/Corporate Social Responsibility, Business Skills and Knowledge, International/Global, Information Analysis and Application, and Communication.
Length of Program
Students must complete the requirements for an MBA degree within six years of beginning their Prerequisite courses, or, if no prerequisites are required, from their 6000-level Managerial Perspectives courses. Students may complete the degree in as little as one calendar year by enrolling full-time or in as few as 8 terms by enrolling part-time. Classes are offered during 5 terms throughout the calendar year with entry points in January, March, June, August, and October. At one course per term, the student would still graduate within the allotted six years. Students taking more than 8 hours of MBA-level courses in any one term, must have Dean’s or Program Director’s approval.
MBA Admission
Anyone holding a bachelor’s degree in any field from a regionally accredited college or university may apply for admission to the MBA Program of Rockhurst University. Applications are accepted continuously throughout the year.
To be considered for the program, official copies of transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate work, a completed application form and official GMAT scores should be forwarded to the Admission Office, Attn: MBA Admission, Rockhurst University, 1100 Rockhurst Road, Kansas City, Missouri, 64110-2561. For further information, please call the MBA Admission Office at (816) 501-4823. A GMAT/GRE waiver form can be completed for the following credentials:
- Hold a terminal degree such as a J.D., M.D., D.O., Ph.D., Ed.D., Pharm.D., or D.D.S.
- Hold a graduate degree (masters level) and/or professional certification (i.e. CPA, CFA, CMA, CIA or CFP), with evidence of significant quantitative course work and a minimum 3.25 GPA
- Graduated with a BSBA, BA in Economics, or business minor AND have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 both overall and in their major or minor business courses (course equivalent designations of AC, BIA, EC, FN, MG, MK) from Rockhurst University or another AACSB-accredited program.
- A minimum of 3 years of progressive, professional, full-time work experience that entails a significant scope of responsibility (managing people and/or projects) and employs in-depth quantitative and analytical skills. This waiver is reviewed by the Graduate Business Admission Committee in the Helzberg School of Management.
Master of Arts in Management
Managers and future managers need critical knowledge and skills to launch and sustain successful careers. The Masters of Arts in Management program emphasizes the qualitative skills of management. The 35 hour program focuses on managerial issues such as human resources, leadership, team dynamics, functional decision-making, and other knowledge and skills pertinent to managing others. Special focus is on managing people, change and technology so that teams and businesses operate more effectively, efficiently, and ethically. Students in the Master of Arts in Management will benefit from the Helzberg School’s core competencies of organizational, leadership, and ethical development.
Candidates in the Master of Arts program may specialize in one of three concentrations: Organizational Leadership & Development, Health Care Management, and Nonprofit Administration. Candidates may also earn a Master of Arts without a concentration by taking general electives.
Anyone holding a bachelor’s degree in any field from a regionally accredited college or university may apply for admission to the Master of Arts in Management Program of Rockhurst University. Applications are accepted continuously throughout the year.
To be considered for the program, official copies of transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate work, a completed application form and official GMAT scores should be forwarded to the Admission Office, Attn: Graduate Business Admission, Rockhurst University, 1100 Rockhurst Road, Kansas City, Missouri, 64110-2561.
- Completed application for admission.
- Official transcripts for all undergraduate and graduate coursework evidencing conferral of a bachelor’s degree. Electronically submitted transcripts are also accepted and may be sent to graduate@rockhurst.edu. Official transcripts should be mailed directly from your school to:
Rockhurst University
Graduate Business Programs
Conway Hall, Room 201F
1100 Rockhurst Road
Kansas City, MO 64110-2561
- Acceptable undergraduate GPA and Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), or the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) converted to a predicted GMAT score, by using the following formula: GPA multiplied by 200 plus GMAT score must equal 1050 or greater.
- The minimum GMAT or GRE converted score accepted is a 450.
- Prospective students who have not previously taken either exam are encouraged to take the GMAT.
- A GMAT/GRE waiver can be completed for prospective students with a minimum of 3 years progressive, professional, full-time work experience. This waiver is reviewed by the Graduate Business Admission Committee in the Helzberg School of Management.
- Current Resume and Personal Statement emailed to graduate@rockhurst.edu. The personal statement should be 1-2 pages in length and describe your educational and professional experience along with your goals related to earning the Master of Arts in Management degree.
Master of Science in Business Intelligence and Analytics
Today’s business professionals are charged with driving their organization’s performance. Many look to data to identify issues, improve decision-making and highlight new opportunities. The more a company understands its data, the more its competitive advantage grows. In short, organizations need highly qualified professionals trained in data science. And there are not enough to meet the demand. In fact, according to a recent McKinsey Institute analysis, there will be a need for an additional 1.5 million data savvy managers by 2018. That’s where Rockhurst’s Master of Science in Business Intelligence and Analytics program comes in.
This 30 credit hour program in the Helzberg School of Management takes the data science techniques of statistical modeling, computer science and machine learning, and adds implementation, business and strategy skills needed to be successful in a corporate environment.
1. Completed application for admission.
2. Official transcripts for all undergraduate and graduate coursework evidencing conferral of a bachelor’s degree. Electronically submitted transcripts are also accepted and may be sent to graduate@rockhurst.edu. Official transcripts should be mailed directly from your school to:
Rockhurst University
Graduate Business Programs
Conway Hall, Room 201F
1100 Rockhurst Road
Kansas City, MO 64110-2561
3. Current professional resume and personal statement emailed to graduate@rockhurst.edu. The personal statement should be one to two pages in length and describe your educational and professional experience along with your goals related to earning the M.S. in business intelligence and analytics degree. Further education and experience with math, statistics, programming, SQL and databases should be included.
- If a candidate has less than 3 years of professional, full-time work experience then a GMAT or GRE will be requested along with the requirements above.
Admission Requirements for the Accelerated Evening MBA Option CPA Certification
Full admission to the MBA Program for students who have not yet completed a Rockhurst bachelor’s degree requires:
Completion of the Rockhurst University undergraduate Liberal Core, the Helzberg School prerequisite requirements, and the following Helzberg School BSBA Core course requirements: AC 3500, FN 3000, MK 3000.
A minimum overall GPA of 2.75 for all HSOM BSBA Core courses.
A minimum overall GPA of 3.0 in all upper-division accounting courses completed at the time of application.
The GMAT must be taken to be accepted into the program and should be taken during the student’s junior year. The score on the GMAT must meet the standard MBA admission requirements. The student can also be waived from the GMAT with a cumulative business GPA of 3.5 or higher and a cumulative overall GPA of 3.5 or higher.
Dual Degree Programs
MBA/MS-BIA, MBA/MAM, DPT/MBA, DPT/MAM, MOT/MBA, MOT/MAM
Overview
The policy governs graduate dual degree program arrangements including: (1) dual master’s; and (2) dual master’s/doctoral program arrangements. This policy does not apply to joint degree programs or dual certificate program arrangements, except as explicitly noted.
Admission to a Dual Degree Program
For admission to an approved dual degree program, the student must meet the admission criteria for each of the degrees and must be admitted separately to each degree program. The student must be admitted to the second program before completing the first. Admission to one degree program does not guarantee automatic admission to a second. Each admission decision is separate, and conducted according to established procedures for the specific degree. The student must take all admission examinations required by each of the graduate programs.
Dual Degree Program Policies
Credit applied to a bachelor’s degree program may not be applied to a dual degree arrangement.
Up to 12 eligible credits earned may be shared for double-counted credit between dual degrees.
Individual colleges or schools, departments, or degree Program Director may impose more stringent limitations on the double counting of credits, but may not allow dual counting in excess of the university limit.
All students must have an advisor from each program.
Any curriculum changes for dual graduate degrees must be approved by the Graduate Program Director (or Program Directors for each of the two degrees, if a shared course) and the Graduate Curriculum Committee.
A student may leave the program before completion of the dual degrees. A students who withdraws or is dismissed from the dual degree program must fulfill all of the requirements of the degree program they wish to complete.
Students will receive separate diplomas for each degree program. Both degrees may be awarded concurrently or separately, as each are completed.
All standard policies relating to time to degree, residency requirements, academic standards, and minimum GPA required to graduate apply to any dual-degree arrangement. If the student withdraws from one of the participating programs, the dual-degree arrangement is automatically nullified.
Transfer Credit
A maximum of nine semester hours may be transferred from other accredited graduate business programs. Students enrolled in a Jesuit, AACSB-accredited business program are able to utilize the Jesuit Transfer Agreement. For more information, contact your Jesuit graduate business academic advisor. Rockhurst University credit is based on the semester hour. A grade of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale is required on all transferred hours. Decisions on transfer credit are made at the time of admission as part of the initial credit evaluation.
When the student is already pursuing a graduate degree at Rockhurst, and wishes to take a graduate course at another institution and apply the credit toward their Rockhurst degree, the student must first request permission to transfer the credit. The student submits for approval a Pre-Approval of Transfer Credit form, course descriptions, and other supporting materials requested to the Helzberg School of Management Graduate Business Advisor for approval by the Dean or Program Director. In some cases coursework accepted may result in an extension of the six-year time limit. Once approved by the program, the student may take the course at the other institution. Approval for transfer will be forwarded to the Registrar’s Office. Once the coursework has been completed, the student must request that a sealed official transcript from the other institution be sent directly to the Registrar’s Office at Rockhurst University so that the pre-approved credit will be applied to their Rockhurst degree.
Registration
A priority system of enrollment is used for those students needing 3 terms or less hours to be graduated to help ensure that those students are enrolled in the classes required to complete their degree requirements. Specific dates and times of enrollment are listed for each semester on-line on the Rockhurst University website, www.rockhurst.edu. Early registration is urged in order to avoid class closings, especially for those students who lack flexibility in class selection.
Students who register early will be billed by the Business Office. However, all students are responsible for payment in accordance with regulations published online whether they receive a bill or not. Refer to the website for complete information.
Standards and Policies
Grade Requirements
A cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 in all 6000-7000 level courses is required in order to receive the MBA, MAM, or MSBIA degree. The cumulative GPA calculation will also include all MBA and MSBIA prerequisite courses required for degree completion.
Academic Probation and Dismissal
All students are expected to maintain a GPA of 3.00 both cumulative and by term. If a student’s GPA falls below 3.00 for either a term or cumulative, he/she will be placed on academic probation and are provided up to two semesters of enrollment in no more than six credit hours per semester to bring his/her cumulative GPA to 3.00. Failure to meet probation conditions generally will result in dismissal from the MBA, MAM, or MSBIA program.
A grade of “F” in any MBA, MA, or MS prerequisite course or courses at the 5000-7000 levels will result in dismissal from the MBA, MAM, or MSBIA programs. A student has the right to appeal the dismissal by submitting a letter to the Helzberg School of Management Dean or Dean’s designee.
If subsequently reinstated, the dismissed student must retake the course in which he/ she received the “F” grade and successfully pass with a grade of “B” or better before earning credit in any other courses. A course may be retaken only once and a grade of “B” or higher must be attained. If these requirements are not satisfied, termination of enrollment will become final. The grade of “F” will remain on the transcript, but only the newer grade will be factored into graduate GPA computation.
Course Repetition
If a student must repeat a course because the original course is over six years old, both grades will remain on the transcript but only the newer grade will be factored into graduate GPA computation. If a student is not required to repeat a course, but desires to do so, the original and newer grade will remain on the transcript but only the newer grade will be factored into graduate GPA computation.
Incompletes
Students are encouraged to complete courses during the assigned semester. A grade of “I” (Incomplete) may be assigned only for serious reasons by the course instructor. The time frame for the removal of an “Incomplete” shall be established by the faculty member in consultation with the appropriate dean and communicated to the student, but must be removed within six weeks or less or it automatically becomes an “F”. The initiative in arranging for the removal of the “I” rests with the student. (Refer to the grading policy in Graduate Academic Policies.)
