The Wake Forest Masters in Management program has been around for ages now and as I was going through my older posts I realized that the overview I wrote was terribly out of date. This will be a refreshed and detailed overview of the program for anyone considering the degree.
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Overview
The Wake Forest program is a 10-month, specialized masters in management, open to non-business majors. Students have limited work experience as this truly is a graduate degree for essentially fresh undergraduates looking to add a business education to their resume. Classes start in July where you will begin studying analytics, communication, branding, marketing and financial management, accounting and other business-related classes. Wake Forest incorporates real world experience into the program through two consulting projects.
The program has three pathways that students can choose if they wish to specialized. These are Business Enterprise, Marketing, and Healthcare. From the school’s website:
“Students can replace their general electives with an optional specialized pathway with predesignated elective courses that align with their career goals and industry demands. These courses and projects provide networking and mentoring opportunities from business leaders and faculty.”
I always like to see a specialization option as it definitely enhances your marketability within a specific industry.
Class Profile
Wake Forest has provided a profile for their 2023 class. I always fine these helpful, especially if you are trying to short list which programs to apply for.
- Class Size – 95
- Male / Female – 43% / 57%
- International – 23%
- Average GPA – 3.4
- Average GRE – 311
My takeaways from this profile – Good sized class which will allow outliers of the above profile with compelling stories to stand a chance at applying. Diverse program, with more men than woman, a rarity among specialized business programs. Almost half of the program is underrepresented groups as well, providing additional diversity to the program. There are 58 different undergraduate institutions represented as well. If you didn’t go to Wake Forest for undergrad you will not feel odd.
Tuition
The 10-month Wake Forest Master of Science in Management Program has a tuition cost of $49,928 for the 2022-2023 year. There are a number of scholarships and a corporate fellowship that applicants can pursue in order to lower this cost.
Admissions
Two of the earlier application windows have passed already. Below are the upcoming application deadlines:
- International Application Deadline – March 15th
- US Application Deadline – June 1st
Classes begin in early July so those who get their applications in by that final deadline should hear back quickly. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis and only when complete.
The application process is fairly straight forward – resume, transcripts, two letters of recommendations, essay, etc. Those with a GPA of 3.2 or better and at least two grades of B or better in quantitative or other rigorous coursework, from a U.S.-based college/university are eligible for a GRE/GMAT test waiver.
Career Outcomes
Wake Forest provides a nice overview of the recent career outcomes. They are for the class of 2021 as I would imagine the school is still compiling the most recent classes results.
- 120 Graduates
- 83% Employment (6 months post-graduation)
- Industry
- Consulting – 28%
- Financial Services – 18%
- Marketing / Advertising / Sales – 11%
- Government / Education – 8%
- Consumer Packaged Goods – 6%
- Other – 24%
- Geography
- South – 48%
- Northeast – 20%
- Mid Atlantic – 10%
- Southwest – 7%
- Midwest – 3%
- West – 3%
- Hiring Firms
- General Mills
- Truist
- EY
- Wells Fargo
- Deloitte
- Walmart
- US Bank
- Cigna
- Ralph Lauren
- Capital One
I am fairly impressed with these career statistics. Geographic and industry diversity is great. Some big name hiring firms that will invariably help students springboard in their careers. A southern program placing students throughout the country is great and this specialized masters has been around for a while now so there should be alumni anywhere you’d want to work.
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I am glad I checked back in with the Wake Forest Masters in Management program. Lots have changed since I first wrote about the degree about 10 years ago. The school has a lot to offer, including dual degrees for especially motivated students. I would encourage anyone looking for management based graduate degree to check this one out. I’ll reach out to the school and see if I can get additional information as well. This is a program that I would like to stay on top of.
Here is a link to the Wake Forest Masters in Management Program
