Fresno Pacific offers new global MBA

Its new global MBA from Fresno Pacific University is designed to prepare Valley professionals for success in the world economy, the university says.
“The traditional MBA is just the functions of an organization—marketing, accounting, etc.—you assume it’s a domestic organization,” says Dennis Langhofer, director of the program. “We assume we are working ... to prepare people here (in the Central Valley) to work in a global environment.”
The degree’s international component comes through in the faculty, curriculum and foundation. Mr. Langhofer, who is also the interim dean of the School of Business, has run his own business and studied and taught leadership.
Justin Dermon, who teaches finance, is a Fresno native who moved to France at age 12 when his parents (his father is French) became missionaries there.
“You just can’t be in your own little place and ignore what’s going on around you,” says Mr. Dermon.
They are joined by Peng Wen, a native of Taiwan who has been teaching economics at the university since 1990. He is also a member of the economic advisory council to the Taiwanese government.
Another feature of the global MBA is that students will see the world they’re learning about. A two-week international trip, perhaps China or France, is included in the tuition. Study in those nations is expected to give participants experience with international business perspectives, the chance to apply critical analysis and practice in leadership and teamwork skills.
Classes will meet one night a week, and there will be an online component, as well. The 41-unit program will take 16 months and the first group of students is scheduled to begin studies in August at FPU’s North Fresno Center.
The need for the global MBA is real. FPU’s research in the Stockton to Bakersfield and Central Coast regions suggest demand for graduate-level education will increase hand-in-hand with the need for people in management-level positions.
Candidates for the program may be traditional B.A. graduates or working professionals who have completed their bachelor’s degree. The goal is to prepare them to be entry- or middle-level managers, or to operate their own businesses.
Fresno Pacific University offers undergraduate and graduate programs to about 2,400 traditional and adult students on its 42-acre main campus in southeast Fresno or centers in North Fresno, Visalia and Bakersfield. The university also reaches 14,000 students across the nation and around the world through professional development studies programs.