Pillars of Performance Excellence
The imposing pillars in the entryway of Kepner Hall, the home of the Monfort College of Business, have come to symbolize the college’s three pillars of performance excellence.
Pillar 1: Singular focus on excellence in undergraduate business education
Since 1990 the Monfort College of Business has offered a single degree, undergraduate-only business program. Students earn a degree in business administration with emphasis offerings in accounting, computer information systems, finance, general business, management, and marketing. An interdisciplinary degree is also available in nonprofit management.
The results of the college’s focus on undergraduate education have been impressive. Students score among the best in the country on the Educational Testing Service Major Field Achievement Test, which graduating seniors take to measure their grasp of core business principles. Student satisfaction levels also have been equally high.
Pillar 2: Program delivery of high-touch, wide-tech, and professional depth
Monfort’s high-touch program creates a learning environment characterized by significant opportunities for interaction between students and quality faculty. Enrollments are managed to maintain reasonable class sizes that are, on average, far smaller than other business colleges. A high proportion of doctorally-qualified faculty in class provides students with a solid foundation in business theory and practice. Since there are no graduate programs, the temptation to have graduate students teach classes simply does not exist.
A wide-tech strategy prepares students to hit the ground running in a business environment that is becoming increasingly technical. The college covers a wide range of business technologies the curriculum, stressing those that students are most likely to confront in industry. Graduating seniors rate the college among the best in the country in enhancing their ability to use and manage technology. Alumni rate the college equally high on the college’s contribution to their ability to apply technology.
Professional depth involves creating a learning environment that offers students opportunities to gain practical experience prior to graduation through exposure to executives and hands-on learning projects.
The Monfort Executive Professor Program brings nationally-known professionals to campus to work with students. Some executives teach in residence for the entire year, while others may visit campus for a day.
The college also offers students opportunities to learn through competing with their peers from other schools. For example, finance students manage a live stock portfolio of real money, with a current value in excess of $1 million. The students make all the investment decisions themselves in a real-life sink or swim test of their abilities prior to beginning their careers as stockbrokers or investment analysts. The college’s team took first place in a national competition in 1984.
Pillar 3: High value
Tuition rates at the Monfort College of Business are significantly below the national average, yet key metrics such as student learning results, student employment rates, and employer satisfaction are consistently high – in many cases among the best nationwide. Students at the college rate Monfort as an excellent investment. An exceedingly high percentage would recommend the college to a family member or friend.