The mbaMission Podcast
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The mbaMission Podcast
Ep 73 | What Makes the UVA Darden MBA Program Stand Out?
The Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia is known for it's top-ranked faculty,dedication to the case method, and stunning facilities. In this week's episode of the mbaMission podcast, Harold Simansky and Jeremy Shinewald welcome back Dawna Clarke, Senior Assistant Dean of Admissions at UVA Darden. Dawna shares the qualities and features that differentiate Darden among top MBA programs, from its transformational dean, to its entrepreneurship and AI institutes, to its scholarship opportunities. Whether you are planning to apply to Darden or just beginning your business school research, you won't want to miss this conversation!
00:00 Welcome to the mbaMission podcast
01:47 Welcome to our guest, Dawna Clarke
01:57 Momentum at UVA Darden
02:43 Dean Scott Beardsley
05:39 Darden capital campaign
07:28 LaCross AI Institute
09:39 Darden campus and facilities
17:06 Top-ranked faculty and instructional excellence
18:53 Skill development and the case method
24:43 Mandatory ethics class
26:36 The Batten Institute for Entrepreneurship, Technology, and Innovation
30:24 Darden Worldwide Course
34:14 Darden Rosslyn campus (EMBA and Part-time programs)
35:25 Recruitment and job placement
38:27 Who succeeds at Darden
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I think if I were to think of one word to describe Jardin right now, it would it would it would be momentum. Can you tell us about the momentum and how it's driving the uniqueness of the school?
Dawna:It really starts uh with our dean, Scott Beardsley.
Jeremy:He's been transform transformational for the school. The dollars that the school has raised uh you know have translated into remarkable facilities.
Dawna:The goal for the Capital campaign was $400 million, and they exceeded that goal and raised $642 million. Every Darden student who wants to do a Darden Worldwide class gets a $5,000 scholarship.
Harold:Darden year in and year out is considered the number one school as far as the education goes and the quality of the teaching.
Dawna:At the end of the day, what is more important than the quality of the education that you receive?
Harold:Are you interested in the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business? If so, you won't want to miss today's podcast episode where we're shining a spotlight on a program that's consistently praised for its tight-knit community, world-class faculty, and distinctive academic experience. And joining us to unpack what truly makes Darden unique is someone who knows the school better than just about anyone. Donna has spent more than two decades in MBA admissions, including many years leading admissions at Darden, and she brings a deep, nuanced understanding of the program's values, strengths, and evolution. We'll explore what sets Darden apart from its immersive case method approach, to its culture of student leadership and collaboration, to its growing presence in the areas like entrepreneurship, tech, and global business. If you've been curious about Darden or just want to better understand how to find the right MBA program for you, this conversation is packed with insight.
Jeremy:Welcome back. Thanks for joining us again. We've already recorded one episode on the application process. If you haven't watched that, check it out. Now we're here to talk about just what makes Darden unique. I think if I were to think of one word to describe Darden right now, it would, it would, it would be momentum. There's momentum at the school. Can you tell us about the momentum and how it's driving the uniqueness of the school?
Dawna:Yeah, I'm so glad you asked about that. I think that word is spot on, Jeremy. And I would say it really starts uh with our dean, Scott Beardsley. I have had the privilege of working for nine business school deans, and all of them have been, I mean, you don't get to be a business school dean without a lot going for you. So they've all been, you know, positive experiences. But I'm I'm really blown away by the momentum under his leadership, and it's really actually fun to be a part of it. So I guess we'll just start with uh maybe some capital investments.
Harold:Or even before that, who is he? Because he actually does have a quite a different background from many business schools.
Dawna:Great. Oh, go. I'm so glad you asked that. He does. He has a non-traditional background. So he's born in Maine, raised in Alaska, went to Tufts undergrad, MIT for his um MBA, and then joined McKinsey right out of um his MBA program at Sloan. Ended up in Brussels, um, married a woman from France whose name is Claire. Um he had a very successful career at McKinsey for 27 years.
Jeremy:Uh, he was on the global board or global executive board or whatever the one would call it.
Dawna:Yes, um, traveled, traveled the world, comes from a family of educators, and had a passion for education, was based in Brussels, traveling the world, and fit in an executive doctorate um in order to make that transition. And we were lucky enough to get him at Darden.
Jeremy:And like he's like, he's so embedded in the community. Like he chose to live on the lawn at Darden. I'm sorry, at UVA, uh in in you know, one of the historic homes as opposed to, you know, I don't know, 20 minutes away on a beautiful bucolic green estate or something like that. Like he's he's very much he's feeling it.
Dawna:You got it. And so um at you at UVA, the main quad is called the lawn, and it's considered to be a real honor to live on the lawn. And the lawn and the pavilions were designed by Thomas Jefferson. So very historic. Um, he and his wife and he has three adult children that are in and out a lot, and um, one one attended um UVA. They're very much embedded in the life of UVA, which I think really benefits us at Darden because there's other deans that live on the lawn. He came up with the idea of the Future Scholars Program because of his interactions with what we call lawnies, the students who live on the lawn and wanting to find a path for a deferred admit program. So that was sort of his inception that came about from being on the lawn. His wife is an incredible cook and she's French, and so they have a history when there's a snowstorm, people line up outside their door. I've heard stories of like crepes that she made and things. So they're they're very much embedded.
Jeremy:If you want to be one of our success stories, sign up for a free consultation with a member of our full-time MBA admissions team. Since we've worked with tens of thousands of applicants over the past two decades, we can give you our honest opinion on your chances and help you put together your very best application. That is not a sales call, but rather your first session with one of us for free. We can give you a profile evaluation, answer specific questions about the process, review your resume, talk about your school choices, and so much more. Sign up at nba mission.com slash consult. We look forward to working with you. And so he's been he's been transform transformational for the school. I I mean, maybe you know, it's a business school. Let's talk about how much money he's raised, which is he it's un it means it's unbelievable. And uh I've had I've had uh I wasn't mentioning this off camera, but I've I've had uh some hilarious conversations with him because he thinks about it really like a consultant. Like he just breaks down the market of alumni and makes estimates and goes for it. But in this case, his estimate was wrong in a good way because there was a capital campaign and just Tartan blew through the goals.
Dawna:Right, exactly.
Jeremy:And it makes an impact. Like it's not just like it ends and you know the money just ends up in a big pile like Scrooge McDuck. Like it actually is impactful.
Harold:I mean, let me let me pause here.
Dawna:The number was what in the goal for the capital campaign was 400 million and they exceeded that goal and raised 642 million. He works really well and closely with the advancement team, is is a very talented fundraiser. He's also, as a person who comes from a family of educators, very concerned about the cost of education, the cost of an MBA program, has said early on in his tenure that he wants to make Darden the most affordable MBA program. So one of the outcomes, there are multiple outcomes that will benefit our students, but one of them is that we're about to announce that the scholarship budget over a two-year period of time has gone up by 33%. So this year's applicants are gonna benefit from the generosity of our alumni through the capital campaign. So I'm really excited about that and very excited to work for a dean who's really concerned about the cost of the MBA and trying really hard to do something about it. But it also is translating into you know other investments. Like I'll give you this is a great story. So we were talking earlier in the previous podcast about Chat GPT and AI. So as a dean, Scott was very concerned about and very invested in how Darden was going to integrate artificial intelligence into the curriculum at Darden. So, in order to be really in tune, he took a six-month sabbatical and did a certification program at Oxford in the ethics of artificial intelligence. So took intensive classes, just submitted, I think about three weeks ago, his dissertation, but did that because he he he had a background in artificial intelligence to some degree with some clients at McKinsey as well. So this has been a long-term passion, but knew that this is a trend that business schools really need to embrace and be on top of, found a donor, David Lacrosse, and announced last year the Institute for the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence. So, first business school to introduce uh an institute on that scale, which we're really proud of. I was at a trustees meeting in the spring, and uh faculty member Yayel Grushka Kokane gave an update on what the institute is up to. And I could not believe how many electives have already been introduced in artificial intelligence, how many cases have been written, but really proud of Scott for I mean, actually taking sabbatical to invest in the topic so that he's knowledgeable and cutting edge. And then that led to, you know, us having the first uh institute on that scale.
Harold:I bet it is. I mean, we hear about AI from every single direction, whether it's students, but also recruiters and just folks who are sort of just seeing this world from a very superficial level. I mean, if you're not talking about AI right now, that that's a problem.
Dawna:Yeah, I think, you know, talk about all in, you know, and and a neat, neat place to go. Uh, he he it's also just a kind of a fun aside. He is a a really talented tennis player and joined the tennis team at Oxford and competed with like the undergrads and stuff. So yeah, it was really fun, fun element of his background as well.
Jeremy:So the the the the dollars that the school has raised uh you know have translated into remarkable facilities. Like the I was lucky my reunion was on the same weekend as the opening of the Kimpton Hotel that is now like basically this just glorious front door. Uh you know, I I I was fortunate enough to be able to have a drink or two at this beautiful bar that they had here. And I would reflect on how I definitely wouldn't have been doing that as a student. Yeah. I couldn't afford that kind of drink. But but um I mean what a great place for recruiters to meet and and students to hang out. I mean, it's it's just it's a fabulous five-star hotel right on Darden's campus.
Dawna:Yes, it is on our campus.
Jeremy:And John Byrne would point out, he's pointed this out a million times. When we had him on the podcast, he said he's like the genius of it is that it's gonna be a moneymaker for Darden and it's going to keep funneling money back into the back into the school. It's like it's not just that it's a nice space. Yeah and it is it's a magnificent space.
Dawna:It's really so yeah, I think it exceeded everybody's expectations. And this was uh Scott's inception. He had the vision, you know, there was an old sponsors hall that was, you know, a little musty, and as Scott delicately put it, it was not on brand. And so Darden does own it, but it's operated by Kimton, which is they've just been really great to work with. And I love that it's another area for students to get gather. I mean, Darden's really well known for its community, and to your point, you walk in and there's just beautiful decorated a couple several big spaces and students. I love going down there for events and seeing students hanging out. And um, I mean, there's just great places for us to have conferences and for, you know, we have so many recruiters that come back, alumni like you, Jeremy, who come back. So it's a gorgeous facility, but uh will be a moneymaker for the school and uh the money that part, some of the money that is going to be generated will also go into scholarships. So benefits applicants who are listening. And then the other thing, next time you come back, I'm not sure if this was open last time. Um, Scott and his wife are avid gardeners, and they had the idea of building an arboretum behind the hotel.
Harold:Oh, that's interesting.
Dawna:Yeah. So there's a Japanese garden that was donated by some Japanese alumni. There's an area that is um dedicated to the faculty emeritai who have retired over the years. They have trees dedicated to them with a plaque in their name. There's benches dedicated to different prominent people that are, you know, have made an impact at Darden. There's a space with a flat area. I was walking there about a month ago, and people were out there doing yoga. There's like a little mini water feature with like a babbling brook, and just that's a really nice place in between meetings or classes to go. He had a wellness expert come and talk about the importance of nature. And it's really kind of intended as a wellness benefit for students, faculty, and staff. There's hiking trails back there. I mean, it's just very, very differentiated and comes from, you know, a passion for gardening.
Harold:That makes sense. And there's also new residence halls, if I understand correctly.
Dawna:Yes. So um, one of the things that Scott does as dean is he sits on committees for other schools and as part of the accreditation, their accreditation, and has visited a couple of schools that had residence halls and really wanted that to be incorporated at Darden. There has been a housing shortage in Charlottesville. So there's sort of a need for residence halls. But in order to sort of amplify the community at Darden, um, in the process of building two residence halls that have there's a committee that looked at like student input into what should the residence halls incorporate in terms of gathering spaces. There are going to be individual units, like everybody has their own bathroom and their own kitchen, but different sizes, some for single students, some for people with families. So we're really, really excited that those will be available in 2027 and right in between the parking garage and like the Abbott Center. So, I mean, literally right on camera.
Jeremy:So, okay, so a couple of points about that because I think we're talking about all the new stuff at Darden. Yeah. The old stuff is pretty impressive as well. The the the garage, as I noted on a podcast with with uh with Harold, the the undergrads with a smirk referred to as Garage Mahal because it's the nicest garage you'll ever see in your life. And then I mean, when I got there, like you know, and I mean I come from Canada, like, you know, like part of the part of the G7, like one of the most, one of the strongest economies in the world. There are no universities like this in Canada. I mean, you know, it's so specifically an American experience. And to get to the school, and like I had been to the school, I but I I had toured the school before, and like I've talked about in past podcasts, you know, the tour was really what made the difference for me. You know, meeting Donna and all of the amazing facilities just blew me away. And um, and like when I got there, I had my learning team and I was assigned to a learning room. And as silly as this seems, I was like, wait, this room's just for us? Like, we have our own dedicated. It was like, yeah, every learning team has its own dedicated space and meets at night. And you've like the idea that you've got your own university space that's reserved for you. That's I think we just sort of take that for granted as like the table stakes, the school, but that's really special and nice.
Dawna:Yeah, it is a benefit to work in the space. It's a beautiful school.
Jeremy:I remember the first the first so I'm gonna go, I'm getting really nostalgic. No, go. I came to I came to visit and I went to a quantitative analysis class. And of all things, Dana Kleiman was the person who was to was teaching any since past. Um, and uh, and it was like day three, and I I was a speechwriter, and I was like watching the intensity, I was like day six, whatever it was, of the of the of the discussion in the class, just things moving back and forth. There's a simulation that was moving in real time on the on the screen. And I was like, I don't know if I'll be able to catch up with this. Like this is this is six classes in out of like 17. How did they get from like someone has to have the level of knowledge that I have, which is zero in terms of quantitative knowledge analysis, and be keeping this class, but I don't know how anyone makes this leap. And I walked into the class and I talked to I talked to to Dana afterwards, and he was like, Oh, you you'll be surprised how quickly you get there. And we we we shatter you along, and there's also he's like, it looks sophisticated, but it's and I I was like, I walked outside onto this beautiful green lawn that is the centerpiece of of in many ways of the layout of the of the of the school, and and was just like, well, it was green, it was sunny, and it was I was like, well, okay, if I'm gonna do something this intense in the classroom, I'm gonna at least walk out of this like peaceful environment where I can decompress.
Dawna:Oh, that's a great story. I can do this, yeah.
Jeremy:I can do this, yeah. That's such a good story. I mean, think about how vividly, I remember the professor, I remember the day, I remember how I felt it.
Dawna:That's so nice to hear because there's so much momentum right now around the space, but that's really nice that that was a component in your decision-making process.
Harold:Right, right, right. Of course, this is not a bad segue, though, because obviously you can build something beautiful if inside the classroom it's not so beautiful. But as many people know, Darden year in and year out is considered the number one school as far as the education goes and the quality of the teaching. Would you speak to that and just how it has been so important to the Darden brand and what it's always tried to do?
Dawna:Yeah, I mean, this goes back for decades. I mean, Darden has always put a stake in the ground in terms of the importance of offering the best educational experience and the best teaching faculty. It was really nice. I'm gonna tell a little anecdote from a couple of years ago that just popped into my mind. So I I've been on the accreditation team the last couple of times when other deans come and accredit us. And one of the things that was pointed out to us uh about two accreditations ago, I remember Sally Blunt, who was the dean or was the dean at Kellogg, pointed out um how many resources Darden allocates to its teaching faculty, that that was a differentiator in terms of the lighter teaching load, the resources that are allocated to them in order to make that happen. So it was kind of nice that that was acknowledged in a more sort of objective way in terms of okay, part of the you you guys invest in this in order to make make this happen. And that was something that was really, really stood out in the accreditation. But I think, you know, what could be more important? If you're a prospective student thinking about giving up your career for almost two years, you know, it's an investment in yourself. It's a great investment in yourself. Um, but it can be a daunting one. And at the end of the day, what is more important than the quality of the education that you receive? Because the quality of the education and the manner in which it's delivered are it's going to be what cultivates the skills that are necessary to be successful over the long term. Darden is very mindful about skill development. So it's one of the reasons that Darden has been so committed to the case method over the years, that the philosophy is that the best way to really cultivate strong decision-making skills is to start on one day, uh, day one, excuse me, um, with uh looking at a case. Each case is set within an industry. And I think one of the things that people might not um know about Darden is that at age 27, most people, a lot of people don't know what they want to do, or maybe they've narrowed it down, they're considering a few different things, but every case is set within an industry or a topical area. So in the two-year period of time, people are gonna get so much exposure to so many different industries and a little flavor. And one of the things that I keep hearing about this generation is the extent to which they're gonna make major career pivots, like more so than people have been changing jobs for a long time. But I keep hearing and reading that this generation is is expected to make more dramatic career pivots. So if you've gone to a school where you have had a case method and it has cultivated your decision-making skills, it's cultivated your ability to communicate, keep a conversation moving forward, ask penetrating questions, um, learn from me ask penetrating questions. Yes, exactly. With the cold calls and things like that. I think it really sets people up for making these career pivots that are to be anticipated in in this generation. Um, I'm also really heartened. I travel for Jordan internationally um two or three times a year. And I am always so struck by alumni, and I I'm gonna, I might have to turn the tables and ask Jeremy this question too, of like cases they may have had years ago that they still draw from or that were really pivotal in their career.
Jeremy:Do you have do you have some that's and and you know it's funny? Uh and I we talked about this also. The the ones that stuck with me are always the OB cases. They're always the organizational behavior cases where you're thinking about how to like I like I'm sure some of the spreadsheet lessons are embedded in my brain or some ability for me to analyze things that I'm where I'm relying on it and not realize that it came from some case or some way of thinking about something. But certainly like moments where I'm trying to, where I'm like, you know, trying to understand a client who's panicking, a uh, you know, a colleague who's frustrated, whatever it is. And I'm like, yeah, this reminds me a lot of that, of that case, you know, the like yeah, and and and I'll hear it with my with my classmates like, remember the Alvarez case where the that guy who couldn't adapt to change and kept writing his names on on everything and claiming things for himself because he sort of felt like he was being phased out. He was trying to assert himself. And like, like people, like like I remember the Alvarez case.
Dawna:And to your point earlier, too, I did Darden's tech program, the executive program, and I remember this case that I have used a lot in my career, and it was about Amazon. It was about the case was illustrating the concept of the first mover advantage. And it was about Amazon and how Amazon had a huge first mover advantage and it illustrated an example of the first mover advantage, and then you talk, you know, about why being the first mover is a differentiator in a business and things. And that's something that I've used a lot in my career, like trying to innovate, right? And being the first mover with test flexibility. So I love its relevance and I love when I travel. I was in the Philippines with a colleague of mine, Whitney Kestner, and there was this alumni panel, and there's a very prominent alum in the Philippines who got up and I mean, he, I think it's in his late 60s and rattled off some of the cases that were very relevant to his career success. One was Wendy's case, and um, so I love that people I'm gonna do.
Jeremy:Well, when I was at Garden in my second year, you there's an opportunity for you to participate in case writing. And um, and I wrote a case with Andy Wicks. I wrote a Darden Ethics case. Oh, um what it was with the ethics of of accepting a gift that you know was that you knew was tainted. It was it was a disguised gift about um some of the financial scandals at the time. Because when I graduated from Darden, there were you know Enron was imploding, Global Crossing was imploding, like the like to this generation, probably these kinds these terms mean nothing because they're they were a big deal then. Yeah, and I mean there was you know, Martha Stewart went to jail at that time. Yeah, that's true. The market sank. Um, all there was a huge implosion, uh dot-com implosion. And um, and uh, you know, there are there are questions about like stock gifts that have been given to organizations that were like based on Enron stock. It's like, well, should we be accepting these? Like, should we be returning these? If we knew about it, how much should we have known? Like, and it sort of foretold the Madoff scandal in some ways as well. Wow. It foretold foretold a lot of a lot of the scandal. I mean, and and lots of organizations have dealt with this. In fact, I think it was I think it was all Columbia Business School had a gift, or Columbia University had a gift from Ivan Bosky, the famous um, you know, 80s uh, you know, bond trader who went to jail for insider trading. And um, they had the Boskey Library, if I recall. I think they got a $200 million gift from I'm getting some of the details wrong. Um, I think this is in our in the technical note that we had that we uh attached to the case. Um, and they ultimately decided not to give the money back, but decided to take his name off the building. And it was like, okay, so is that like is that acceptable? It's so all anyway, all these questions that that was that was the case I wrote. And I think Andy still teaches it every once in a while. Yeah.
Dawna:Yeah, that's that's great.
Jeremy:And and enough about me. We should go back to the school here. No, no, no, but it is about the school. I'm glad. Yeah. I've got to reach out to Andy and see if I can, if he's teaching it, I'll come and come and see him teach it one day.
Dawna:Yeah. Oh, that oh, that would be amazing. Um, and then you you touched on ethics, and one of the things that we're really proud of is that Darden has had a mandatory ethics class ever since the first day it was founded. So we're really, really proud of that. And have like Ed people like Ed Freeman on the faculty.
Jeremy:Ed, if you want to hear a like Ed's just unbelievable. I mean, he's like a legend, and everyone loves that guy. And he I was I was lucky enough to be on his podcast. It was one of the honors of my career. Like, really, that he that he invited me to talk about my path on his podcast was just unbelievable.
Dawna:Oh, I didn't know that. That's great.
Jeremy:Yeah, I mean he's the best. He's got a fantastic. What's his focus? He's he's he's he's he's the founder of stakeholder theory, which basically says that when you make a decision in your career, when you make any decision, you need to not be thinking only about the bottom line because that gives you too short-term a perspective. You're making the next quarter, you're what, but you need to be thinking about the interests of all stakeholders and and and that will empower you to make good long-term decision making. And while that seems maybe obvious at the when he wrote this, when he wrote the the the book on stakeholder theory at the time, this was revolutionary. I mean, this was this was this was and and I and I think still it's not necessarily always intuitive to people, and that's why we we do have problems like like the like the financial scandal in 2008. If people were thinking about stakeholder theory, they wouldn't have thinking about selling you know that mortgage with with that they shouldn't have been selling whatever it is. And um, and so he's he's a real legend. I would recommend that anyone who goes to Darden make it a point of being in a class if they can, because he's he's the best. So we've talked about facilities, we've talked to the dean, we've talked about the case method, but there's another kind of we've talked about facilities like almost like the physical plant, but like the Batten Center is just like I mean incredible. Like when I when I was there, it was just starting. There was a $60 million gift from Frank Frank Batten, who was the founder, I think, of the Weather Channel and a couple other. Um and the funds have just grown and grown. And the as from what I know from my classmate Sean Carr, who used to run the Batten Center, I believe he basically said, Look, we we kind of have the the the title of the program, like we kind of have to spend it. So we've we just keep growing and growing and and bringing new programs.
Dawna:So tell us, tell us a little bit more about I'm so glad that you were there at the inception. So yeah, years ago, Frank Batten gave a $60 million gift that was invested and is now, I think the endowment is at like a couple hundred million dollars.
Harold:And this separate from the Darden's endowment directly?
Dawna:It's um, yeah, they have their own investment, uh their own endowment of about 200 million. And it is now called the Batten Institute for Entrepreneurship Technology and Innovation. And the school, I was really struck when I came back to Darden by how many students were incubating or started their own business right out of business school. That that was really it has been very impressive to me. Um, but last I looked, there were something like 35 entrepreneurial classes that are available to our students. Although it's really interesting because when I talk to, I'm curious to hear what you have to say on this. A lot of times when I meet Darden alumni and I talk, I ask them, especially, especially if they have an entrepreneurial background, what was it about Darden that helped you the most? A lot of times I hear about the first year core.
Jeremy:Right. For sure. For me, that was everything. Is that I mean, I I I was a poet, right? So like I benefited so much from the foundation, just understanding what the disciplines were and how they interacted. Um, huge for me, huge. I was a burden on my learning team. My learning team was like, come on, keep up. Let's go, let's go.
Dawna:I know that he was very beloved in his class, so I don't think he was really the burden that he thinks he is. But um, but there's there's so many opportunities through um Baton, like incubating an idea, uh pitching your idea to investors, uh, entrepreneurial classes. Um I've just been so impressed with how many students are taking advantage of those. You typically see that in business school, like a few years out. You go out and get more traditional experience and then do something entrepreneurial. But I think Batten has a huge impact.
Harold:And to turn it around also, there is no organization now that's not thinking entrepreneurial, even whether it's a Fortune 500 company, or this notion that you have to be trained in a very deliberate way in innovation, I mean, clearly speaks to the need for something like the Batten Center. And when you layer on technology, it's like, okay, th things were really coming together in that regard.
Dawna:There's also an upcoming conference. It's new, um, it's ETA entrepreneur through through entrepreneurship through acquisition has been a very hot topic and trend lately. And there's an upcoming conference um on ETA, bringing in speakers and you know, people who are interested in ETA. And so that's a niche that Batten has caught, you know, carved out. They also give for people who are applying. Um, you can apply for a Batten scholarship. If you have a background in and interest in entrepreneurship, innovation, or technology, there are um full tuition scholarships that candidates can apply for. It's a slightly separate application process, but not too cumbersome at all.
Harold:Yeah, over the years, we've certainly had a couple of our clients who ended up becoming Batten scholars. And the reality is it's incredibly generous. I'm really almost stunned by how generous it is.
Dawna:Yeah. And then they get, you know, full advantage of all of the opportunities that are available through Batten as well.
Jeremy:And speaking of another like really unique opportunity, I mean the talk about let's talk about the Darden Worldwide course. I mean, that that's that's pretty unique and incredible.
Dawna:Yeah. And I okay, back to the momentum at Darden and things that have occurred under, you know, Scott's leadership. When he came, there was not a scholarship for the Dart Darden Worldwide class. And he wanted that class, which is a little more expensive than your average class because of the international nature of it, to be accessible to everyone. And so he got a donor who then um contributed a very significant amount of money to Darden. That money is invested. So every Darden student who wants to do a Darden Worldwide class gets a $5,000 scholarship to do a Darden Worldwide class. And so these classes, some of them change from year to year, but there have been some staples. Like there's one that a couple people teach in Italy on luxury goods. Um, somebody taught one last year in um Iceland is really well known for renewable energy. So this professor, Ron Wilcox, took a group of students out to Iceland and they studied renewable energy.
Harold:That's great. And is it a trip actually? How does it work?
Dawna:It's a course that they take, and the course I would say they range from about seven to ten days. Sometimes people tack on a little time and go early or late.
Jeremy:Um I went to Iceland and Sweden with uh with a bunch of good friends. I was talking, I was talking about with the producers of this podcast uh uh earlier this week. We were talking about all the adventures we had uh in the in those in in and how and how that was like my big indulgence when I was in Darden.
Dawna:Yeah, was it was it through one of these classes?
Jeremy:It was the global business experience then, yeah. And uh and I went with some great friends.
Dawna:And you went to Iceland and Sweden?
Jeremy:Yeah, I went to Sweden. We were at the Stockholm School of Economics and uh Oh neat. It was they were hosted by them. They were so gracious, it was awesome.
Dawna:And now they have one in nearby countries. They have one, a joint one that's in Finn Finland and Estonia, and they visit um shipbuilding is big over. That's right.
Jeremy:We were in Latvia too. We were in Latvia. We're we're we're in you're right, Estonia went to Latvia.
Dawna:Oh, nice.
Jeremy:Yeah. In fact, now that I remember it, the trip that we took a trip to Iceland for a couple days that wasn't part of the GB, the GBE. We went to Sweden and Latvia on our GBES.
Dawna:See, but you're like one of the people who tacked on the extra time. That is great. And that is that is a skill that Dordan wants to cultivate, our international skill. So even if somebody like you're Canadian, maybe you had a lot of obviously expertise in Canada, but they really want to say, okay, if you haven't been to Latin America, go to Latin America. If you maybe you've gone to Latin America, but you haven't gone to Asia, that part of being a well-rounded leader, impactful leader, is having global skills and global awareness and experiencing the culture. And so, I mean, there is a huge element of integrating uh the culture. So there's a professor, Jean Litka, who has subsequently retired, but she taught um a class for years in Barcelona on design thinking and using the um art and architecture of Barcelona to inspire design thinking. Um, Carolyn Miles was the former CEO of Save the Children and an expert on sustainability. I guess Costa Rica is really well known for its sustainability um practices. So she taught one um in and in Costa Rica. So just a great opportunity for our student.
Harold:Honestly, that is actually an issue at a lot of business schools where there are opportunities, but many students simply cannot take advantage of them because of cost. So the reality is Virginia, this is significant that Darden is actually giving scholarships to people to go to these sorts of places because otherwise it is quite limiting.
Dawna:Yes, exactly. And you don't, you yeah, you create create the haves and the have nots. And so every every Darden student who wants to do a DWC, a Darden Worldwide course, gets a $5,000 scholarship to help offset the the cost. So we're really proud of that.
Harold:Yeah. So what else are you thinking about? What else is Darden thinking about as you start looking down the next one, three, five year?
Dawna:Yeah. Um, I would say um, well, one thing that I'll just will build on recent years is that Darden has also expanded its footprint in Rosalind, Virginia. So there's a SANS family.
Jeremy:That's right.
Dawna:Sans family grounds up in Brockford.
Jeremy:My old professor is leading the campus there. He's the greatest guy.
Harold:And is that for the executive MBA program, or do two-year uh students also take advantage of it?
Dawna:It houses the executive MBA program, the part-time MBA program, which is new as of three years ago. Um, we have an MSBA program. Um, there's the Future Year Scholars program that was introduced about seven years ago. Um, so Darden has grown significantly. And I think that's nice because for the students to graduate, you know, your alumni base is growing. And the students in um Charlottesville can go up and use the facilities in Roslyn and you know, vice versa. So the footprint has um definitely expanded in terms of different degree, the portfolio of degree options. And I know that there are some conversations going on right now about where growth will be um going forward. Will it be a little bit more in the executive or part-time program? Um, or you know, looking at, you know, different um options that are available.
Harold:No, no, that makes sense. Now, how about from the perspective of recruiters coming to campus, from the perspective of what are you seeing, both in terms of traditional recruiters, new recruiters, uh, where are your students getting jobs? I guess is the big question.
Dawna:Yeah. I think it's, you know, if you look at um recruiting success at most of the top business schools, you're gonna predominantly see consulting and um finance. But Darden is a general management program, and we do place people in all types of uh functions. It is a case method school, which is just great training for consulting for students who want to go into consulting, but there are so many different opportunities that are available. I would say one of the things that I my office is right next door to Jeff McNish, who's the director of career services. I have a firsthand view of how hard that team works. I'm really blown away by how committed they are to getting students jobs. It was a tough job market last year, but um I talked to him this morning. Almost 90% of the students who graduated in the spring have jobs, which apparently is higher than like the average for our peer schools. Our students start working with a career office before they even matriculate to Darden. So the summer before they come to Darden, there is a program called CDY and they um career development why, and they are assigned to a career coach. So the model that they use is they have career coaches who specialize in different industries. And so the person who does finance has worked in finance and has a network, and the person in consulting has worked in consulting and has a network and so on and so forth. There's somebody who specializes in international positions. So they're industry experts that have a network that they're bringing to Darden, and people are assigned to a career coach. You can change your career coach, but they literally start working with them before they attend Darden. They want to get a head start. Um, I think one of the high-class dilemmas that the career office works with is the Darden students are in really high demand. The rankings have gone up at the school too. And so we're really happy to see that the recognition in terms of um the rankings and the demand for students among recruiters has been high. So they often want to start recruiting like on day one. And, you know, the faculty and career office, like, let's give them some time to settle in and get the lay lay of the land. So it's all it's been like this interesting tension to balance of a high-class problem when you're going to a school where the the recruiters are, you know, knocking on your door so early in the process. Um for candidates who are looking at Darden 2 would encourage you just to look at the rankings and the career outcomes in recent years. They've been ranked number one for the last couple of years, and uh, looks like they're on a really good path for this this year as well.
Harold:Yeah, yeah. Listen, just what we're seeing is, as you said, Darden has this incredible momentum. The clients who end up at Darden, uh, I tell folks the clients that I end up at Darden for me, I just really like. They're just really good people. They're really smart. I mean, I say this about all my clients, but the reality is I really do think that there's something unique. And earlier you talked about emotional intelligence, and I see that in the people who are accepted, and I see that in the people who actually end up going there.
Dawna:I I'm so glad because we we really do try to screen for that. And if I'm an applicant and I'm applying to Darden and thinking about who my classmates are gonna be, I'm gonna be reassured that people in admissions are screening for that. I think that's so important. It's so important, not just at Darden, but in success in life, success in business to have those skills. And I think Darden's job is to take them to the next level. Like Jeremy was talking about how impactful his organizational behavior classes were. So you take people who are already predisposed to have strong interpersonal and emotion, you know, skills and emotional intelligence, and and then even in even take them to the next level and all these other skills that you get with the finance and accounting and marketing and operations and entrepreneurship and you know, they're they're good golden.
Jeremy:Thanks so much for being here. It was great to have you.
Dawna:Thank you for having me. It was great talking about it.
Harold:It was a lot of fun. It's always cool, it was always great hearing about Darden.
Dawna:Thank you so much. Appreciate it.
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