I see a lot of posts out there about the pros and cons about the STEM to MBA program, but not a lot of info from students or parents about what they think of it and how it worked, etc. I’m wondering if it is possible to do Engineering co-ops with this program? I know they have a business class each semester, so I’m wondering if this is a problem with missing a spring or fall class, etc. and only having certain classes each spring or fall. Seems like it would be pretty hard to make this work.
Another question is what do students think of 3 online classes over the summer?! Yikes.
We are hopeful that DS will be a National Merit Finalist, so will have 5 years of tuition paid for (assuming that doesn’t change). So we’re just trying to figure out best use of money and various options.
Thanks in advance!
Yes it’s possible to do Stem MBA and a co op at the same time. My son starts his first placement this fall after completing his freshman class in ME.
As far as how it works, Stem classes are typically held in the evening and co op students are told to call in to the lectures each week so they can stay with their own class. How practical it is to do I guess he will find out but co ops are actively encouraged by the Stem professors so I don’t envisage any issues.
Another benefit is that Co op students get priority registration for their classes every semester which should help to ensure they can still get the classes they need.
I’m a senior (about to graduate with math BS) in the STEM-MBA Program, and there have been many in my class that have co-oped. Sometimes, they end up extending their time at UA by a year (if they don’t have enough extra credits to balance out the co-op semesters). Other times, they stay right on track with their graduating class. Co-ops call in via a web conferencing tool similar to Skype to keep up with the class.
3 online classes over the summer isn’t bad as long as you can keep up with it. The professors post the course material online (on BlackBoard, if you’re familiar with that) for us to view when it fits our schedule best, as students have the option to co-op/intern/study abroad and take the 3 online classes. I’ve done the first set, and I’m about to do the second set this summer. The key is learning how to manage your time wisely; don’t wait until the day before something is due if you want a good grade.
Thanks to both of you @Britchick1 and @MathMajorUA. Very helpful! @MathMajorUA - were you doing a co-op or anything else that took up a lot of time when you did the online classes during the summer?
@collegework I did not have a co-op (math majors don’t typically do co-ops) or an internship, but I was working about 20 hours per week. A few of my friends had internships with the typical 40hr/week workload, and they made all As in the courses; one of them went to the beach or a festival every other weekend. They have told me that it was difficult balancing the requirements of both work and school, but as I said, one went to the beach pretty frequently, so there must have been some down time. I’d say they’re pretty manageable for most students. Additionally, there have been a few students in my class that have elected to do 2 classes per summer rather than 3 (so they’ll take 3 summers of classes - graduating from MBA in August rather than in May)
A word of advice from my own experience: I wouldn’t recommend fretting too much over what could happen. Neither co-op/internship nor admittance in the MBA program are in hand yet, so I would hesitate to make a decision based upon the assumption of getting both concurrently. Definitely keep that scenario in mind, but don’t base the decision completely on whether or not MBA+co-op is manageable; make sure to consider other scenarios as well. My apologies if this comes off a bit direct or presumptuous; that’s not my intent.
@MathMajorUA - thanks! Very helpful and good points.
@collegework My DS just finished his first Co-op rotation in the fall and was back at UA in the spring. He was able to just jump right back in with his Stem Mba cohort that he had been with for the past 4 semesters. I believe that Dr. Morgan sent him readings and I think he might have had a few other things to do during his co-op time, but it was all very manageable. He is back at co-op for the summer and is absolutely loving his time there.