Lowell Valencia-Miller; Assistant Dean of MBA Programs, Daniels College of Business

Daniels is named for Bill Daniels, who was known for his leading role in the cable television industry, as well as his commitment to ethical leadership. The University of Denver has had a business school since 1908—we’re actually the eighth business school ever established in the U.S. And we sit here in the booming city of Denver, Colorado. We’re a fair-sized private institution that offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees; the business school has one of the largest populations of students on campus. However, DU also has computer sciences, the arts, natural sciences and a men’s hockey team that has won 10 national championships. We’re very proud of our young student-athletes.

The key to success is our focus on learning by doing. You will learn a great deal of the theories and concepts, as well as the academics associated with a particular discipline, like accounting, finance or marketing. However, we differentiate ourselves through our challenge-driven model.

Students of our full-time MBA, also known as our Denver MBA, will complete four challenges over their two years in our program. The challenges cover entrepreneurship, social good, corporate and global environments. All of those experiences give the students the opportunity to take what they’ve learned in class and apply them to real projects sponsored by real companies in a wide variety of industries.

Our faculty is always there to assist, but students own these projects. They work directly with the institution, a nonprofit or a corporation to find out what the true problems are and help develop a solution for them. They then get to present to a C-suite set of executives at those organizations. It’s a great experience.

Besides the full-time or Denver MBA, we have the Part-time Professional MBA for people who typically work during the day and then take classes at night. That’s a two-year program. They’re basically being taught the same disciplines as the full-time MBA, though they may not work on as many projects. We do that because the working professional will bring what is happening in their work life to class discussion. They are able to work through some complex issues with faculty and their fellow students in a classroom setting. We rely heavily on them bringing in what’s happening in their workplace.

The Online MBA mirrors the Part-time Professional MBA. It’s the same courses and, in some cases, the same instructor, but this time, they are taught in an online environment. The student is normally a working professional who, for whatever reason, can’t get to campus or is maybe outside of the Denver area but still wants a Daniels degree. We basically offer them the same degree, rigor and requirements but in an online format. It requires a synchronous live session once a week. They’ll do some work asynchronously, and then they’ll join their classmates in an online session with the faculty member live each week over their two years in the program.

The Executive MBA is a program designed for working professionals with 10 to 20 years of experience. These are senior-level people who have done well in their careers. They may be in the top tier of their organization, but they have just a few learning building blocks to add to their knowledge. It has the same social good challenge as our Part-time MBA and the same experiential focus.

It’s a unique program because students go to San Diego and sail sailboats—something virtually none of them have done before. It really requires leadership and the ability to quickly apply what they learn. We call that our Sailing Challenge. Our Executive MBA is only an 18-month program. Students meet on alternating Fridays and Saturdays, but they find the value of working with other senior leaders and executives. It provides them an opportunity to network and understand what other industries may be dealing with, and they may have some similarities. Again, we are really facilitating the learning among those executives.

Denver, our home, is at the base of the Rocky Mountains on the high plains of Colorado. It’s a beautiful state where there is a lot to do outdoors. We’re a growing city with a vibrant entrepreneurial community. We have some large employers here that provide opportunities for our graduates once they complete their program. Many come here to learn, but many want to stay because of the city. Our location is key.

The other thing that I think is different about us is our vision at Daniels of pioneering business for the public good. It’s our mantra. It’s the essence of our namesake, Bill Daniels. He built a large business, but he did it ethically. When the time came to put a name on this new building, we approached Bill Daniels, and he said, “The one thing I want you to focus on is business ethics. You need to teach business leaders what it means to be an ethical leader. If I look you in the eye and I shake your hand, that’s as good as any contract on paper because I trust you. More importantly, as a trusted leader, you can lead others who believe in you.” Those values are the difference that we offer here at Daniels.

As mentioned before, our experiential learning model sets us apart, with real projects that give our students the opportunity to develop solutions.

The other thing that makes us different is our alumni network. Over 40,000 Daniels alumni are out there making a difference in the world. We have the opportunity to remain connected to them at businesses like Toyota or Charles Schwab. They know what happens when a student gets to learn, so they raise their hand and say, “Count us in to provide projects for those students.” Connecting what we do to the community and helping give back through those alumni is key to our difference.

There are a lot of programs that talk about learning abroad, but at Daniels, we mean it. The University of Denver is routinely recognized as one of the best schools in the country for undergraduates to study abroad. You pay the same tuition but get the opportunity to study in another country.

We also take that to heart in our graduate programs. Every MBA student has an opportunity to travel abroad and solve complex problems with the added challenges of a different country, time zone, language, culture and beliefs. That raises the bar for being an ethical leader and understanding what the world is like for business. It’s that international experiential ability to learn in another country that sets us apart.

Many of our programs are cohorted, meaning that when students come in, they get to know the students they will be working with for the length of their program. They take classes with those same individuals. They get to know and trust them. They get to learn together. It’s a great experience, but more importantly, it helps them develop a network beyond graduation. Once they’re done with the program, they’ll carry those relationships for a lifetime.

Our cohort model provides personalization and customizability to our programs. For instance, those in our part-time programs can customize 33 percent of the course, meaning they can choose whatever electives they want to specialize in. If they want to focus on real estate or construction, they will do their MBA through the lens of real estate, construction, finance, accounting, business analytics, marketing and sustainability. All of those are key areas of concentration that all of our full-time, part-time and online MBA students can pursue. They have more flexibility, personalization and customizability than a lot of other programs out there.

If you’re looking for an opportunity to learn, apply and grow using a learning-by-doing mantra with our faculty as your guides, then the Daniels College of Business is the place for you.