Katherine Gerstle Ferguson, assistant dean and administrative director of the MBA program, has worked in the School of Management since 1995. She received the school's Outstanding Service Award this year.

Since employment is still pretty strong nationally, do people need MBAs as much anymore? Can't they get good jobs with just a bachelor's degree in business administration?

The MBA job market is considerably stronger overall than the job market for people with just an undergraduate degree. Exceptions in some functional areas (accounting, information technology) exist, but on the whole, there are better and more opportunities for people with an MBA. In addition, the MBA gives those who did not study business as undergraduates the chance to enter the field. For example, employer demand for MBA graduates with technical undergraduate degrees, including engineering and computer science, outweighs the current supply of new graduates.

What's an MBA worth these days in increased salary?

For the Class of 1999, our full-time MBA graduates entered the work force with an average starting salary of approximately $46,000, compared with our BS graduates who began their careers with an average salary of just over $34,000. Furthermore, the impact on salary and opportunities for faster promotion and increased levels of responsibility are greater as a person progresses through his or her career with an MBA.

Can you describe the various MBA programs UB has to offer?

The full-time MBA Program is designed primarily for students who desire a significant career change or for those who have limited work experience. Full-time MBA students can choose from nine areas of specialization, and can complete up to three of these concentrations in their two years at UB. The Professional MBA Program (PMBA) is designed for people with at least one year, but preferably three or more years, of relevant, postbaccalaureate experience who intend to continue working full time while they pursue graduate management study. Students in this program generally are seeking advancement in their current career path or with their current employer. The PMBA requires three academic years for completion and does not allow for specialization. The Executive MBA Program (EMBA) is for experienced executives with top management potential. Classes meet on alternating Fridays and Saturdays for two academic years; the curriculum is similar to that required in the professional MBA program, but classroom work is compressed and more intense. UB also offers an EMBA program in Singapore that is taught entirely by our faculty and an EMBA program in China that is offered in conjunction with faculty members from Renmin University in Beijing. We recently launched a partnership with Motorola University in China that will provide an MBA program for employees and customers of Motorola.

What makes us unique from local competitors, such as Canisius?

Rather than commenting on what other institutions do or do not offer, I prefer to address the strengths that the UB MBA programs offer students. UB's programs have an excellent worldwide reputation and provide students with an excellent return on their investment. Business Week, for instance, has included our full-time MBA program within its ranking of the top-60 MBA programs in the U.S. and has rated it as one of the 15 best values in the country. The global name recognition of the UB MBA allows our graduates freedom to search for employment opportunities outside Western New York, and even outside the US. Faculty members are extremely well-known in their fields and bring unparalleled expertise to the classroom. All our MBA programs are delivered in a cohort or learning community format, which increases the potential for peer learning, team-skill development and leadership training.

What concepts are being taught today that weren't relevant 10 years ago?

The primary change in the MBA curriculum over the past 10 years has been a dramatic increase in emphasis on global issues and information technology. The curriculum is infused with international perspectives. In other words, when we teach an introduction to marketing management, the content will include issues that are related specifically to the impact of globalization on basic concepts like promotion, pricing and distribution. With respect to technology, this has changed the way we deliver our MBA programs, the curriculum and the career paths students are choosing. Many students with a primary interest in accounting, finance or marketing now choose to couple those functional areas with the study of information technology, since it is impacting dramatically the way every business person works.

Is an MBA a degree only for someone interested in a business career?

Definitely not! An MBA is for anyone who is interested in a broad-based business degree. A number of our students are pursuing primary careers as physicians, attorneys, architects, pharmacists, musicians, engineers and social workers. However, they see that supplemental knowledge about such subjects as accounting, marketing, information technology, human resources and strategic management can help them to be more successful in their primary field. This type of combination is a growing phenomenon.

What do you like most about running the MBA program here?

There are two fundamental aspects of this position that make coming to work every day a pleasure. First and foremost is the opportunity to serve a truly outstanding group of graduate students. MBA students are smart, motivated, interesting and fun people who are future leaders of our businesses and communities, both in our backyard and around the world. Second, the job is incredibly diverse and in a perpetual state of change. In addition to students, I have the opportunity to work with a wide variety of different types of people: faculty, School of Management and other staff members across the university, the business community and alumni. Because the MBA program is the program with the most impact on the School of Management's external reputation, we are constantly evaluating every aspect of it from the curriculum to our marketing efforts to the facilities from which we work. The position has provided a unique opportunity to be involved in both academics and student affairs-it's a great combination!

Do you have an MBA?

Yes. I earned my MBA with a concentration in human resources management from UB in 1992.

What question do you wish I had asked, and how would you have answered it?

I wish you had asked more about our recruiting efforts. We strive each year to meet or exceed our enrollment targets, while at the same time improving our overall class profile. We would like to attract more students of color, more students from outside Western New York for our full-time program, and students with more postbaccalaureate work experience. We hold information sessions and open-house events, offer downstate receptions, work with professional organizations, use our Web site for information exchange and advertise in the media as much as possible with a limited budget. In addition, we take a very personal approach to recruiting students to UB. We contact them several times by mail, phone and email to be sure all prospective students' questions are answered and to guarantee that they keep UB on their "radar screens." It is incredibly intensive, but also very rewarding when they choose to matriculate here and then are so successful upon graduation.