Mary Baldwin University and Virginia Western Community College are partnering to streamline transfers and time commitments, and slash costs for students seeking business degrees.
“The goal is to maximize value, efficiency, and flexibility for all students — but particularly for returning learners and those from underserved or low-income backgrounds,” said former Mary Baldwin College of Business and Professional Studies Dean Joe Sprangel. The resulting tracks offer what he calls Virginia’s “quickest and lowest cost option for earning a [business degree].”
Sprangel partnered with VWCC Associate Professor of Business Management Jeff Strom to institute special measures that dramatically cut costs compared to traditional transfer and four-year programs.
For instance, students in the new pipeline will earn 84 credit hours from VWCC (instead of 61), then finish with 36 at MBU. The curriculum is synched so that every credit transfers.
VWCC School of Business, Technology, and Trades Dean Yvonne Campbell calls the latter an “incredible win for [these] students,” because they would typically lose 10-20 credits when transferring to a business program at other four-year schools.
Together the measures reduce total tuition to $30,842 (before grants and scholarships). That’s significant, as U.S. News & World Report estimates the average national cost for a similar in-state degree is $56,700.
Students would pay $45,050 at Virginia Tech; $71,192 at the University of Virginia.
Flexibility, convenience, and further savings come from hybrid and online course options. These allow students to forgo costs related to traditional housing and meal plans. They also make it easier for them to hold full-time jobs while studying.
But Sprangel didn’t stop there: Pipeline students can get their MBA cheaper and faster too. Tweaks in the curriculum let them earn up to six credits toward their master’s while working on their BA or BS. That means they can graduate a semester early and save $3,900 in tuition — putting total costs for the MBA at $19,500 vs. national averages of about $33,500.
“This is an amazing value and we are extremely proud to be able to offer it to our students,” said Campbell.
Sprangel calls the partnership “indicative of MBU’s commitment to workforce development and serving the educational needs of the nontraditional college student.”
MBU hopes to expand the business pipeline program to include more Virginia Community College System schools within the next few years.
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