Kellogg Launches Asset Management Program

Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management has announced the launch of a new asset management program that will give MBA students practical experience in applying theoretical concepts and analytical tools to a financial portfolio.

Students selected for the program will spend a year managing a financial portfolio under the supervision of a Finance professor and taking prescribed courses. A designated faculty member or student will monitor portfolios for students who temporarily leave campus for summer internships or other MBA-related activities.

The first asset management practicum will be launched this spring. Admission to the program is expected to be highly competitive.

Source: "New Asset Management Program a Kellogg Priority," Kellogg World magazine, Winter 2006

Profile for Columbia GSB's Class of 2008

The Columbia Graduate School of Business has released this profile for its MBA Class of 2008:

Applications received: 5,372
Admitted: 925 (17.2%)
Matriculated: 726

GMAT range (middle 80% of admits): 660 to 760
GPA range (middle 80% of admits): 2.9 to 3.8

Women: 35%
Minority: 21%
International: 42%
Age range: 21 to 43
Average work experience: 5 years

Wall Street Putting Profits Into MBA Recruitment?

Investment banks and trading firms have had a very profitable year in 2006. Some of those profits are likely to go into bigger bonuses for bankers and traders -- the Wall Street Journal reports that even entry level analysts at some firms can expect year-end bonuses of $130,000 or more this year. But some of those profits are likely to go into increased MBA recruitment and hiring as well.

In fact, according to the WSJ, current Wall Street staff may see somewhat smaller bonuses than they might otherwise because firms have stepped up their hiring this year, meaning there are more employees to distribute profits to.

Some of this hiring is being done at the top U.S. business schools, where on-campus recruiting is more energetic than it has been in years. A personnel consultant told the WSJ that he expects to see that hiring continue into 2007. Financial firms were slow to hire additional staff following the cut-backs that took place between 2001 and 2003, but managers now realize that they need more talent on hand to take advantage of current opportunities for growth.

Source: "Bonuses to Rise on Wall Street," by Randall Smith, the Wall Street Journal, November 8, 2006

LBS Names New Dean

The London Business School has named Robin Buchanan, currently the Senior Partner in the UK for Bain & Company, as its new dean. He will assume his duties at LBS by July 1.

Buchanan will succeed Laura Tyson, who will return to the University of California - Berkeley's Haas School of Business as a Professor of Business Administration and Economics.

In accepting the appointment, Buchanan noted LBS' commitment to excellence and its drive to be the world's preeminent global school of business. "My priority willbe to ensure that London Business School delivers on those promises," he said.

Source: "London Business School Appoints Robin Buchanan as Dean," press release, London Business School (London, UK), November 7, 2006.

Kellogg Students Win Cornell Stock Pitch Competition

A team of first-year MBA students from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management won this year's "MBA Stock Pitch Challenge," organized and hosted by Cornell University's Johnson Graduate School of Management.

The Kellogg students competed against teams from Cornell (Johnson), the University of Virginia (Darden), Carnegie Mellon (Tepper), Columbia, Duke (Fuqua), Dartmouth (Tuck), the Chicago GSB, the University of Michigan (Ross), and other top business schools.

A team of judges from UBS, Fidelity Investments, Wellington Management, BlackRock, Morgan Stanley, and State Street Global Advisors listened to the teams' present their arguments for or against investing in a particular stock. Teams were judged on the quality of their analysis and presentation.

The winning Kellogg team won a $3,000 prize. A second prize of $1,500 went to the team from Carnegie Mellon University's Tepper School of Business.

Source: "Northwestern Wins Cornell's Johnson School MBA Stock Pitch Competition," press release, the Johnson School (Ithaca, NY), November 3, 2006

Wharton, HBS, Other Top Schools Post '06 Career Reports

Several of the top U.S. business schools have posted statistical reports on the career placement outcomes of their 2006 MBA graduates.

The average (median) annual salary reported by Harvard MBAs was $105,000, supplemented by bonuses and other compensation worth an average of $33,250.

Wharton graduates reported an average total compensation package of $137,000.

The average (median) annual salary for Stanford MBAs responding to the '06 salary survey was $110,000, with signing bonuses worth an average of $20,000.