By Jefferson Geiger
No two colleges are alike, so why should graduate degrees be the same?
For those seeking a distinctive and intellectually stimulating educational experience, Wagner College’s Nicolais School of Business offers an MBA program that stands out.
“It didn't feel like it was school,” Taylor Marjamaa ‘23 said of the format. “I felt like we were just talking among our peers.”
Marjamaa originally came to Wagner to study nursing, but changed her undergraduate major to business administration with a concentration in accounting. After taking the Consumer Behavior course from Paul Barretta, Ph.D., she knew she wanted to continue learning from him for her MBA.
Emphasizing seminar-style learning and the Socratic method, this flexible evening program can be completed in 15, 18, or 22 months, allowing students to tailor their education in management, marketing and finance to their own schedules. Students learn about not just marketing but the influence of sociology and psychology as they analyze the motivations, attitudes, and other influences of consumers.
Barretta sends out discussion questions each week based on assigned readings, and then students meet in a circle to open their minds, talk about their viewpoints, try to persuade their peers and more. There are often no right or wrong answers, and the dynamics of the class can change discussions.
“It gets them thinking about the topic, observing the world around them, and then listening to the other students' perspectives on it,” Barretta said. “It's amazing to me how each group of students is different.”
The class is also set apart by its experiential learning component. Students pick a marketing theory at the beginning of the semester, look for real-world examples in their daily interactions and then present a paper about the theory at the end of the course. One year, a former MMA athlete wrote about how the sociology theory of dramaturgy applies to the gym. She interviewed a gym owner and drew comparisons of how some people work out in public, like they’re displayed on a theater stage.
Marjamaa did her project on reciprocation in marketing, and now she sees it in her daily life in the form of free samples and trials.
“I was really surprised at how we could bring every single topic back to ourselves,” said Marjamaa.
Amira Capric ’22 MBA ’24 says Barretta’s teaching style helped her get the most out of her MBA.
“It's one thing to go to a class and listen to a teacher tell you material for a few hours, but it's another thing to go to class and be the one having to explain your thoughts on the material,” Capric said. “I learned the most because it forced me to digest the material and learn how to expand on it.”
Originally from Staten Island, Capric studied government and politics for her undergraduate degree. She wants to become a policy analyst and chose marketing as her MBA concentration to learn more about people’s interactions. Consumer Behavior ended up being her favorite part of her MBA experience.
“I think Barretta is the best teacher, and it was very apparent that he cared about each and every single one of us,” Capric said. “He made sure that we all had a really important role in the class, and I really love that.”
