Using the dio<ut, graduate student Jessica Griffin works in the Education Resource Cen ter Jan. 20. " [The Education Resource Center] was a fun environ– ment to work with fellow education majors," Griffin said. ·Russell K"k Outsideof the Institutefor Church & Fomily olfice, graduate assistant Melissa Vath hangs a poster Jan. 25. Vath said her favorite aspect of working as a graduate as– sistant was how kind the people she worked with were. -Russell Keck 111111111111111 The Master of Business Administration program saw a 45 percent increase in participation from spring 2005. After the M BA program was made ava ilable online in the full, students and business professionals were able to receive their MBA entirely online. Students were able (0 take two courses per semester snucrured in a way that they did nOt overlap. Jennifer Merches. marketing manager ofGraduate Studies in the College of Business Administration, said the schedule usually meant students could complete the program in tWO yea rs. While Harding students were able to continue their education in the MBA program in Searcy, many of (he applicants were al ready working professionals. Merche.. said COBA interviewed 9S percent of the applicants. With a professional campus located in North Lirtle Rock, Ark., che enrollment was diverse. She said most applicants were business professionals not affiliated with Harding. Merches said she believed applicants for the MBA program chose H a rding for its quality and faith·based education opportunities. The MBA program offered options for fu ll-rime and part-time students with campuses in Searcy and Little Rock, offering night classes, weekend classes and online classes. Allen Figley, director of graduate studies in the College of Business Administration, said the program was the fastest-growing in the state ofArk3nsas. Figley said every class was offered online. In addition to students from multiple countries and states in the United Scates, the program had instructors from across rhe country. Offering gradua te classes online made it possible to unite students and instructOrs in a particular concentration simultaneously across the world. Derek Bullington, a graduate srudenc in the MBA program, started his second semester in the spring and had one online class. Bullington, a graduate assistant in the music depart– ment, said he could easily work part time and complete the master's program. "You have a more flexible schedule with online classes," Bullington said. Bullington said that with online classes, he d idn't have to be in Searcy to go to class. "You can do basically everything online that you could do in a regular class," Bullington said. Bobby Evans, a student in the MBA program, said the options available in the program were beneficial. Evans worked 20 hours a week as a graduate assiStant in rhe communication department and was taking the maximum amount of courses. "You can spread it out and pretty much make your own schedule," Evans said. "1 think the online program is:l big reason why the MBA program is growing so much ." Evans said with some classes, he could learn more in an online setting. "For discussion classes, like economics and business ethics, it's much mo re useful," Evans said. "1 chink the online program is a big reason why rhe M BA program is growing so much." '(aillin (hesler graduate programs ~f:t'.
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