By Cheryl V. Jackson, Blue Sky Innovation
The University of Illinois College of Business has launched an iMBA program that it says provides flexibility through blocks of study that it calls “specializations,” including core specializations in leadership and organizational management; business tools for successful execution; improving business finances and operations; and strategic financial management. The program, part of a partnership with Coursera, a Silicon Valley educational technology company, aims to reflect “the way the business world works — not necessarily the way academic departments are structured,” the university says on its website. The university says it’s offering the online program’s interactive content, including video lectures and quizzes, to everybody for free. But “anyone interested in the iMBA degree program must first go through a rigorous admissions process,” Arshad Saiyed, interim director of the iMBA program, said in an email to Blue Sky.