Bentley University - McCallum Graduate School of Business

Bentley’s cutting-edge approach extends to its academics. Students pursue “the most unique and interesting concentrations” in addition to “all the traditional areas of study.” Unique offerings include Human Factors in Information Design, Business Analytics, and Marketing Analytics, programs that students argue “are in line with what is needed in the real world.” Bentley’s “accounting program is the best around,” excelling in both general accounting and taxation. Information technology, unsurprisingly, is also an area of strength.

Bentley’s many part-time students appreciate the program’s flexibility (“You can take two courses in one night, and there are some online offerings,” a student explains), but warn that “it is hard to connect with other students” because “there are no real cohorts.” The Bentley MBA and Bentley Emerging Leaders MBA, in contrast, “is comparatively small and becomes tight-knit” over the course of the program. For all students, the program is “intense,” but fortunately, “the professors and administration are very helpful.” One student points out that “many workshops and information sessions exist outside of class,” and as a result students enjoy “a very engaging academic experience.” MBAs also appreciate that “professors teach course work in a practical manner. I always leave feeling like I have something I can use the next day.”

Top employers of Bentley MBAs include: Boston Scientific, Converse Inc., Covidien, Deloitte Consulting, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Ernst & Young, Fidelity Investments, EMC, Genzyme Corporation, JPMorgan Chase & Company, KPMG, Morgan Stanley, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Microsoft, National Grid USA, Nuance Communications, Raytheon, Staples, and State Street Corporation.

Bentley MBAs enjoy “a beautiful campus and buildings.” Grad classes “are concentrat- ed in a couple of buildings near each other,” a blessing during the cold Massachusetts winters. So too are the “shuttles around campus.” Even so, some feel that the space dedicated to graduate students needs to be expanded. One writes that the school “should have more options for dining on campus and more places suitable for graduate students to study either individual[ly] or in groups.” Most part-time students must balance “a heavy course load” with work and family responsibilities, leaving little or no time for extracurricular and other campus activities. Those not so burdened report that “campus activities are in abundance, from professional to entertainment. There is usually at least one club or association hosting an event open to the whole school body” at any time. Campus organizations “cater to different educational paths and cultures,” with a num- ber representing various international student constituencies.

Off-campus entertainment is also readily accessible, as Bentley is located in Waltham, a mere ten miles from downtown Boston. Both Boston and Cambridge are easily accessible by train. The school also runs a regular shuttle between the Bentley campus and Harvard Square.