Eller College Marks 10th Anniversary of Phoenix MBA with Expansion in Downtown Phoenix

TUCSON, Ariz. – February 16, 2017 – Ten years after the University of Arizona Eller College of Management entered the Phoenix market to offer an evening Master of Business Administration (MBA) program, the top-ranked business school is expanding its presence in downtown Phoenix with more opportunities for Valley organizations and professionals.

The increased presence of the Eller College in Phoenix aligns with its strategic directions: Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Digital Business Transformation and Healthcare.

“These are areas that the college has built with great expertise and prominence. Being co-located with the UA healthcare units will allow us to partner with healthcare professionals and organizations to develop and offer specialized programs and certificates at the intersection of business and healthcare,” said UA Eller Dean Paulo Goes.

Phoenix professionals will have expanded opportunities to earn their MBA through evening courses or attend Eller’s highly regarded Executive MBA program. The presence in Phoenix will also facilitate a very smooth connection to the talent pipeline the college produces out of its programs in Tucson. 

UA Eller Dean to Spend More Time in Phoenix

Eller’s Phoenix staff will move into their new offices at the end of this month at 550 E. Van Buren Street. The historic structure on the UA Biomedical campus was built in 1912 and formerly housed Phoenix Union High School. Goes will split his time between Tucson and Phoenix in order to support UA’s initiatives of expanding its programs and colleges in the Phoenix market.

UA Eller College currently offers four ways to earn an MBA: the full-time program at the Tucson campus; a part-time evening program at both Tucson and Phoenix campuses; an Executive MBA at the Phoenix campus, which is designed for seasoned executives and managers with seven-plus years of experience; and the Online MBA, with six starts per year.

“This is an exciting time to pursue an MBA through Eller College,” said Goes. “In November, U.S. News & World Report ranked the Eller MBA sixth in return on investment. Our Phoenix MBA and Executive MBA programs have been well-received, and the timing is right for further expansion.”

The same report also revealed that the average salary and signing bonus for Eller MBA students within three months of graduation was $100,850 in 2015.

Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton said Eller has an outstanding reputation for grooming strong corporate leaders and entrepreneurs. 

“The investments the University of Arizona continues to make in our Phoenix Biomedical Campus are transforming our economy and making us a more innovative city,” said Mayor Stanton. “Eller has established itself as a premier college and executive training program, and the historic Phoenix Union High School building is a perfect home and showcase for its Phoenix team.”

Aggressive Plans for Growth

In 2007, Eller began offering an evening MBA through a satellite office leased in north Scottsdale. The first class graduated 37 students. In 2009, Eller added the Executive MBA program, and five years later, both part-time MBA programs moved to the UA College of Medicine campus, located at 550 E. Van Buren Street.

Today, more than 100 students are enrolled in Eller’s Phoenix Evening MBA and Executive MBA programs. In the past decade, over 300 students earned their MBA through Eller’s Phoenix evening classes, and an additional 350 executives have completed their MBA through Eller’s Executive Education program. Notable companies with Eller MBA graduates include APS, Intel, Raytheon, Roche, and SRP.

“We’ve been fortunate in that we have a strong alumni network in the Valley that has helped foster our growth,” Goes said, adding that in the next five years, Eller College hopes to double its Phoenix MBA enrollment. 

Part of the expansion includes investing more resources in the Eller Executive Education (EEE) program, the non-degree executive development arm of Eller College. With clients around the globe, EEE has worked with several Valley companies, including APS, Discover, Charles Schwab and others.

“We’re very active in the metro Phoenix community, collaborating with the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce, the Arizona HR Executive Forum, and others to develop future leaders and talent,” said EEE Assistant Dean Joe Carella. “We create opportunities to network, engage and strike lucrative business deals here and abroad.”

EEE recently hosted a healthcare roundtable in Phoenix for senior executives from 45 companies to discuss the future of healthcare, and a series of webinars and more roundtable events will begin in March. In addition, EEE will support innovators by collaborating as a sponsor of PHX StartUp Week (February 20-24) and hosting several speaker presentations in the newly renovated Eller building. Learn more about Eller Executive Education at https://executive.eller.arizona.edu. 

More Space for Student and Alumni Activities

General contractor D. L. Withers Construction and architects SmithGroup JJR were hired to manage the $740,000 build-out, which began in October 2016. The Eller space is approximately 2,700 square feet and is located on the second floor of the east portion of Building 1, which is part of the UA Biomedical campus.

The new administration area will serve as the center for student recruitment, student services and faculty offices for the Eller team on the Phoenix campus. In addition to providing administrative offices for the Eller Executive MBA and Phoenix evening MBA programs, the space will provide an office for Eller Dean Goes and administrative offices for the Eller Executive Education program. The space also will be used to host alumni networking and career development events as well as special presentations.