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Interview with Van Muse - Director of MBA Programs (Mihaylo College of Business)

Mihaylo College of Business and Economics

Van Muse Director of MBA Programs1. Mihaylo has put emphasis on Leadership and Interpersonal skills in its curriculum . Tell us how the curriculum will help MBA grads.

For decades, business has uniformly told MBA programs nationwide that they deliver graduates who have incredible book knowledge but poor interpersonal and soft skills. These are skills like being able to make decisions with incomplete information, how to negotiate, manage human capital, and how to communicate effectively. Study after study has told MBA programs that they had to do much more than put a class on “leadership” in the curriculum, which in some limited cases addressed the problem but mostly just gave them yet another academic experience centered on learning theories with perhaps a case study or two. We in academia tend to reject anything that is seen as a “practical” skill because that isn’t “academic” in nature.

At Mihaylo, we have been AACSB accredited for 46 years out of the total 54 years that we have been in existence and achieved dual AACSB accreditation in 1997. So we’ve literally been part of the “gold standard” of academic status for our entire existence. That means our academic viewpoint is the same as our other AACSB peer institutions. But where we differ is in our academic mission that demands our College to be a major influencer of the regional and national economy. Simply put: we are “hard wired” to work with the business community. When we were developing our Full-time MBA program, we took the core elements of what has made our MBA program successful since 1962 and amplified them. We made the commitment to not only prepare students with the in-depth knowledge base and theories but to challenge them and provide development and training in key leadership, interpersonal and soft skills.

The curriculum of the Full-time MBA is balanced with six weeks of intensive workshops, seminars, interactive sessions, and simulations in the Mihaylo Leadership Academy. Our program is fast paced – it is a 16 month program from start to finish – so we balance the Mihaylo Leadership Academy with two weeks in three out of the four semesters. But we structured it so that what is learned in the classroom doesn’t fall in conflict with what is developed outside it. We call this the “7-2-7” where students have seven weeks of class, two weeks of Mihaylo Leadership Academy sessions, and then back into class for the final seven weeks where they can apply these emergent skills with the academic theories and case studies.

But that’s just the academic structure which certainly helps our students. It helps our graduates because it puts them in those experiences, with personal coaches and feedback sessions with business executives, where they are challenged to learn and develop these skills. With unique features where they apply this learning in simulated environments they start practicing these skills before they interview or are on the job. Because we all know – once you are on the job – the time to practice is over.

2. What is the biggest misconception about Mihaylo Full-time MBA programs?

The biggest misconception is that you have to take two or more years to have a rich and rewarding full-time MBA experience. Certainly taking more time to finish something allows for a more leisurely pace which can provide learning benefits. But the longer you are off the job, you lose out in terms of earning ability and debt load hurting your overall opportunity cost calculation. Yes, a 16 month full-time MBA program is intense. Our students do have some time off between semesters, but it requires intense focus and dedication. But they are attracted to it because, especially in this economy, you can’t afford to be out of the workplace for too long. And if your knowledge and skill attainment leaves holes, your ability to make up for those is compromised.

3. What are some of the networking opportunities provided by Mihaylo?

Mihaylo has the largest alumni network in Southern California of any B-School in the world. There are over 50,000 Mihaylo alums working and living in Southern California alone – not to mention the thousands across the nation and world. Couple that with the fact that Southern California is a truly unique world economy – the second largest metro area in the US (behind the Boston to DC “region”) – with a population larger than only 59 countries, and you have an unrivaled network. Our feeling is that if you can “make it” in Southern California, then you can make it anywhere.

Since Mihaylo is the fourth largest B-school in the nation, we are able to leverage many resources that other B-schools can only dream of. Through our 15 Centers of Excellence, our alumni programming, MBA Career Center programming, and specific MBA programming, our students have hundreds of networking opportunities. Some quick examples from this spring were employer information and hiring sessions from dozens of companies (Target, Gallup, Costco, KPMG, the CIA, and Disney are some examples), recruiter breakfasts (which included companies like Warner Brothers, New York Life, Disney, Target, Bank of California, and Merrill Lynch), partnering with organizations like ACG, and dozens of speakers and networking events with executives and business professionals.

4. How is the student life in Mihaylo?

Cal State Fullerton is the third largest university in California so the campus environment is diverse and full of activity. Mihaylo is a centerpoint for the campus and our programs run throughout the day and evening making it a busy, exciting educational environment. With plenty of open space, coffee areas, private team rooms, graduate student lounges, and computer labs, students regularly use Mihaylo Hall as their headquarters. Being in Southern California and our particular institutional environment makes Mihaylo a very diverse environment.

Cal State Fullerton is recognized in the top five universities in the nation for Hispanic graduates and the world economy diversity of our region makes for a natural diversity of the student body. This adds to the dynamic nature and helps prepare our students for the world economy because they are learning next to so many people from so many different regions and nationalities. This, again, creates a more natural environment rather than something that feels forced.

5. Every school promotes its MBA program based on its Accreditations, ROI, Job prospects and Unique learning methodologies. What makes Mihaylo stand out from the competition?

The value of Mihaylo is best measured in the confluence of three factors. First we are an AACSB dually accredited institution which puts us in a category with only 8% of institutions world-wide. Along with that is our academic mission which focuses upon the application of learning and creating structures which directly impact and work with the business community. Second, our “playground” or “learning laboratory” is located in Southern California which is unrivaled from most other regions. Lastly, the truly unique “Titan Army” of our 50,000+ alums who impact the SoCal economy every day. Those three factors together make Mihaylo a truly unique and valued institution.

And we don’t stop there. Add the unique Mihaylo Leadership Academy component of our Full-time program, the 15 Centers for Excellence, and dozens of other factors that separate Mihaylo from the others.

6.  Can you give our readers a demographic snapshot of the Mihaylo Full-time MBA program(latest class) ?

No of Students: 25
Average GMAT: 623
Average GPA: 3.24

                           Class Profile

Mihaylo MBA Class Profile
Undergraduate Degree

               Undergraduate Institutions

Undergraduate Institutions

7. What are the entry criteria in terms of the number of years of experience/GMAT/GPA for Mihaylo Full-time MBA program?

Since the program is new there are not enough years to give multi-year averages for our admitted students.

For our evening program, the averages for our admitted students is a 585 GMAT and a 3.2 GPA.

The averages of our admits in the first class for the Full-time MBA is a 623 GMAT and 3.24 GPA.

We recommend that students have at least three years of work experience but we do not require it to be considered; however, work experience is a factor in the competitive admissions decisions.

8. What are the post-MBA opportunities available for Mihaylo MBA Grads?

Our graduates work in hundreds of companies in the region and throughout the world. Recent graduates have been hired in companies such as Boeing, Deloitte & Touche, Fluor, FOX Sports, Ford Motor Company, Hewlett Packard, Kaiser Permanente, KPMG, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Nestle, Paramount Pictures, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Toshiba, US Bank, Verizon, Walt Disney Company, and Warner Brothers.

9. Apart from the Full-time MBA program, what are some of the other programs offered by Mihaylo College of Business and Economics?

Mihaylo offers the MBA in three platforms: the Full-time program, our Evening/Flex program (which is ranked in the top 125 programs nationwide by US News & World Report), and our MBA for Working Professionals (FEMBA). Additionally, Mihaylo offers a Master’s of Accountancy, Master’s of Taxation, Master’s of Economics, Master’s of Information Systems, and Master’s of Information Technology (online program).

About Van Muse

Van Muse Director of MBA ProgramsVan Muse is the Director of MBA Programs for the Mihaylo College of Business and Economics at California State University, Fullerton. He oversees all functions and operations for MBA programs across the three main platforms: Full-time, Evening/Flex, and MBA for Working Professionals; which includes directing recruitment, admissions, academic advising, and career development operations as well as assisting the College in the management in six other graduate programs. Van’s areas of expertise are in academic administration, recruitment and institutional marketing, enrollment management, and program and curriculum development.

Prior to working at Mihaylo, Van was the Dean of Academic Affairs for The Art Institute of California, Hollywood and the Dean of Instruction and the Director of the Center for New Media for Kalamazoo Valley Community College (Michigan). Van completed his Ed.D in Higher Education Administration in 1999 from Auburn University (Alabama), his Master’s in English in 1995 from Auburn University, and his Bachelor’s in English in 1991 from Ohio University.

Winning MBA Essay Guide - A Complete Guide for M7 and Top 15 MBA Application Essays 


F1GMAT's Winning MBA Essay guide will teach you how to transform your essay into a life journey with trials and tribulations that will move the admission team.

+ Over 245 Sample Essays (Read Previews of F1GMAT's Winning MBA Essay Guide Sample Essays here)

+ Top 15 MBA Programs (Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Columbia, Booth, MIT, Kellogg, Yale, Haas, Darden, INSEAD, LBS, NYU Stern, Tuck, Duke Fuqua, Ross)
+ The Art of Storytelling 
+ Leadership Narratives
+ Review Tips
+ Persuasion Strategies
+ The Secret to "unleashing" your unique voice
+ How to prepare and present for the Video Essay
+ How to write about your Strengths
+ How to write about your Weaknesses
 
 

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F1GMAT's Essay Guides

  • Harvard MBA Essay Guide (20 Sample Essays)

    Growth-Oriented Essay: Curiosity can be seen in many ways. Please share an example of how you have demonstrated curiosity and how that has influenced your growth. (up to 250 words) 

    Example #1: Persistence Narrative 
    Background Information: The applicant – a design and music talent, shares her journey through several setbacks. She attributes curiosity to her growth.  
    Curiosity: Philosophy  
    Curiosity (Explained): Curiosity as a philosophy is tough to translate into a narrative unless you are from the creative industry or your contributions had an influence on a solution or an initiative.  
    MBA Essay Strategy: I wanted to capture the humanity of the applicant and her influence in music instead of just highlighting how she overcame multiple roadblocks to gain attention as a designer.  
    Theme: Persistence  
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Life Starts at NO (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example) 

    Example #2: International Community Building 
    Background Information: The applicant, a Machine Learning (ML) entrepreneur specializing in healthcare diagnostics, shares how his curiosity to learn other ML algorithms’ evolution in diagnosing Alzheimer’s, cancer, and heart disease transformed his platform into a global community. 
    MBA Essay Strategy: I wanted to show the applicant’s contributions in diagnostic from 2020 to 2024 by citing two events. Such examples build credibility instead of engagements that were recent. The evolution of the platform from an AI development community to a community for discussing the application of AI in diagnostics is captured through a ‘curiosity’ angle.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Growth through Collaboration (AI in Healthcare) (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #3: Culture
    Background Information: The applicant, an Entrepreneur from India narrates his first entrepreneurial experience – facilitating exchange of stamps in the late 1990s.
    Theme: Culture
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Instead of addressing the biases in the investor community that could turn preachy, I wanted to focus on the applicant and his entrepreneurial journey by citing two entrepreneurial experiences – a platform(club) for stamp collection and his Grocery delivery App.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – The American Dream (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #4: Addiction
    Background Information: The applicant – a beneficiary of the foster home system, captures the sacrifice his adopted grandparents made to save him from a path of addiction. Paying it back through early intervention among teenagers and community engagement is the curiosity narrative.
    Theme: Addiction
    MBA Essay Strategy:  My strategy is to capture a gratitude narrative in the first one-third of the essay to demonstrate motivation for starting the venture and dedicate the latter part of the essay to the unique solution
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Drug Addiction and Gaming (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #5: Scarcity
    Background Information: The applicant, an education major, recognizes that 70% of all students in Kenya don’t have a computer. The curiosity that drives him to pivot from one solution to another is the growth narrative.
    Theme: Innovation
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Often, innovation is captured with a ‘hero’ narrative where the applicant is the sole originator of an idea. I wanted to break that cliché and include a person from whom the applicant learned to use a concept called ‘scaffolding.’
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Scarcity (Growth-Oriented HBS Essay Example)

    Example #6: FinTech
    Background Information: The applicant captures a vulnerable moment of a beneficiary to compare his journey of side hustle before a technology giant noticed his talent. Although cryptocurrency is not a flavor for the year, capture niches where innovation is still happening. 
    Theme: Education, Child Welfare
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Empathizing with a techno solution is tough without a strong backstory around the beneficiary. For the essay, I wanted to clearly establish the beneficiary – Rami, before the applicant narrates the similarities to his journey and finally shares the solution that emerged from his curiosity.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – FinTech as a Tool for Good (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #7: Learning from the best
    Background Information: The applicant – a Remote Engineer in the Oil and Gas industry, reflects on a value that has helped her learn from the best regardless of her geographical limitations.
    Theme: Learning
    MBA Essay Strategy:  The effectiveness of the case-study method depends on the assumption that peers in a Harvard MBA class will help elevate your learning experience. For the essay, I have highlighted the applicant’s recognition of this value proposition with three examples.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Learning from the Best (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #8: Military & Search for IMPACT
    Background Information: The most common narrative for US military applicants is to quote 9/11 and the reaction your immediate family had while watching the events unfold. The horrifying moment is captured as a motivation to join the Military. On digging deeper, most applicants would share that their motivations were diverse.
    Theme: Career Choice
    MBA Essay Strategy:  I wanted to quickly highlight that the applicant had the choice of entering any industry. One achievement to demonstrate his curiosity that I shared in the first half is the invention of a game. Since the game is mentioned in the resume and verifiable through search, I didn’t quote the name. By clearly highlighting the person’s curiosity and career options, the family legacy is used as a factor in joining the military.
    Read: Harvard MBA Curiosity Essay – Career Choice after a Military Career (Growth-Oriented HBS MBA Essay Example)
     
    Leadership-Focused Essay: What experiences have shaped who you are, how you invest in others, and what kind of leader you want to become? (up to 250 words)

    Example #9: Small Business Values
    Background Information: The applicant - a second-generation Asian American, is familiar with the values of fiscal conservatism, building relationships, and understanding the daily struggles of the community through his family’s department store.
    Theme: Customer-Centric
    MBA Essay Strategy:  The applicant’s role in developing an App for the store is highlighted in the essay at a crucial part of the narrative so that the essay is not all about his father. I have also humanized the journey – by sharing how upset the father was when the revenues fell by 40%. The essay is about the transformation in the applicant’s value from a person chasing productivity and optimization technique to someone who is truly thinking about the customers. 
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Small Business Values (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #10: Breaking Away from Family Business
    Background Information: A unique challenge that applicants whose parents are public figures or CXOs of businesses or entrepreneurs are the pressure to live up to the parent’s standards or milestones. For the leadership narrative, the burden of legacy is established before the narrative addresses his leadership principles.
    Theme: Authenticity  
    MBA Essay Strategy:  For the essay, I want to capture an entrepreneur’s journey to rise above his entrepreneur father’s image. But I didn’t want to make the entire essay about this complex dynamics. The narrative is around the applicant’s focus on customers and surrounding with teams who keeps him grounded. 
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Breaking Away from Family Business(Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #11: Creativity and Communication 
    Background Information: When the overall percentage of users with internet access is 62% in South Africa and the inequality accentuated by the rural and urban divide, the applicant endured the lack of digital infrastructure, and spending close to 22% of the family income on gaining relevant information on schools, global exams, and financial assistance. 
    Theme: Creativity, Communication
    MBA Essay Strategy:  The strategy is to share why the applicant values no distraction in a child’s home for optimum education experience. Then I highlight the many roadblocks the applicant’s non-profit faced in receiving fee waiver for their cooperative run ISP.
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Non-Profit (Telecom) (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #12: Mental Health
    Background Information: The applicant like most didn’t pay much attention to the mental health epidemic until tragedy hit home.
    Theme: Communication, Innovation
    MBA Essay Strategy:  A question we frequently get from applicants is whether they should cite tragedy in the family as a motivation for a venture or a non-profit initiative. As long as you don’t linger too much on the tragedy and offer a balanced narrative, there are no restrictions on leveraging unique stories from your life. 
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Mental Health (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #13: Trauma, Healing & Finding Authentic Self
    Background Information: The applicant narrates the absurdity of war in the narrative about the duties in Kabul, and the trauma. Instead of wallowing in on the horror, the applicant takes what makes military applicants strong and guides unprivileged children build life and leadership skills.
    Theme: Resilience
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Capturing PTSD in an essay, the healing process, and the cues that helped the applicant are too sacred to be shared in a Harvard MBA application essay. However, with the right motivation and narrative arcs, you can capture the essence of your journey without sharing the darkest secrets. That is what I did by merging two stories – the horrors of the war with a non-profit engagement.
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Military & PTSD (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #14: Addiction, Setback and Leadership Mantra
    Background Information: In this narrative, the applicant captures Peru’s Silver mining boom of 2006. The growth experienced in her father’s business shifted the family’s economic status to a new stratosphere. Through the changing economic and family dynamics, the applicant finds her voice in a unique way, initially to record her unheard voice but later as one of the youngest subject matter experts in mining and commodities.  
    Theme: Failure
    MBA Essay Strategy:  For the essay, the strategy is to show how life’s unpredictability is a blessing. By narrating two setback events, the essay demonstrates the applicant’s resilience and her acknowledgment of people who made a comeback possible.
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – Addiction, Setback and Leadership Mantra (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Example #15: War, Immigration and Starting Over Again
    Background Information: Despite a raging war in Syria, the family of the applicant was unblemished by the chaos. The strategic government assets near the applicant’s house would have made the region an easy target, but it was not. The calmness of her journey is shattered in one event. From the privileges of a cocooned life, the applicant is forced to think about survival, her sister’s future, and her future in the US. The second half of the narrative captures the change that was forced on her. 
    Theme: Gratitude, Resilience
    MBA Essay Strategy:  I consciously chose not to start the essay with a dialogue or trauma. Two lines are allocated to set up the narrative before the trauma event.
    Read: Harvard MBA Leadership Essay – War, Immigration and Starting Over Again (Leadership-Focused HBS MBA Essay Example)

    Harvard MBA Business-Minded Essay: Please reflect on how your experiences have influenced your career choices and aspirations and the impact you will have on the businesses, organizations, and communities you plan to serve. (up to 300 words)

    Example #16: Creative or Finance
    Background Information: The applicant starts the narrative with the origin of her talents. The unbridled enthusiasm receives a reality check when in high school, the applicant’s father has a conversation with her about academics. While the applicant picked up her quant skills, she was reaching over 50,000 loyal fans, and her videos captured 1 million views. 
    Theme: Passion, Talent
    MBA Essay Strategy:  Capturing vulnerability is the toughest part for Harvard MBA applicants. For this essay example, I have captured the applicant’s uncertainty about career choice throughout the essay. Here the goal is to show vulnerability in the career choice essay while for leadership and growth essay, I could capture one example each from creative and PE industry respectively to balance the narrative. So don’t follow this example without a strategy.  
    Read: Harvard MBA Business-Minded Essay – Creative or Finance (Business-Minded HBS MBA Essay Example)

  • Stanford MBA Essay Guide (24 Sample Essays)
  • Columbia MBA Essay Guide (21 Sample Essays)
  • Wharton MBA Essay Guide (15 Sample Essays)
  • INSEAD MBA Essay Guide (19 Sample Essays)
  • Darden MBA Essay Guide  (21 Sample Essays) 
  • Yale SOM MBA Essay Guide (15 Sample Essays)
  • Tuck MBA Essay Guide (15 Sample Essays)
  • Haas MBA Essay Guide (18 Sample Essays)
  • NYU Stern MBA Essay Guide (15 Sample Essays + 6 Examples - Visual Essay)
  • LBS MBA Essay Guide (6 Sample Essays)
  • MIT Sloan MBA Essay Guide (6 Sample Cover Letters + 3 Sample Video Statement Scripts + 3 Sample Optional Essays)
  • Kellogg MBA Essay Guide (11 Sample Essays)
  • Chicago Booth MBA Essay Guide (12 Sample Essays)
  • Ross MBA Essay Guide (31 Sample Essays)
  • Duke Fuqua MBA Essay Guide (10 Sample Essays + Two 25 Random Things Samples)
  • Cambridge MBA Essay Guide (12 Sample Essays)

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