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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 27, 1981)
^ :v J - *- 3CT* UVV *.Q OlIT-JL *S3Xcio^ xxo sievixxxxss aav^o jo -lac^vxxTxxx e -puce '^xzsxxxsSexxiavu \jopT-ic\uxsxp "We like to think our students leave A&M with a firm under standing of the total business picture." "We feel it's fundamental that a business school aligns itself as closely as possible with the busi ness community." "Essentially, we are a top school as we stand today — we just feel we can be one of the very best in the nation and that's what we're striving for." Executive Development to conduct 58th Management Seminar The Executive Development Programs office of the College of Business Administration will conduct the 58th Management Seminar March 29 - April 3 in the Rudder Center. The seminar includes sessions on styles of managerial leader ship, management of motivation to work, managing the mana ger's time, and management's role in dealing with emotional problems. Seminar participants will also conduct a computerized business simulation. About 60 executives from mid dle managerial levels are ex pected to attend. Sessions will be taught by Texas A&M business faculty members and experts from industry. A Candid Conversation with William V. Muse Dr. William V. Muse was named Dean of the College of Business Administration at Texas A&M University on July 1,1979. Prior to his appointment to Texas A&M, Muse was Dean of the College of Business Administration and Professor of Marketing at the University of Neb raska in Omaha from 1973 to 1979; and a Presidential Interchange Executive in HEWs Office of Education. He was also the first Dean of the new College of Business at Appalachian State University where he developed the curricula and organization for the College. Muse received his Ph.D. in business administration 1966 and his MBA in 1961 from the University of Arkansas and his B.S. degree in accounting from Northwestern State University in 1960. Dean Muse shared his views on the College of Business Administra tion at Texas A&M University with The Business early this spring. The following is a transcipt of that interview. The Editors THE BUSINESS: You received your Ph.D. and taught at the University of Arkansas, one of Texas A&M's Southwest Confer ence rivals. How does it feel to be a "bom again Aggie" now? MUSE: Great! I've got to admit that I had mixed feelings when I went to my first A&M-Arkansas football game, but by the time the game was over there was no question — I was an Aggie. THE BUSINESS: You've been dean of the College of Business Administration for nearly two years — what's your assessment of the business program at A&M? MUSE: I think we have an exceptional program here. Our faculty is widely recognized in academic circles and the student body is the most dedicated I've seen at any university. Our undergraduate program is one the top in the nation by anyone's standards, and our graduate programs are beginning to com pete with the best schools in the country. We're a good school, but we can be better — and that's our goal. THE BUSINESS: What's being done to achieve this goal? MUSE: Quite a few things — but first it's important to realize the three major areas of emphasis we have in our program. What I mean, of course, is our emphasis on teaching, research and public service. Naturally, quality teaching is a prime mission of the college — but one school's definition of quality, and therefore its emph asis, is not always the same as the next, so you end up having all sorts of variations as far as that goes. This sort of diversity is good in that it gives students the opportunity to select a school that best fits their needs — but it is important to realize that there are differences among business schools. Our undergraduate programs in business are designed to teach students all phases of business operations. In other words, we teach students to interpret, translate and implement new ideas into a market economy. Although undergraduate students concentrate in a specific functional area—accounting, finance, management, or marketing—we try to expose them all facets of business so they will be prepared to deal with changing economic and organizational situations. We like to think our students leave A&M with a firm understanding of the total business picture, and with a special understanding of one parti cular area. THE BUSINESS: What about graduate programs? MUSE: We're very excited about our graduate programs. We have recently completed a total revamping of our master of business administration degree program which should attract an even higher caliber of student than we do already. The new program, which is being initiated in Fall 1981, is a carefully sequenced and structured approach to advanced business edu cation. It's a 48-semester-hour degree plan that covers all the basic business disciplines. It's also highly integrated so that each successive semester builds on the material learned in pre vious semesters. The program emphasizes practical, real-life applications of course material, so that students are able to put what they've learned into practice in a realistic situation. THE BUSINESS: The MBA program sounds as if it's general in nature — what about students who wish to specialize in a particular area? „ MUSE: Well, yes, the MBA is designed to be a general business degree — this is true with nearly any MBA program. Our purpose is to give men and women of any educational back ground the skills necessary to become effective managers of a very broad range of organizations. For students who wish to obtain an in-depth specialization in a particular area like accounting, business computing science, finance, management or marketing, we have a top-notch mas ter of science program. It's important to realize the distinction between the two programs — exactly which one is chosen will depend on the particular student's personal goals and under graduate preparation. THE BUSINESS: Earlier you mentioned the three-fold emph asis of the college. How do we stack up to other business schools as far as research goes? MUSE: As you probably know, Texas A&M is one of the na tion's leading research institutions. Research in business consti tutes a significant portion of this overall university emphasis. We've got some very innovative projects going on right now in several areas. THE BUSINESS: Such as? MUSE: Well, in management, for example, we have a group involved in applied research projects concerning the business/ government relationship — areas such as regulation, corporate governance and the like. In fact we're one of very few schools in the nation involved in this area right now. It's an area that is critically important to business these days. Of course, this is only one part of our overall research effort. Other faculty members are studying organizational effective ness, the impact of organized crime on business, the effects of various accounting standards on companies, changes occuring in financial institutions, marketing techniques, and just about any other area you can think of. The point is that research into the environment of business is important — we as a business school see that itis important, and even more so the business community sees that it's important. The business environment is constantly changing and execu tives simply don't have the time or the resources to explore all the ramifications of these changes. That's where a top-notch school of business comes in — we pursue important research projects and then pass our findings on to the private sector. THE BUSINESS: Are you saying that the business community supports this research? MUSE: Yes, we hope that industry is very supportive of our faculty's research projects both financially and in other ways. In other words, industry can support our research through fund ing, and also by providing detailed information concerning their operations and by allowing faculty members to be obser vers in their organizations. THE BUSINESS: That brings us to public service — the final part of your three-fold emphasis. Obviously, research and teaching are public services in a broad sense — what sort of specific service programs are in effect now? MUSE: Much of our emphasis in this area is handled by the Executive Development Programs office. That office serves as the continuing education arm of the college and conducts near ly 20 distinct seminars annually. For example, each year EDP offers the three-week Executive Development Course, seven week-long Management Seminars, several Financial Analysis seminars, a seminar on computers in small business, a seminar on labor relations in non-union firms, a conference on physical Here's the scoop... Gourmet coffees, teas and treats for your office needs and professional gift giving Mail order available or call (713) 846-4360 3609 Place, E. 29th St. Bryan, Texas 77801 Proud to be a part of BUSINESS WEEK '81 at Texas A&M University PRI0RITEAS ■ BLENDS DF RIFT-DIVING Page 4 — The Business