MS Marketing Class The MS in Marketing program includes immersion courses with Krannert faculty that focus on solving current marketing problems, peer-to-peer learning through consulting projects, experience working in diverse teams, participation in case competitions, networking opportunities and mentorship. (Photo by Charles Jischke.)

Mastering Marketing

Krannert introduces new full-time graduate program

With an inaugural class of 23 students and a dynamic curriculum, Krannert’s new Master of Science in Marketing program is poised to produce workplace-ready graduates.

The one-year, full-time program, which launched in July, includes 15 international students from a variety of backgrounds and fields. Among them are Max Olivares and Ricardo Díaz, who began their careers as industrial engineers. Both are sponsored by a $75,000 fellowship from a Purdue alumnus and work for the Panama Canal Authority, which plans to open a third set of locks to accommodate bigger ships and tankers.

Olivares, who is active in the Management Volunteer Program, the Krannert Graduate Marketing Association and the Krannert Graduate Student Association, says the rewards continue to grow with each day in the program and the extracurricular environment of Purdue.

“My time here has been full of new experiences and challenges,” he says. “I’ll return to Panama proud of a job well done, excited to contribute to the development and growth of my company and country, and determined to use my new skills and knowledge to make a difference.”

In addition to attracting students like Olivares and Díaz from non-business or STEM fields, the program is a good fit for recent college graduates like Samantha Wolf, who is among 14 women enrolled in the inaugural class.

Wolf received her undergraduate degree in marketing in May 2015 from Texas A&M University and hopes to begin her career with a nonprofit organization in Chicago upon earning her master’s degree in 2016.

“I chose Krannert because of a family connection to Purdue, the desire to do something different and to be a member of the inaugural class of a new program,” Wolf says. “It’s been rewarding to interact with and learn from people from different backgrounds.”

Those are just the types of outcomes the Krannert School expects, says Manu Kalwani, the OneAmerica Professor of Management and director of the program.

Facing increased competition from part-time, online programs, Purdue found it imperative to leverage its strengths to create a full-time master’s degree in marketing, he says. Although Krannert’s existing MBA program features a specialization in marketing, Kalwani says the new MS program differs in several key ways and was designed to provide benefits that are not available through online offerings.

These include immersion courses with Krannert faculty that focus on solving current marketing problems, peer-to-peer learning through consulting projects, experience working in diverse teams, participation in case competitions, networking opportunities through forums and guest speakers, as well as one-on-one career mentorship provided by corporate members of Purdue’s Marketing Advisory Board.

“A key benefit of the program is the career and professional advice that these marketing professionals provide,” Kalwani says. ”It also features a more specialized marketing curriculum, allowing students to gain a depth and breadth of knowledge in the field faster than they would in a traditional MBA program.”

Indeed, the program and its first participants are already exceeding expectations. “They’re all goal-oriented and hard-working individuals who we expect will have good outcomes upon graduation,” Kalwani says. “We’re excited to launch the program with such an outstanding inaugural class.”

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