Fuqua Turns 40
2009年08月17日
Recently, I received a nice message from a client attending Duke’s Fuqua School. It reminded me that Fuqua has reached its high ranking (8th per Business Week) in a relatively short period of time. Fuqua was founded in 1969, around the time Neil Armstrong took the first steps on the moon. That may seem like a long time ago, but when you consider the founding years of schools like Wharton (1888), Tuck (1900), HBS (1908), and Kellogg (1909). Still, Fuqua has come a long way in a relatively short period of time.
For me, what stand out for me about Fuqua are two points: shorter terms and longer class sessions. Each term is only 6 hours, which enables students to take a greater variety of courses. And despite the shorter terms, professors can still dig deep into each subject, since each class has two 2.25-hour sessions per week. The longer classes also allow students to engage in more interactive assignments.
As far as specialties, Duke has an interesting program on leadership and ethics, in which the star lecturer is Duke’s legendary basketball Coach Mike Krzyzewski (Coach K). There are also programs focused on Corporate Sustainibility, International Business, and Innovation. These and other research centers offer students great opportunities to become well-connected experts in their areas of interest.
And speaking of Coach K, one of the real treats of attending Duke is the opportunity to enjoy the atmosphere surrounding their basketball team. Home games are played at Cameron Indoor Stadium, ranked as the 4th best sport venue in the US by Sports Illustrated. What makes Cameron so great is not the building per se, although the 69-year old building does have its charm. No, it is the rowdy student section, known as Cameron Crazies, who pack the place for every home game. Fans paint their faces blue and white, stand and scream the entire game, and in general do everything they can to disrupt the visitors. They are very effective, as Duke has one of the best home records of all time in college baskteball. Tickets are available to all students, including MBA students, on a first come first served basis. (For big games, students are known to camp out several days for seats.) The Fuqua School happens to be really close to Cameron, giving stressed-out MBA students a chance to relieve some tension whil partaking in one of the greatest traditions in US college sport.
