Been considering doing the MBA thing but either didn’t get accepted to your top pick or get it together in time to send out any apps? Might we suggest Chancellor University System LLC, which comes out of the remains of formerly bankrupt Myers University in Cleveland? Most classes will offered online so you won’t have to relocate (or even get out of bed) and– and this is what we think will be the biggest draw– the MBA program will be known as “The Jack Welch Institute.” Welch recently paid $2 million to have his name and face stamped on the place, after meeting lead investor Michael Clifford at a party a few years ago. For those of you thinking an online degree might look a bit low rent on the res, do not fear. Jackles wasn’t sold initially, either.
Mr. Welch says he was initially skeptical of online education, but has been impressed by the Apollo Group Inc.’s University of Phoenix, which has nearly 400,000 students, and Mr. Clifford’s Grand Canyon University. Last fall, he called Mr. Clifford and said he wanted a role in Chancellor.
“I’m now a believer,” Mr. Welch says.
Will you get to take classes in the art of throwing scalding hot coffee on people who cut you off in the parking lot, like you would at HBS? No. And for some of you, that’s probably a dealbreaker. What you will get is “a real education,” according to Welch, who adds, “I think.”
