"The Acton MBA helped me find my 'calling' and taught me that someone with integrity and drive can change the world." - Carter Higley '04
Nationally-Ranked Acton MBA Program Offers Free Tuition to All Students
01/09/2006
AUSTIN, TEXAS- Some of
America’s most successful entrepreneurs are investing in a new generation of entrepreneurs by underwriting full tuition fellowships at the Acton School of Business,
the school announced today.
Acton’s MBA in Entrepreneurship program has received widespread acclaim in its first two years. The Princeton Review rated Acton’s
students “the most competitive” MBAs in America, and ranked its teachers as the third best business school faculty in the nation for two years in a row. Forbes
magazine described the program as an MBA “for the real world.”
To provide more students with the opportunity to attend the Acton program, more than 40
successful entrepreneurs – including several members of the Forbes 400 -- have agreed to sponsor $35,000 fellowships (for a complete list see
joinus_fellowships.php )
“We only invited fellowship sponsors who could act as role models for Acton Scholars – successful
entrepreneurs, good people who have set an example by giving generously to their communities while raising healthy families,” said Jeff Sandefer, Acton Master Teacher.
The fellowships are not traditional scholarships. Students must initially pay for the first of their two semesters in the one-year program. Those who complete
the program receive fellowships that reimburse them for 100 percent of their tuition.
“There are no free-rides,” said Jack Long, Acton Master Teacher and
entrepreneur. “If students don’t survive the first semester, they forfeit their fellowship.”
The Acton MBA program promises that its students will learn to run
world-class businesses, as well as learn how to live meaningful lives. Graduates who believe Acton has delivered on those promises are honor bound to donate part of
their future salary until another fellowship is funded.
“Our fellowships are like a money-back guarantee that force us to deliver what we promise,” added Long.
“They have the added benefit of teaching Acton Scholars the rewards of generous giving.”
The Acton MBA program is intense, and the school’s approach to business
education is groundbreaking. The curriculum demands 80-90 hour workweeks from its students and includes more than 300 real-world case studies, simulations and even
door-to-door sales. A unique aspect of the program is that the not-for-profit school practices the free market principles it teaches. Its courses are designed and
taught by successful entrepreneurs, and tenure is outlawed. Teachers are paid hefty bonuses based on student satisfaction ratings.
“There is only one thing
better than being trained by successful entrepreneurs who are gifted teachers,” said David Weekley, a Houston entrepreneur and fellowship sponsor, “and that is being
able to give the Acton experience to the next generation of business leaders, so they can pass it along to the generation that follows.”
About
Acton
The Acton MBA in Entrepreneurship is based in Austin, Texas, and is accredited through its affiliation with the Kelley College of Business at
Hardin-Simmons University. The Acton MBA offers a one-year program taught by successful entrepreneurs that features intensive 80 to 90 hour work weeks, where students
tackle real world problems and sell products door-to-door. The student-faculty ratio is lower than any MBA program in the country, allowing students to develop strong
bonds with their entrepreneur mentors. The Acton MBA in Entrepreneurship was rated by the Princeton Review as having the “Most Competitive” MBAs in the country and the
third best teachers in the nation.
Contact:
Tracy Balboa
515 Congress Avenue
Suite 1875
Austin, TX 78701
(512)
703-1232
tbalboa@actonmba.org
