Ryerson University's new MBA specializing in media management is described as a "niche" program. That may be true if you see new and emerging media as a small and specialized sector of the economy. But if you view it through Wendy Cukier's eyes, you see it as "one niche that is of large and growing importance in virtually every sector."
Dr. Cukier, associate dean of Ryerson's Ted Rogers School of Business, says that in addition to media corporations themselves, every large organization has a department dealing with technology and communication. "Government, hospitals, banks all need people who understand media and how to manage it."
Ryerson is the new kid on the MBA block, and its master of business administration in Management of Technology and Innovation, launched in the fall of 2006, draws on the university's strengths in applied business and technology education along with its well-regarded schools of broadcast and print journalism.
York University, in comparison, is an old hand at niche MBA programs: it established the first Canadian MBA in Arts Administration almost 40 years ago. Its focus was on developing people who could manage the business side of traditional arts organizations such as theatres and symphony orchestras. In 1983, that program changed its name to Arts and Media and expanded its focus to include "cultural industries" such as film, broadcasting, publishing and sound recording.
Wendy Cukier, associate dean of Ryerson’s Ted Rogers School of Business: ‘Government, hospitals, banks all need people who understand media and how to manage it.’ The university’s MBA focusing on technology and innovation was launched last fall. (Jim Ross for The Globe and Mail)
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"Our students are fully qualified to work in any area that requires an MBA. They can focus on business areas such as finance or organizational behaviour. But they also have a specific expertise in areas of arts and media," says Joyce Zemens, director of the MBA in Arts and Media Administration in the Schulich School of Business at York.
Claire Gillis is in her final year of the two-year program at York. With an undergraduate degree in architecture from the University of Toronto, she says that her background differed from many of her fellow MBA students who have worked in the arts as performers or artists, and that she lacked any business training.
"I was really intimidated going in but I found that most of the other students didn't have any business background either," says Ms. Gillis, 27. "We were immersed in business right from the beginning of our courses, and I was pleasantly surprised to find it wasn't long before I was becoming competent in those areas."
Both York and Ryerson require students to complete what the schools call a core or "platform" set of business courses common to all MBA students. Once students select the media specialization, they combine electives with research papers, industry case studies and work-placement internships.
The elective courses at both schools reflect their distinctive focus. At York these include courses such as Cultural Policy and Legal Aspects of Arts and Entertainment; at Ryerson, students can choose such courses as Competitive Strategy for Media Industries or Media and Communication Technologies. Both schools emphasize entrepreneurship, strategic thinking, leadership skills and innovation.
While the York and Ryerson MBA niche programs have some similarities, Dr. Cukier characterizes the differences in terms of Ryerson's technological focus.
"Our program is designed for professionals in the media and infotainment sectors: broadcasting, new media, advertising, or those who manage those functions in large corporations," she says. "Convergence and fast-paced technological change mean that people working in those sectors require an unusual combination of skills."
Admission requirements for both schools include an undergraduate degree and related work experience, along with acceptable scores on standardized GMAT (graduate management admissions test) and various other prerequisites. Ryerson's one-year program costs $12,000 plus materials, estimated at about $1,500 to $2,000.
The York Schulich MBA is a two-year program and costs are substantially higher: $40,000 in total tuition, with another $6,000 for books and materials. Both schools offer scholarships and bursaries, and part-time program options.
Chris Smyth is a part-time Ryerson student juggling his MBA studies in Media Management with a full-time job and a young family.
Mr. Smyth graduated from Ryerson's Graphic Communication Management program in 1995 and has been working in traditional print publishing (he currently works for a major multimedia company). To move ahead in his career, he felt he needed more business training combined with a broader knowledge of new media.
"That's what steered me to the Ryerson MBA in Media Management," he says. "I am learning about leadership strategies and finance but applying them to specific technologies and organizations."
Mr. Smyth, who aims to finish the program in two years, spends between 25 and 30 hours a week on school. While it's a significant challenge, he says he gets "fantastic" support from his work colleagues and manager, his "significant other, without whom I couldn't finish the degree," and Ryerson business school staff who understand the pressures on working students.
Mr. Smyth and Ms. Gillis each cite teaching faculty who have industry experience and connections as key to the relevance of their MBA specialty programs. "Our instructors are current and seem invigorated by the teaching experience," Mr. Smyth says.
As for where these specialized MBA degrees can lead, the field is vast. York's graduates not only manage arts organizations such as orchestras and galleries, but also work in record and film companies and cultural policy offices of government and arts councils.
With the ink barely dry on their MBA degrees, the first group of Ryerson Media Management graduates are just getting started, but Dr. Cukier says "our students have hit the ground running in terms of preparation for the world of managing business, technological innovation and creativity."
Special to The Globe and Mail
