U-M fuses business and art to create new graduate degree

Students at the University of Michigan pursuing their masters of fine arts don’t traditionally mix with MBA students. That’s about to change now that the university has created a new program that combines the two programs.U-M students in either the Ross School of Business or the School of Art & Design will have the option of receiving a dual degree from both schools by participating in the new four-year program. The idea is to create graduates who have mastered the fundamentals of business but have also developed their creative side (or vice-versa) so they can go after the innovating jobs of the 21st Century.”Business students must learn to be innovative in responding to challenges, and creative in solving problems,” says Valerie Suslow, associate dean of the Ross School of Business. “Learning design principles and understanding the evolution of creative work gives business students insight into marketing, product design and organizational behavior.”The university plans to start the program in the fall of 2009 and is taking applications for it now.Source: University of MichiganWriter: Jon Zemke