The H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship’s Huizenga Sales Institute introduced the first class in its Master of Business Administration in Sales program with 20 students on Jan. 10.
This degree option makes NSU one of 12 universities nationwide and the only one in Florida to offer a graduate program in sales.
Michael Fields, Ph.D., dean of the H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship, said, “It is a concentration that is going to be particularly valuable to industry and, therefore, students will have great opportunities for employment.”
The first class is expected to graduate in the summer 2012.
Beatriz Rivera, one of the 20 students in the class has worked in real estate for more than six years. She said she thinks the program offers a different approach to sales, which she already finds effective.
“I’m totally using the approaches already. I can see myself appreciating the philosophy behind them and using them in my day-to-day activities,” said Rivera.
The program’s 12 core classes are offered online and at the main campus. However, the four sales classes needed for the sales concentration are only offered online.
Rivera said she was initially hesitant about taking sales classes online, but has grown comfortable with them.
“It gives you a lot of flexibility and you can read at your own pace,” she said. “But you also have to practice and know the material before you post every week. So, it has turned out to be a positive thing for me because it forces you to learn and use the material every day.”
However, in April, when the next class will start, students will have the option of taking the concentration classes at the main campus.
At the end of each semester, students will come to the institute to role play interviews and create a video portfolio, which will include mock sales pitches and interviews.
Fields said, “The whole program is designed to help students be placed in what is a difficult market place.”
The institute also plans to introduce an MBA and a graduate certificate in sales management in fall 2011.
