Student Success: MBS

The overarching goal of the MBS program is to create broadly educated and ethical life science industry professionals. The MBS program follows a “T” education philosophy, in that all students are required to obtain a broad knowledge of the science, business, ethics, and regulatory processes across the life science industries, but are also expected to obtain deeper knowledge in a specific area of interest.

A primary learning outcome of the MBS program is provide students with the knowledge, values, and professional skills to operate effectively in managerial roles in the biotech, pharmaceutical, and medical device and diagnostics industries. It also provides students with an understanding of the regulatory environment in which these industries operate. The program prides itself on the team-based projects that pervade the curriculum. A focus on communication and leadership skills, consistent with the learning outcomes for the program, is evident as the students are required to demonstrate both written and oral presentation skills throughout the program.

These aims have been formulated into seven distinct learning outcomes:

MBS Program Learning Outcomes

1. Students can communicate effectively in an industry environment composed of scientists, engineers, and business professionals.
2. Students can contribute productively on an interdisciplinary team tackling complex problems.
3. Students have the core business analysis and management knowledge needed for the bioscience industry.
4. Students understand the business, research, development, regulatory, production and marketing functions of the bioscience industry.
5. Students understand the translation of basic science and engineering discoveries into products and processes that benefit society.
6. Students are advocates for ethical principles in research, development and business in the biosciences.

Table 1: MBS Program Enrollment and On-Time Graduation Rates

Diversity of the MBS Class of 2020

The MBS Program Assessment

KGI uses a variety of direct and indirect evidence to assess the effectiveness of the MBS curriculum in meeting program learning outcomes. The following presents examples of student learning on the MBS program. Figure 1 presents student achievement in their capstone Team Master’s Project at the end of the second year, with the majority of students demonstrating exceptional performance or proficiency in the communication and technical aspects of the project.

Figure 1: Summative Assessment of Learning Outcomes: Master of Business and Science, Class of 2020

All masters level programs within the Riggs School have a summative or capstone project. For each project, teams of faculty assess student outcomes with rubrics that have standards linked to that program’s learning outcomes. The following tables present aggregate data from these rubrics on student learning within their program.

Table 2: Summative Assessment of Learning Outcomes: Masters of Business and Science, Class of 2020

Enlarge the table

In addition, KGI collects a variety of indirect evidence, ranging from student satisfaction surveys to surveys of alumni. Information from alumni is particularly important, as it helps KGI understand whether the MBS curriculum is meeting its goal of preparing students for jobs in a variety of roles within the bioscience industries. Figure 3 presents data from a 2017 alumni survey asking about the first job obtained after graduating. This chart indicates that MBS graduates obtain jobs in a wide variety of job functions, ranging from research and development, to operations, to consulting. This data is useful, in that it suggests that the degree is preparing students for careers in a variety of industry roles.

Through student satisfaction surveys, students also report a high degree of satisfaction in their academic experience and in meeting the goals of the program. Self-reported scores were high in collaborating in teams (average of 4.6 out of a 5.0 scale) and leading teams (average 4.5 on a 5 point scale)

Table 3: MBS, End of Year Survey, 2020

Alumni Survey Skills and Learning Outcomes: Importance vs. KGI Contribution

Figure 2: Alumni Survey Skill Gap Analysis. Source: KGI Spring 2019 Alumni Survey. Data is from 124 respondents across all Riggs School programs, with the majority or respondents holding the MBS degree.

Functional Area of First Job After MBS Graduation

Figure 3: Functional areas of students’ first jobs after MBS graduation based on the 2017 alumni survey.

Figure 4 provides a second example of indirect evidence, this time focused on the assessment of KGI’s extensive co-curricular program for MBS program. Drawing again from the 2017 alumni survey, this chart provides information on how KGI students obtained their first job. This data suggests that over 70% of students find their first job as part of a KGI program or contact.

Source of First Job After MBS Graduation

Chart 4: Source students’ first jobs after graduating with the MBS degree based on the 2017 alumni survey.