The Raleigh Residency is a two three-day, in-person residency program, required for all professional online MBA students to complete. The program provides a unique way for online students to network and develop leadership skills.
Connect. Network. Earn Course Credit.
As a program requirement for our Professional Online MBA program, online students must complete two three-day, in-person residencies. Collectively known as Raleigh Residency, students earn course credit by attending each residency. Students complete the first residency (Raleigh Residency I) during their first semester in the program and must complete the second residency (Raleigh Residency II) before graduation.
Residencies provide important lessons in communication, presentation and networking skills. Active duty military may waive their residency and substitute the requirement for other elective courses.
“What’s great about the residencies is that they give our professional [online] students not only the opportunity to take a class in three days but to meet other MBAs in the program. Students can take advantage of something that full-time MBAs have had for a long time – the ability to develop their network.”
Leigh Shamblin
Professor of Practice and Director of Leadership
How It Works
Each Residency is a crash course in leadership development, providing 80 to 100 Professional Online MBA students access to the same relationship-building and networking opportunities as their full-time classmates.
Raleigh Residency I (MBA 531)
Engage in exercises and activities to learn about their strengths, review emotional intelligence, and examine their presentation and communication style.
Meet with an advisor who will assist them with their career profile, LinkedIn profile, resume, and more.
Explore the principles of teams and team management.
Take part in a simulation on change management – examining how they will manage all of the change around them as they become leaders.
Raleigh Residency II (MBA 532)
Faculty-led topic discussions on:
Managing People
Decision Making and Empowerment
Leading Teams and Global Team Leadership
The Benefits
For busy professionals and online students who may also be working while pursuing their MBA, the Raleigh Residency provides an opportunity to connect with other students, while receiving course credit in a short, time-intensive format.
Students travel from other states and even other countries, to complete the residencies, creating a memorable experience for all in attendance.
By attending, students:
Develop an extensive network of their peers, forming connections that may lead to future academic or professional opportunities.
Gain essential leadership skills–leadership skills are an integral component of the MBA program as professionals are often promoted based on their technical brilliance, but may struggle to lead people. Students must understand how to make the transition from doer to influencer and leader.
Make new connections during the second session by asking questions or going in-depth in new areas that students might not have considered the first time around.
High Impact, High Return: the MBA Residency
Networking, leadership development and connection is the game plan for high-impact Jenkins MBA Residency learning experiences.
