Complete coverage of the start
A new group of Rice University Master of Business Administration graduates will cross the stage on May 3 and are heading out into the world to offer their knowledge and experience to organizations across the country and abroad. This commencement weekend also featured Rice University's first class of students who will earn bachelor's degrees in business on May 4th.
More than 400 graduates received master's degrees and advanced degrees during a ceremony held May 3 at Rice's Tudor Field House and enjoyed a thoughtful speech from Rice President Reginald Desroches.
“Completing an MBA requires discipline, initiative, and focus,” Desroches said. “The skills I gained while pursuing my degree go far beyond my knowledge of finance, economics, and marketing.”
The annual MA Wright Awards are nominated by the class and presented to well-rounded exemplary graduates across all MBA programs to honor outstanding academic achievement, selfless leadership, community stewardship, and career advancement. Masu.
2024 MA Light Award
- Full-time MBA: Ahmad Tipu
- Executive MBA: Daniel Williamson
- Professional Evening MBA: Nicky Suarez
- Professional Weekend MBA: Ben Provenza
- MBA@Rice: Sarah Abukhair
The Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award is presented to faculty selected by alumni to honor faculty in each program for their contributions to Rice Business' mission of creating community and excellence.
2024 Faculty Teaching Excellence Award
- Full-time MBA: Balaji Koka
- MBA for Executives: Petrus Ferreira
- Professional Evening MBA: Kunal Sachdeva
- Professional Weekend MBA: Prashant Kher
- MBA@Rice: John Buffington
Another annual tradition is the award, chosen by alumni who graduated two and five years ago, to recognize faculty who have excelled in teaching. This year's Jesse H. Jones School of Business Award for Excellence in Teaching went to Utpal Dholakia, George R. Brown Professor of Marketing.
Julian Duncan ’99, chief marketing and strategy officer for the Houston Rockets and Rice University alumnus, was Rice Business’ 2024 commencement speaker. Mr. Duncan, who returned to Rice University in 2006 to earn his MBA, encouraged his graduates to pursue careers that bring them passion and excitement.
“A compelling story is one of your most powerful leadership weapons,” says Duncan. “You can connect with others, articulate your vision, help your marketing peers better understand your data, and even get investors to support your entrepreneurial dreams.”
Saturday night's undergraduate graduation ceremony included 60 students earning bachelor's degrees in business. This major was created by Rice Business Dean Peter Rodriguez in recognition of the demand for a deeper business education from current and prospective students, and in recognition of the high-quality degrees that Rice Business has always offered in the MBA, Master of Accounting. It happened in 2021 when we learned we could offer the program to undergraduate students. and a PhD student.
Undergraduate students at Rice University are known for setting high standards: rigorous academics, multiple majors and minors, research with faculty, and real-world experience such as internships, part-time jobs, and entrepreneurial competitions. It is being To complete the business major, students must also complete a finance or management concentration, which requires additional upper-level courses. Both concentrations provide the knowledge, research, and analytical skills to solve a wide range of today's business problems.
By harnessing the inherent strengths of Rice students and combining them with Houston's rigorous business programs and entrepreneurship ecosystem, Rice Business is creating a new breed of leaders who can address the world's important issues. explains Rodriguez. This includes areas such as accelerating opportunities in the energy transition, artificial intelligence and other areas and contributing to the vitality of urban communities.
“Our business students have a unique ability to do that,” Rodriguez said in an interview with Poets and Quants.
The graduates held a preliminary celebration on the morning of May 3 at Rice Business's home of McNair Hall, where Mr. Rodriguez celebrated the achievements of the first class of “trailblazers” and presented them with awards.
“Talk to these students and see what they're doing. You won't find better students anywhere,” Rodriguez said. “Very well-trained, smart, hard-working, ambitious people are the ones who can actually go out into the world and make a difference to solve some of the world's problems.
“College campuses are in some ways turbulent times right now. But that's partly because college campuses are places where we think about these kinds of questions, debate them, and come up with good answers. Who better to do that than the students at Rice University? They are truly extraordinary.”
Faculty Teaching Excellence Awards have become a staple of the MBA program, and Rice Business has chosen to continue that tradition with its undergraduate degree. The award recipients are determined by alumni, and this year, management accounting professor Ben Lunsford was selected as the inaugural recipient.
The Rise@Rice Sen Social Pioneer Award and six Rice Business Excellence Student Awards were created specifically for undergraduate programs. Pioneer Award recipients are nominated by their peers and selected by a committee that recognizes students who exemplify the highest standards of leadership, compassion, and collaboration within the business school community.
Winner Austin Cox said, “I have learned so much through this major, and I am so grateful for everything my teachers and colleagues have given me.''
Outstanding Student Awards are determined by faculty based on academic performance and contributions to the school and major. The first awards were presented to Jordan Billups, Sean Cartwright, Katherine Chen, April Chong, Joel Fruncill, and Ethan Cao.
This major joins other Rice Business undergraduates, a minor in business, and a minor in entrepreneurship. Rice Business' graduate programs include an MBA, a one-year master's program in accounting, and a Ph.D. program in Business, the latter for students seeking academic careers at research universities.
If you are currently a Rice student If you have any questions about our courses or programs, or about declaring a major or minor in business, please email business.major@rice.edu.
Visit our 2024 Graduation photo gallery here and tag your photos and posts using #RiceGrad2024.
