SC Johnson College of Business
(Cornell University)
QUICK FACTS
- Location: Ithaca, NY, USA
- Program Length: 2 years
- Program Cost: $159,820
- Average GMAT score: 710
- Acceptance Rate: 30%
- Average Work Experience: 5 years
Employment Reports (2022)
- Received an Offer: 97%
- Accepted an Offer: 96%
- Median Salary: $155,048
- Median Signing Bonus: $38,310
RANKINGS
- #8 Financial Times 2023 MBA Ranking
- #15 US News - Best Business Schools
- #12 USNews - Executive MBA
- #34 QS Global MBA Rankings 2023
CLASS OF 2024
- Total Enrollment: 303
- Women: 39%
- Average GPA: 3.34
ABOUT
SC Johnson College of Business does business with impact. Students at SC Johnson grow into leaders who are empowered to share prosperity. Located in Ithica New York, SC Johnson is a part of Cornell University, a world-renowned university. With three different schools within the same business college, SC Johnson prides itself on specialization and collaboration.
Located within SC Johnson, is the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, The School of Hotel Administration, and the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management. With other 43,800 Alumni around the world, 19 different degree programs, and 255 prestigious faculty, SC Johnson College of Business helps students grow and develop into empowered leaders.
APPLICATION DEADLINES
- Round 1: September 20th, 2023
- Round 2: January 10th, 2024
- Round 3: April 10th, 2024
APPLICATION PROCESS
Transcripts
Applicants admitted to Johnson’s MBA program are required to possess a bachelor’s degree. Please submit transcripts for all completed coursework and proof of graduation from a bachelor’s degree program.
If you are currently pursuing a bachelor’s or advanced degree when you apply to Johnson, provide your latest transcript. Upon graduation, an official transcript copy must be submitted.
GMAT or GRE
MBA applicants can choose to submit a valid GMAT or GRE score as part of their application to Johnson. Both GMAT and GRE scores are accepted. Candidates applying for dual-degree programs usually submit GRE scores, which is the standard requirement for non-MBA programs.
There is no specific minimum GMAT or GRE score required for admission to Johnson’s residential MBA program. However, it’s worth noting that the middle 80% of our applicants typically submit GMAT scores ranging from 660 to 760. GRE scores that align with these GMAT scores are considered equivalent.
Foreign Language Requirement
Applicants must submit a TOEFL score if they are not from an English speaking country or their university degree was not obtained through an English speaking university.
Recommendation
You are required to submit one letter of recommendation, but you have the option to submit up to two for review by the committee. It is essential that your recommenders can provide insights into your professional, leadership, and intellectual abilities. The most valuable recommendations come from individuals who can confidently assess your leadership qualities, maturity, teamwork, analytical skills, and interpersonal abilities. Suitable recommenders could include your current supervisor, colleague, client, or former supervisor.
Essay Description
For the 2023-2024 MBA admissions at Cornell’s Johnson School, applicants to the Two-Year Ithaca MBA program must complete a Goals Statement and one required essay.
The Goals Statement prompts applicants to share their short and long-term career goals, specifying the desired role, company, and industry immediately post-MBA and 5-10 years after.
Additionally, an Impact Essay allows applicants to describe how they plan to positively impact the MBA community and address any application discrepancies.
For candidates seeking the Roy H. Park Leadership Fellowship, a separate essay is required, focusing on a past leadership experience and how the fellowship would contribute to their leadership growth. The Park Fellowship is available exclusively to U.S. citizens applying for the Two-Year MBA program and requires participation in leadership activities, school roles, and a public service project.
Resume
Applicants resume should show the professional experience they have accumulated.
Application Fee
A nonrefundable $200 application fee is mandatory in order to submit your application for any of Johnson’s residential MBA programs.
PROGRAM STRENGTHS
Immersion Learning
SC Johnson offers studens an entire semester of hands-on and intensive integrated course and fieldwork. This opportunity allows students to put theory into practice and utilize what they learned in the classroom into the real world. Students can take immersion courses in Digital Technology, Investment Banking, Corporate Finance, Strategic Operations, Strategic Product and Marketing, Sustainable Global Enterprise, and Investment Research and Asset Management. Students can alos customize their immersion experience to better suit their interests. During the immersion learniing, which takes place during the second semester of their first year, students dive into electives, site visits and live cases to help them gain hands on experience in areas they are most interested in.
Other MBA programs
Not only does SC Johnson offer a full time 2 year MBA program, but they offer prospective students with other MBA programs which suit the needs of their applicants. Applicants interested in attending SC Johnson can apply to any of the following MBA programs:
– One-Year MBA program: an excellerated program with flexible curriculum which can help fast-track students’ careers
– Cornell Tech MBA: Those interested inteh digital economy should consider the Cornell Tech MBA. Students in this program study for a year and learn about networks and industry, in order to develop skills essential for working in the digital and tech economy.
– Cornell Executive MBA: Meant for professionals who wish to return to graduate school after spending time working in teh professional business world. This program allows students to return to the classrooms without forfeiting their career trajectory and momentum.
– Cornell Tsinghua Finance MBA: A dual degree program where students work under a partnership with the PBC School of Finance at Tsinghua University in Beijing. This program has a focus on international finance and meant for working professional based in China.
STUDENT LIFE
Student life at SC Johnson is both an intense and collaborative community. Class sizes are small, and so students learn from and with a personal community of thier peers. Students benefit from the numerous clubs and organizations offered. Whether they wish to participate in an extra curricular which excellerates their career or a fun after-class activitiy where they can integrate their hobbies, students have the opportunity to find fulfillment in their studies and within the SC Johnson community.
MBA PROGRAM OVERVIEW
First Year
During the first year, students can expect to take courses meant to establish a strong foundation in business fundamentals. With team-based competitions and semester-long immersion and fieldwork, the first year will prepare students for their summer internship and professional work after graduation.
Fall Semester
- Leading Teams
- Financial Accounting
- Microeconomics for Management
- Marketing Management
- Critical and Strategic Thinking
- Managerial Finance Strategy
Spring Semester
- Managing Operations
- Data Analytics and Modeling
- Elective Courses
Second Year
During their second year, students in the two year full-time MBA program take courses in Principled Leadership where they learn self-reflection and self-assessment to make their well-rounded leaders. The rest of the year is full customizable with students able to take courses from Cornell’s many other colleges and schools.
Grading Scale
The official University grading system at Cornell University uses letter grades with pluses and minuses. Passing grades range from A+ to D–, with F indicating a failure. INC signifies an incomplete grade, and R is used for in-progress multi-semester courses, both of which do not have quality-point equivalents. The grading scale assigns quality-point values to letter grades, with A+ being 4.3 and F being 0.0.
FEATURED PROFESSORS
Robert Libby
Professor Libby is the David A. Thomas Professor of Management and the Area Coordinator for Accounting at SC Johnson. His research area is Behavioral Economics and Decision Research. He teaches financial accounting, financial statement analysis, and behavioral decision theory. He is well-published, including writing a book titled Accounting and Human Information Processing: Theory and Applications. Because of his works, Professor Libby has been the recipient of the AAA/AIPA Notable Contribution to the Literature Award. Professor Libby received his B.S. from Pennsylvania State University in 1970, his CPA from Illinois State University in 1971, his MA and MAS from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champain in 1971, and his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1974.
Ya-Ru Chen
Professor Chen is the Nicholas H. Noyes Professor of Management as well as the Academic Dean, of China Initiatives. She works in the management and orgnizations faculty area. Her research themes are Behavioral Economics and Decision Research and Emerging Markets and Development. Professor Chen researches cross-cultural differences and similarities in employees’ behaviors and attitudes. She compares employees in different cultures and their reaction to performance feedback. As well as how they relate to their own group and other gorups and their negotiations with business counterparts. She is well published, including having been featured in Psychologcial Review, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Administrative Science Quarterly, Management Science, Organizational Behavor and Human Decision Processes, and Organization Science. She previously worked at Stern School of New York, and Rutgers Business School. She earned her BA from Soochow University in 1986, her MA from Teachers College Columbia University 1991, and her PHD from Columbia University in 1996.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
In addition to the full time MBA, SC Johnson College offers the following joint degree programs: