NO school has come as far as Fuqua has in the last 20 years. Duke opened its business school in 1969, but things really started to happen after the school took J.B. Fuqua's name in 1980. What was once a well-regarded school mostly regional appeal has grown into one of the top business programs in the world.
Young and small, Fuqua has an advantage over the business school competition with its innovative curriculum and approach to learning. Students have four terms (of six weeks each) per year, meaning that they get a taste of many more subjects than students at most other schools. Fuqua's emphasis has traditionally been on turning out general managers, although recent graduate classes have skewed more towards marketing. The only concentration that the school offers is its Health Sector Management program, which takes advantage of the school’s location in Research Triangle Park in North Carolina. If you are interested in biotech, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, or healthcare management, take a close look at this program.
Fuqua has also been aggressive in giving its students opportunities to study abroad, and currently has reciprocal exchange programs with 25 international business schools. Its Global Academic Travel Experience program provides students with the opportunity to travel abroad for a short period of time. GATE is extremely popular with students, with close to half of the class participating in the program for two weeks each year, Fuqua's push to build its brand around the world means that it looks for applicants with global perspective. If you have international experience, be sure to emphasize it in your application. If you haven’t worked abroad, that is okay. You definitely don’t need to lie about wanting to spend your next five years in Hong Kong. Just demonstrating a willingness to work with people of other background is a great start.
Work in most classes is done in teams, and Fuqua's graduates have gained a team-ready reputation that rivals that of Kellogg’s graduates. Students often refer to themselves as "Team Fuqua", and they mean it. They also have reputation for being some of the most energetic and close-knit students at any business school. This is reinforced by the fact that Fuqua is a smaller school – approximately 700 full-time students in 2003. When you apply to Fuqua, make it clears that you understand what it means to be part of a smaller community, and spell out why it appeals to you. Along those lines, Fuqua students are heavily involved in everything going on at the schools. If you apply Duke, make sure that this is what you want out of your business school experience. Even more importantly, make sure to make that clear in your application through multiple examples of teamwork and involvement.
Fuqua's focus on excellence in general management will definitely come out during the interview. Most interviews are conducted by students who are members of the admissions committee. It is therefore important to position yourself as a prospect that your interviewer would like to have as classmate. This means you should provide examples of professional excellence, but do so in a non-arrogant tone. In the back of his mind, your interviewer will be evaluating you as a potential team member in addition to evaluating you as a leader. If you have three years professional experience or less, you should also expect to receive questions on your ability to contribute in the classroom. Have a response prepared as to why "now" is a good time for you to attend Fuqua.
Fuqua has built a strong reputation, and it now attracts many of the same people who also apply to the Harvard and Wharton of the world. The downside for Fuqua is the some top applicants still view Fuqua as somewhat of a backup school, even though Fuqua's acceptance rate is below 20 percent. This is evident in the school's yield, which was 7 percent in 2001, more than 10 percent below that of other top schools. The school therefore looks for applicants who are interested in Fuqua for what it offers, not jus because it's listed next to other big names in the rankings. In other words, the admissions committee wants to be sure that if they accept you, you will enroll. If you can demonstrate that you truly want to attend Fuqua – and why this is so – you will greatly improve your chances.