What to Know About the Top MBA Program for Veterans

Taking the leap from military service to business school can be full of uncertainty. At the University of Minnesota Carlson School, staff work directly with veterans to take the transition in stride.

Retired U.S. Navy Commander Charles Altman is the director of the MBA Military & Veterans program at the Carlson School. With a proven track record of success, he helps put student veterans on a path to achieve their business goals. Altman offers his insight for some of the most common questions he gets from prospective student veterans, including job prospects after graduation:

Q: How do military skills relate to business?

Veterans’ skills translate to the business world more than they realize. For example, in the military you may be in charge of getting tanks, bullets, or bread for troops. That logistics knowledge of the supply chain extends from the military base to the board room.

The Carlson School ranks as the top Military Friendly® graduate business school in the country. We speak Veteran. Our faculty members appreciate veterans, and know how to help veterans take military knowledge and shape it into the language of business.

Q: How are MBA student veterans different compared to other students?

Professors in the Carlson MBA program take notice of student veterans because most veterans have an instilled mentality of duty. As students, they typically attend classes in a timely manner, sit up front, participate, and ask intelligent questions.

Veterans also come in knowing how to lead. No matter what rank in the military, you’re required to lead others with a mission-minded focus to accomplish a set of tasks. This makes veterans natural fits for leadership and management positions in the civilian sector.

Q: How can I afford business school?

Veterans tell me their biggest concern about going to business school is funding. At the Carlson School, the financial burden is greatly lifted for veteran MBA students. For veterans in the Full-Time MBA Program, this often includes full tuition costs and/or a very generous stipend for living expenses. The amount of funding varies depending on their application and resume qualifications. However, all veteran funding is considerable.

Some of our master’s programs also include work opportunities. For example, Full-Time MBA students participate in a paid internship between their first and second year of the program. The average hourly rate for the Class of 2022 was $45.05. While the internship length varies for each student, some are able to keep the internship through their second year and turn it into a job after graduation.

Q: At the end of the MBA program, will I get a job?

Oftentimes, veterans coming out of the military don’t have the same job network that many of their civilian peers have. It is completely daunting. 

At the Carlson School, supports are in place. Not only do student veterans receive individualized guidance at the Graduate Business Career Center, they also get opportunities to network with organizations through the Carlson Veterans’ Club, and the vast Carlson MBA military and veterans alumni network. Through these networks, student veterans from the Carlson School have accepted jobs at Fortune 500 companies like Target, 3M, Medtronic, Ecolab, Boston Scientific, and more.

Overall, 95% of 2021 Full-Time MBA graduates received employment offers within three months after graduation with an average starting base salary of $112,235. The odds are even better for veterans. In fact, in the 11 years I’ve served as director of the MBA veterans program at the Carlson School, I have never had a veteran leave without a job offer. Veterans have skills that are in demand and companies want to hire them. The Carlson School gives veterans the tools they need to be successful.

Q: Why should a veteran attend the Carlson School?

The Carlson School offers an elite experience for veterans. There’s tremendous scholarship/funding possibilities, invested faculty experienced in adapting veterans’ military skills to the business world, access to an elite alumni network, and a strong post-grad employment record in great paying jobs. These factors make the Carlson MBA program a must for any veteran to consider.

Connect with Charles Altman, PhD to learn more about the MBA Military & Veterans program at the Carlson School by emailing altman047@umn.edu or calling 612-626-7147.

Charles holds a PhD in Higher Education from the College of Education at the University of Minnesota. Following commissioning through the Naval Aviation Officer Candidate School, Commander Altman entered flight training and was designated a Naval Flight Officer in 1983. Throughout his nearly 30 years of naval service, he amassed nearly 4,000 flight hours flying operationally in four separate combat squadrons located on air bases throughout the world.

Military-Friendly® has ranked the Carlson School MBA Programs as the #1 graduate business school in the nation. Military Friendly is a division of Victory Media, which for more than a decade has surveyed thousands of institutions and assembled lists that capture best practices in recruitment and retention of military employees, students, and franchisees. A full list of ranked schools can be found on its website.