Career Development

We know you're making a major investment when you commit to earning your MBA. We believe it's our business to help you get the most out of your experience.

SMU Cox is committed to enriching your career path

From the moment of your acceptance through your life as an alum, SMU Cox is committed to enriching your career path and creating the right connections and opportunities for you. There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to your future — at Cox, everything from class size to curriculum ensures that the support you get is personalized to your goals and that you're using Dallas as your professional playground and classroom at-large.

Faculty: Learn from the Best

We don't just teach business — we're immersed in business. When they’re not educating you in applicable knowledge and skills, your professors are consulting for Fortune 500s, publishing books and research, running their own businesses and serving in government. Small class sizes and a calendar full of events where you can mingle informally mean you’ll be able to build one-on-one relationships with the academics and professionals who are invested in your future.

Meet the faculty

Meet the Faculty

James Linick

James Linck

Professor, Distinguished Chair in Finance, Department Chair

Which qualifications matter when it comes to a board of directors? To what extent do public firms' managers listen to the market in making major corporate investments? James Linck, finance department chair and distinguished chair in finance, has been asking tough questions and challenging perceived knowledge throughout his 20 years of research on corporate finance, governance and control.


See Linck's Bio
Robin Pinkley

Robin Pinkley

Professor, Management and Organizations

The recipient of SMU's Golden Mustang Award for innovative teaching, Robin is a recognized authority on strategic negotiation and conflict management. She's the author of the book "Get Paid What You’re Worth: The Expert Negotiators’ Guide to Salary and Compensation," and she has consulted with numerous corporate and government organizations.

See Pinkley's Bio
Sreekumar R Bhaskaran

Sreekumar R. Bhaskaran

Associate Professor of Information Technology and Operations Management

Sreekumar Bhaskaran’s research focuses on new product development and innovation — he’s especially interested in how firms can overcome operational challenges as they transform ideas into value-delivering propositions. Sreekumar was named among the "Best 40 B-School Profs Under the Age of 40” in the Poets&Quants ranking of business school professors.

 

See Bhaskaran's Bio

Create Your Career Path: The Career Management Center

From the moment you’re accepted, the CMC goes to work for you. The staff's main purpose is to give you the advice and resources you'll need to pursue and build your ideal career — before, during and after your MBA studies. Take advantage of a range of services, among them:

  • Coaching appointments

  • Specialized career prep workshops and seminars

  • Mentoring programs

  • Resume reviews

  • Critiqued mock interviews

We also offer career-tracked treks, such as a trip to Seattle for marketing students and a visit to Houston corporations like ExxonMobil and Haliburton for those interested in the energy sector.

Learn more about how the CMC can help you

Highlight: The Marketing Trek

“As a first-year MBA with a background in operations management, I had a great time meeting with upper management and touring the facilities of prominent businesses, all while networking with Cox alumni and executives.” Daniel Molina, MBA ‘18

Daniel Molina was one of a group of marketing students who participated in a fact-finding expedition and networking opportunity in Seattle. At the Fortune 500 companies they visited — among them Amazon, Starbucks and Boeing — they met with company execs in their offices and toured facilities. And at each business they visited, they spoke with SMU alumni who work there, learning how they'd navigated their way after the MBA program.

How We Help You

  • A Career Management course — part of your MBA curriculum — covers a full range of topics, from job search strategies to salary negotiations.

  • Our robust self-assessment survey helps you better define your career goals.

  • A career coach works with you to identify your ideal career path and objectives, and review the resources available to you for career mapping and planning.

  • A specialist helps you to fine-tune your resume and hone your interview skills for your specific field and industry, covering behavioral, technical and case-based interviews.

Grow as a Leader

You can't learn leadership from a textbook — you need firsthand experience. That’s why the Cox Business Leadership Center develops your leadership abilities through a variety of programming that will broaden your horizons and hone your skills. The BLC offers you a chance to engage your studies in real-world application and readies you for the road ahead.

See the full range of BLC programming

Highlight: The MBA Disney Institute

The BLC gives you a chance to dive into Disney from a strategic and tactical perspective. During your experiential learning program in Orlando, Florida, you'll explore the Disney Approach. It’s a unique educational opportunity that’s not only interactive and fun but also a useful benchmarking experience that will serve you long-term.

  • Interact with key Disney leaders to gain a personal perspective on leadership behaviors.

  • Immerse yourself in a “living laboratory” that connects theory to everyday practice.

  • Participate in exclusive field experiences to learn what goes into executing a memorable vacation experience.

Learn more about the Disney Institute