This fall, 10 undergraduate students began the College of Business Administration's new five-year integrated program leading to a Bachelor of Business Administration degree (BSBA) and a Master of Business Administration degree (MBA). This program is designed for high-achieving, goal-oriented students who have decided to complete an MBA as part of their professional education in a timely and cost-efficient way.

The program provides challenging academic coursework that prepares students for successful business careers. Students will also gain appropriate work experience in preparation for the MBA Program. Students must complete a minimum of two cooperative education assignments (i.e., internships.) One of these must be a graduate internship completed between the fourth and fifth year.

Another unique feature of the program is the involvement of an assigned mentor from the business community to assist and guide each student in career planning and development. The first meeting of the mentors was Oct. 20, and included:

• Kathy Aznavorian '68, President, Fox Hills
• Jeffrey Antaya '80, '87, Chief Marketing Officer, Plante & Moran
• Tony Belli, President, E G Nicks
• Joseph Berkowski, CFO of Argent International, Inc.
• George Dettloff '74, President & CEO, SKF USA
• Dennis Drenikowski '82, Director, Merrill Lynch
• Dave Grubb '92, Partner, Plante & Moran
• Dominic Paluzzi '04, '07, Associate, McDonald Hopkins
• Dan Roma '84, CFO, National Coney Island, Inc.
• Joseph Zito '98, Partner & Director, Audit & Consulting, Doeren Mayhew

This mentoring will supplement the academic advising provided by the College of Business Administration and the many services provided by the University's Career Education Center.

For more information, visit the 5-Year BSBA/MBA Program web site or contact UDM's Admissions Office at 800-635-5020 or admissions@udmercy.edu.