Just eight years after the launch of its first course on energy for MBAs, Fuqua School of Business is earning a national reputation as a powerhouse among MBA programs for energy. FIND MBA added Fuqua to its list of Top 10 Business Schools for Energy and Natural Resources in 2017, placing Fuqua in the company of schools like Rice and UT-Austin, which have long had deep connections to the energy industry.
“The creation of EDGE as a center at Fuqua in 2010, followed by the launch of the campus-wide Duke University Energy Initiative in 2011, signaled the seriousness of Duke’s commitment to engaging the energy sector,” said Katie Kross, managing director of EDGE. “We are able to offer our students an incredible diversity of curricular and extracurricular experiences that touch on issues across the entire energy value chain.”
The MBA Energy Club at Fuqua is one of the most active clubs on campus. Its activities include coordinating the annual Duke University Energy Conference, Energy in Emerging Markets Case Competition, and Energy Week, as well as annual career treks to the energy hubs of Houston, TX and the Bay Area, CA. Students at Fuqua can choose to complete an MBA Concentration in Energy & Environment, an MBA Concentration in Energy Finance, or a three-year business and environment joint degree (MEM/MBA) with a focus on energy.
“In the past, the energy sector has not typically focused on recruiting MBAs,” said Kross. “But that’s changed in recent years, with so many electric utilities and oil and gas companies facing a leadership transition as a huge wave of executives in the sector retire.” In recent years, Fuqua graduates have accepted offers with firms including ExxonMobil, NextEra Energy, Pacific Gas & Electric, Siemens, GE Energy Financial Services, SolarCity, NRG Energy, Goldman Sachs energy investment banking, and other companies in the sector.
“With so much change happening in the sector, it’s really a great time to be considering a career in the energy sector,” Kross added. Fuqua is building its reputation as one of the best places to do just that.
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