Entering Students

Welcome to the Telfer School of Management

We are pleased to welcome you to the MBA and MHA programs of the Telfer School of Management. Whether you are a full-time or part-time MBA/MHA student, you will be faced with new and exciting challenges and will develop key managerial skills and competencies.

The Telfer master's programs aim to prepare students for positions of responsibility in business and government, and to effectively cope with a wide variety of challenges in the business community. Our programs focus on the management of high performance, both on the domestic and international scene, which has become a corner stone for an effective and successful business.

Welcome from the MBA Students Association (MBASA) pdf

Welcome from the MHA Students Association (MHASA) pdf

Introduction to MBA and MHA

• Full-time MBA and MHA students
• Part-time MBA and MHA students
• Your Team
• Facilitating Communication

Full-time MBA and MHA students

Schedule for the Introduction to the MBA/MHA  – Full-time-time Students (Intensive – August 20 to 31, 2012) To be posted in May 2012

MHA students only: MHA Students Welcome Activities - August 21 & 31, 2012. To be posted in May 2012

Starting on August 20th until the 31st, 2012, entering full-time students must attend orientation activities which consist of two intensive courses and various activities designed to familiarize themselves with the program, their work group, the Telfer School of Management and the University of Ottawa.

Note: The courses and activities scheduled during this time are essential to a good start and participation is mandatory. Failure to attend will result in the cancellation of our admission offer.

The following full-time courses will also take place during that time:  

• MBA 5235  Management Skills I (the 2012 version will be posted later this summer)

As part of the course, all incoming students are asked to complete their Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Test in preparation for MBA 5235 Management Skills I: http://management.uo.careerid.com. Please read the instructions carefully: instructions_on-line_testing_testing_en_ligne.pdf

• MBA 5260   - The World of the General Manager and of Strategic Management (the 2012 version will be posted later this summer)  

N.B. The 2012 full-time cohort will be divided into two groups. Each group will be assigned a class section (A or AA). You will be informed by email before August 20, 2012 which section belongs to you. The content is the same, only the schedule differs.

Please consult both course outline beforehand. 

Part-time MBA and MHA students

 Schedule for the Introduction to the MBA/MHA  – Part-time Students (Intensive – August  24 to 31, 2012) (To be posted later this the summer)

MHA students only: MHA Students Welcome Activities - August 21 & 31, 2012 (To be posted later this summer)

Starting on August 24, 2012, entering part-time students must attend orientation activities which consist of one intensive compulsory course and various activities designed to familiarize themselves with the program, their team members, the Telfer School of Management and the University of Ottawa.

Note: The course and activities scheduled during this time are essential to a good start and your participation is mandatory. Failure to attend will result in the cancellation of our admission offer.

The following part-time course will begin in the evening of Friday August 24, 2012, after 5 pm. This intensive course is scheduled over the weekend and on some evenings of the following week:  

• MBA 5235B - Management Skills I. (the 2012 verstion o be posted later in the summer)

As part of the course, all incoming students are asked to complete their Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Test in preparation for MBA 5235 Management Skills I: http://management.uo.careerid.com. Please read the instructions carefully: instructions_on-line_testing_testing_en_ligne.pdf

Please consult the course outline beforehand.

Your Team

For all of the MBA core courses, students are assigned to a specific team carefully chosen by the Director of the MBA and MHA programs. In many ways, the groups reflect a team-based working environment where colleagues must learn to work effectively together. The composition of the teams takes into account the educational and professional background of each student and in doing so, enhances the student learning experience.

Leadership, cooperation, and compromise will be required of each member and although there will be challenges; we believe this is an invaluable learning experience. For this reason, the assigned teams must be maintained for all core MBA courses throughout the program.

You will be introduced to your team members during the Introduction to MBA and MHA.

Facilitating Communication

Your professors, the Graduate Office and various university services, will be emailing you information which is deemed important. This will de done by way of a distribution list for each cohort.

The email address we will be using to communicate with you will be your @uOttawa.ca account (please see your uoZone account if you are unsure of the email address). You can also forward your emails to another account should you prefer.

Registration

Rabaska, our online registration tool is the easiest and fastest way to complete your course selection. The section Audit will allow you to review your program course requirements. It can be access through your uoZone (same access as Infoweb). For instructions on how to use Rabaska, please follow this link: Registration guide. A weekly schedule can be printed from Rabaska, however, the courses which do not have a regular schedule will not appear. 

Entering students will either join the program's full-time cohort or the part-time cohort as indicated on their certificate of admission. Modification to your status requires approval from the Telfer Graduate Office prior to registration.

To support the cohort structure and to respect the work group principle, the Telfer Timetables indicate the cohort each section belongs to; more specifically, daytime MBA core course sections (section A and AA) are reserved for the full-time MBA/MHA students (FTE - full-time English), while evening section (B) is reserved for part-time students (PTE - part-time English).  NOTE: MHA courses have only one section and both full-time and part-time students take their MHA courses together.

Conditions of Admission

Some of you may have conditions of admission (indicated on your Certificate of Admission) that must be satisfied before registration is allowed. We urge you to do so early to avoid any delays, and consequently, late registration fees.

• Important Registration Dates
• MBA Program Structure / MHA Program Structure
• Full-time students' registration
• Part-time students' registration

MBA Program Structure / MHA Program Structure

The Program Structure lists the core courses and their sequence throughout your program. It is specific to your cohort and should be used to guide you in your course selection.  It is important that students maintain the curriculum as indicated on the Program Structure, the exception being the MBA electives.

Note: Students may not drop core courses or choose sections to which they do not belong, in order to maintain their work group and ensure that prerequisites are completed in sequence. Part-time students may not add courses beyond what is specified on the Program Structure if they wish to maintain their part-time status.

Full-time students' registration

All full-time MBA and MHA students will need to register to MBA 5000 level courses section A. Later in August once the teams’ members have been confirmed, the MBA and MHA directors will finalize the composition of the teams, which will then determine to which section (A or AA) each student belongs to. You will be informed prior to the beginning of the Introduction to MBA and MHA, which section has been assigned to you. Consequently, it is important that you take into account both sections’ schedules in your planning.

N.B.Because of the intensive nature additional courses beyond those specify in the MBA / MHA program structures are discouraged. Exceptional requests to register to an additional course above the requirements will require the permission of the Telfer Graduate Office. NOTE: additional fees will be charged (per credit) for any extra courses.

Part-time students' registration

Part-time graduate students are limited to a maximum of 6 credits per sessions. Because of the particular structure of the MBA and MHA curriculum, exceptionally, first year part-time students must register to a total 7.5 credits for the fall. They will have full-time status, while paying the part-time fee rate. MBA students who will opt for the Summer Exchange International program (summer year 2) and MHA students, who will register to the Accelerated Professional stream, will also fall under this special category. These are the only times we will permit part-time students to register to more than 6 credits.

Rabaska, the online registration tool, follows the rules governing the part-time status (6 credits) and will not permit you to register to all the required courses (7.5 credits) for the fall year 1. Registration will then need to be done in two steps:

Step 1:   

• Entering MBA part-time students are asked to register to the following courses: 
  MBA 5235B (1.5 cr.), MBA 5260B (1.5 cr.) and MBA 5300B (3 cr.)
• Entering MHA part-time students are to register to:
  MBA 5300B (3 cr.) and MHA 6360A (3 cr.)

Step 2:

• First, confirm by email ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) your registration as listed above
• Second, for legal purposes, you must clearly indicate your intent to add the remaining course:

For MBA students:  MBA 5238B Management Skills II

For MHA students: MBA 5235B Management Skills I

‘I will be registering as a full-time MBA or MHA student with part-time fees for the fall 2012. Please add the course MBA 5238B  (MBA students) / MBA 5235B (MHA students) to my registration.’

The Graduate Office academic advisor will then finalize your registration for the first session and modify your classification to full-time student with part-time tuition fees.  A confirmation email will then be sent to you. You will need to verify your Statement of account on your uoZone for the updated tuition fees. 

IMPORTANT: PLEASE ALLOW 2 BUSINESS DAYS TO COMPLETE THE REGISTRATION

N.B. Because of the intensive nature of the programs, additional courses beyond those specify in the MBA / MHA program structures are discouraged. Exceptional requests to register to an additional course above the requirements will require the permission of the Telfer Graduate Office. NOTE: Part-time students' classification will be changed to full-time if the total number of credits is above 6, with the corresponding full-time tuition fees, unless it falls under the exceptions mentioned above.  

Courses, Timetables & Exams

The Telfer Timetablesindicate, among other things, where and when the courses will be offered, as well as the instructor, changes to the schedule, the cohort a particular course belongs to (i.e. Full-time English 2012 – FTE 2012 or Part-time English 2012 – PTE 2012), etc. The course offering section of the University website does not give these details, nor will Rabaska’s timetable. Should any changes to the schedules occur during the year, the Telfer timetables will be updated and students will be informed immediately by email using the uOttawa.ca email. Therefore, it is important to read your emails and consult the schedules on a regular basis.

A particularity of the MBA and MHA programs is that each session is divided in two blocks. Some of the courses are of six weeks’ duration while others are twelve weeks. It is essential to verify the Timetables on the Telfer website for the start and end date of the blocks, statutory holidays' rescheduling, make-up class dates indicated on the schedule (classes that fall on a holiday will be rescheduled).

It should be noted that the MBA and MHA courses DO NOT FOLLOW all of the University calendar sessional dates as the other graduate programs. For example, start dates are usually earlier, there is no study breaks in October or February, registration and cancellation deadlines differ, etc. Please verify with the Telfer Graduate Office if you cannot find the information you seek on the Telfer websites.

Course Information

Course syllabi are normally posted on our Intranet commonly called Doc-Depot, 2 -3 weeks prior to the starting date of the courses. A user ID and login is necessary to access the information on Doc-Depot. This information will be provided during the first week of the program. Professors may use Doc-Depot to post class notes and other material.

Course Descriptions

Descriptions of the core MBAand MHA courses

MBA electives may vary from year to year depending on specific interests and availability of the professors. Their descriptions will be posted prior to the start session on the Telfer Timetables.

Class attendance and participation

Students are expected to be punctual, attend all classes, and actively participate in class and group discussions.  Absence due to illness, serious personal matters, or unavoidable work-related commitments should be reported to the professor ahead of time. If, of the opinion of the professor, the missed class is considered problematic to the student's learning, the Director of the program will be informed and appropriate measures taken. Students who miss more than 20% of a course may be asked to withdraw.   

Class and group participation is essential to maximize students learning. Individual participation may be graded and peer evaluations will be conducted on a regular basis as part of the overall program requirements. The grades of any student who consistently receives poor peer evaluations will be modified accordingly.

Exams

Preliminary exam schedules for the blocks will be posted early in the session giving students plenty of time to plan accordingly. The final schedules will be updated once the syllabi are posted. Not all courses have mid-term or final exams. Students must make the necessary arrangements to attend the mid-term and final exams on the scheduled dates.

Deferred Exams

Requests to defer an exam must be submitted to the Graduate Office at least 2 weeks before the scheduled exam. Students may only request a deferral on the following grounds: exams conflict, illness, death in the family, unavoidable work-related commitment, and official religious holiday. Supporting documents will be required. Trips, unless they are work-related, and other personal commitments do not constitute valid reasons to defer an exam. Since the exam schedule is known well in advance, it is expected that the exams take precedence over personal trips and commitments. No exception will be permitted. Should a deferral be granted, the exam will be rescheduled after the regular exam.

Required Skills

Math Background
 

The quantitative content of some of the MBA and MHA courses requires that all students have a well-developed capability in mathematics. To assist in updating and upgrading student capabilities in this area, an on-line series of modules (titled MBA Essentials) is a required experience for all incoming students. It provides the following modules for review:

• Business Math Boot Camp (8-9 hours) – Basic Math Overview

• Statistics Essentials (4-5 hours) – Data Analysis Course

• Calculus Essentials (1-2 hours) – Advanced Math Overview

• Accounting Essentials (3 hours) – Managerial Accounting Course

• Microeconomics Essentials (5 hours) – Economics Course

• Finance Essentials I (4-5 hours) – Financial Accounting (1)

• Finance Essentials II (4-5 hours) – Financial Accounting (2)

Students are required to complete Business Math Boot Camp, Statistics Essentials, Finance Essentials 1 and 2, and Accounting Essentials prior to arrival at Orientation Week. This requires between 20 and 27 hours of work on-line. The remainder of the modules can be completed “just-in-time” as students engage in the appropriate courses throughout the program. For some students, completion will represent a pleasant review and preparation for the individual courses. For others who may be more challenged by the quantitative courses, completion of each of these modules will represent a critical key to success in the program. For all students, completion of the modules ensures that everyone arrives in class with a common understanding of the appropriate concepts and common skills related to required functions at the beginning of each course. Given the time involved, wise people will start early. We can guarantee that there will NOT be time to do these preparatory modules once you arrive and start the orientation week. Guaranteed!!!

The on-line package must be purchased on-line or in-store at the Agora Bookstore (www.agorabookstore.ca or at 145 Besserer Street) prior to program commencement at the end of August. The cost is approximately $242.55. An e-mail with detailed instructions for on-line purchase will be sent to all students prior to program commencement.

In addition to the MBA Essentials program, the MBA/MHA students also have access to a number of on-line tutorials related to math and, more significantly, to the use of the statistical functions of Excel. These are available at the following location on line on the University’s Web site: https://maestro.uottawa.ca/indexEN.asp. To use this site you will require your University User ID and Password. These have been provided to you on the last page of your offer of admission to the program. It is strongly recommended that you complete at least the Learning Module 2 : Excel Preparation prior to starting your Data Analysis course (at the beginning of September). The Data Analysis (MBA 5300) course makes extensive use of the Excel statistics function. Wise students ensure that they have the basics of this component of Excel mastered prior to beginning this course.

Requirements of Computer Skills and Equipments

Throughout the various courses of the MBA and MHA programs, the work requirements you will be asked to prepare will include memo writing, case analysis reports, data analysis reports, Internet research and oral presentations. Time will soon become a rare commodity: it will be important for you to be able to count on tools to assist you in your tasks, to facilitate your work, to make you more efficient.

Consequently, the MBA/MHA programs require entering students to have mastered basic computer skills before the start of the program. The following provides a list of the skills that students are expected to have mastered at a minimum before starting the Introduction to MBA and MHA.

N.B. The University of Ottawa Bookstore offers to students various discounts on computers and softwares.

Word Processing

Most students are familiar with Microsoft Word. At a minimum, students are required to be able to: create and save documents; move and copy text; change the appearance of text; print documents; identify and replace text; check spelling; grammar; locate specific parts of documents; replace words with Thesaurus; set up document pages; insert/edit headers and footers; insert/edit footnotes; format using character styles; format using paragraph styles; use templates and forms to save time.

Students who have not acquired those skills should consider purchasing a training guide for Microsoft Word 2010. There are a number of good guides available from most bookstores.

Spreadsheet

Spreadsheet software is very versatile. It is used in many quantitative courses including Financial Accounting Information Decisions (MBA 5340) and Data Analysis (MBA 5300). We will be using Excel 2010. The following skills are necessary before starting the MBA and MHA programs: entering and editing data; moving and copying cells; writing formulas; building a template; documenting the template; printing; formatting the spreadsheet; charting and graphing.

Students who have not acquired those skills should consider purchasing a training guide for Microsoft Excel 2010. There are a number of good guides available from most bookstores.

Presentation Software

Oral communication and presentation skills are indispensable in business. The following PowerPoint skills are required before entering the program: Creating a presentation; moving around in a presentation; changing the text in outline view; understanding PowerPoint views; changing/adding text; creating a new slide; inserting slides from other presentations; showing slides in slide-show view; saving and printing a presentation; editing in outline view; inserting an outline from another application; formatting text; finding/replacing text and fonts; checking presentation styles; setting slide transitions; animating slide text; animating slide objects.

Students who have not acquired those skills should consider purchasing a training guide for Microsoft PowerPoint 2010. There are a number of good guides available from most bookstores.

Research on the Internet

A large segment of the Canadian population has access to and uses regularly the Internet. We expect this is your case. Familiarity with Internet Browsers and Search Engines is required before entering the program.

Hardware Requirements

To facilitate the works related to the MBA and MHA programs, a laptop computer with wireless capabilities is highly recommended. Wireless access is available in the Desmarais Building. Many computer manufacturers sell laptops which are suitable for studying in the MBA or MHA program. The computer standards recommended by the University of Ottawa can be found at Hardware Requirements.

For a PC, you will need the Windows XP Pro or Vista Business operating systems. Note that the "home" version of these operating systems don't allow you to connect to our network. 

• XP configurations: http://www.ccs.uottawa.ca/connect/wireless/config-wpa-xp.html
• Vista Configurations: http://www.ccs.uottawa.ca/connect/wireless/config-wpa-vista.html
• Mac Leopard: http://www.ccs.uottawa.ca/connect/wireless/config-wpa-mac.html
• Mac Tiger: http://www.ccs.uottawa.ca/connect/wireless/ConfiguringWPAWPA2forMacTiger.html
• Linux: http://www.ccs.uottawa.ca/connect/wireless/config-wpa-linux.html.
• iPhone: http://www.ccs.uottawa.ca/connect/wireless/config-wpa-iphone.html

Financial Matters

Tuition fees
Visit the University of Ottawa website for details on the MBA and MHA tuition fees. Note that the tuition fees for the spring/summer session will only be known next April. They are normally the same as the winter session except for the incidental fees.

Tuition fees for full-time studies (more than 6 credits)
The tuition fees for the full-time students are a one set fee:
Canadian, permanent residents / International students

Tuition fees for part-time studies (6 credits or less)
The tuition fees for the part-time students are calculated per credit:
Canadian, permanent residents / International students
 

Payment of Tuition Fees by an Employer
If your employer is responsible for the payment of your tuition fees, you need to inform InfoService before the deadline of the payment. The bill will then be mailed to your place of employment. 

Late Fees
Registration must be completed by the deadline dates or a charge of $50 will apply. Should the payment also be late an additional charge of $35 plus $10/day will apply for a maximum of $100. Online banking is possible for those who prefer. Payment by cash or checks is handled by InfoService. Please allow between 3 to 10 working days, depending on the method of payment, for confirmation of payment to appear on uoZone.

Delinquent Financial Account
Tuition and incidental fees must be paid prior to the beginning of each session (not block). Any outstanding fees (unpaid tuition fees, late library fees, etc) will prevent registration for the next session, obtaining official documents such as official transcripts, confirmation of registration, etc.

Medical and Dental Fees
All University of Ottawa students must have medical and dental coverage. You may be exempted of these fees if you are already covered by another plan. To be exempted, you will need to contact the Graduate Students' Association (GSAÉD) and provide proof of coverage.

Books and related material
Approximately $2000 should be allocated towards the cost of books and other material during the course of your program. We also strongly recommend the use of a laptop computer.

Scholarships
Students are encouraged to apply for scholarships and awards which are available throughout the year, but mostly in the fall. A list of available scholarships and the eligibility criteria are available on uoZone or the MBA and MHA websites at the following address: Awards and Financial Support. Scholarships are deposited into the student account once the registration is completed. Any problems should be addressed to the Telfer Graduate Office as soon as possible.

Assistantships
The Telfer School of Management has a number of teaching, research, marker and proctor positions for full-time students. Priority is given to full-time graduate students as per the Collective Agreement for T.A. and R.A. See the Telfer web page Positions for Students for further details. 

A word of caution: given the intensive nature of the program, full-time MBA and MHA students should be careful not to take on too much. Deliverables are often due at the same period of time for undergraduate and graduate students. Priority must be given to your studies.

Useful Links

Registration information

• Program Structure – Cohort 2011: MBA/ MHA
• Telfer Timetables
• Important Dates
• Descriptions of the MBAand MHA courses
• Course registration instructions RABASKA- (Online registration tool)

Students’ Resources

• Administrative personnel (Telfer graduate office)
• Bookstore
• Career Centre at the Telfer School of Management for MBA Students
• Common Office
• Graduate Students' Associations des étudiants diplômés (GSAÉD)
• The Graduate Student Resource and Mentoring Centre
• Housing
• InfoService
• International Office
• Parking
• Protection Services
• Student Academic Success Service (SASS)
• Student Identity Card
• University of Ottawa Campus Map
• uoZone (student’s portal) 
• Virtual Campus

Rules and Regulations

• Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies General Regulations
• Regulation on Academic Fraud
• Access Cards to the Desmarais Building (pdf)
• Grading system
• Deferred Exams
• Grade appeal
• MBA Calendar
  • Degree Requirements
  • Program Regulations
  • MBA Management Consulting Project (MCP)
• MHA Calendar
  • Degree Requirements and Minimum Standards
  • Executive Residency