Wow, this is an academic I really admire:
The Tel Aviv University business school on Monday told its undergraduate students to get their degrees in other academic disciplines rather than business. . .
Ellis said in his email that the business school recommends undecided undergraduate students choose disciplines like pure sciences, math, economics, psychology, computer science, history, literature, philosophy and architecture.
“Study of academic disciplines prepares students to think scientifically in these fields and form the foundation for advanced studies in graduate degree programs,” he said.
But wait, there is more. Brave, honest professors at Tel Aviv U say openly what so many of us have wanted to say for a long time but never dared to:
In TheMarker magazine article by Tali Heruti-Sover, Tviran was quoted as saying business administration should only be studied at the graduate level and that an undergraduate degree in business is unnecessary. “Business administration is an excellent degree but needs to be studied at the appropriate time,” he said.
This is so true, and finally somebody is admitting it. Undergraduate degrees in business are a joke because they turn universities into vocational training schools. In order to conceal from the students how lacking in substance these programs are, professors and administrators fill their heads with pipe dreams about the untold riches that await them the moment they graduate. My sister (who is a job recruiter) says nobody has more inflated and unreasonable expectations than these kids. In reality, nobody can learn how to run a successful business while sitting behind a desk.
The reasons why universities keep deluding their students on this account are clear:
Ellis said, “Unfortunately for us and many of the world’s leading universities, there are open and hidden pressures to serve as institutions for professional training. The MBA was first founded to train graduates of disciplines who already had practical work experience in their professional or scientific fields for administrative positions.
Later, over the protests of many professors, undergraduate programs were also opened. At first, such programs were established at colleges, and the universities were left with no choice but to open management programs from fear of losing good students who are very interested in this field.”
As a result, universities turn into vocational schools that offer useless training for non-existent vocations.
Here is what Tel Aviv U is doing to preserve its integrity:
He continued, “As opposed to other colleges and universities, our senate approved the study of management only when combined with an academic discipline to retain the scientific character of undergraduate studies. For this reason it also barred combining management study with accounting, which isn’t recognized as an academic discipline.”
This is an example we should all follow.
Clarissa's Blog 
Very interesting. My son is in the process of deciding what he would like to study at university. I shall steer him away from business studies if the discussion comes up. He recently mentioned psychology as a possibility which I see is on the okay list (phew!).
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I was a business major for a semester, and the courses are so useless! I’m so glad I got out early.
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I see that as an academic fantasy. I don’t want even MORE uninterested people in my field.
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“In reality, nobody can learn how to run a successful business while sitting behind a desk.”
And no university program could ever do that.
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I see that as an academic fantasy to increase artcificially enrollment in other fieldw. I don’t want even MORE uninterested people and bad students in my field.
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I see that as an academic fantasy to increase artificially enrollment in other fields. I don’t want even MORE uninterested people and bad students in my field.
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“In TheMarker magazine article by Tali Heruti-Sover, Tviran was quoted as saying business administration should only be studied at the graduate level and that an undergraduate degree in business is unnecessary. “Business administration is an excellent degree but needs to be studied at the appropriate time,” he said.”
It seems appealing, but the final result will be an even lesser level for these graduates programs.
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“My sister (who is a job recruiter) says nobody has more inflated and unreasonable expectations than these kids”
I agree but the problems is their expectations, not jobs. There are more jobs for undergraduates business students than the average of the other fields.
“scientific character of undergraduate studies.”
Many programs in humanities and literature would be “abolished/drastically modified/ reported only to graduate” with that premise. This is not only about business studies.
What is the scientific character in Spanish Studies? Linguistics?
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“Many programs in humanities and literature would be “abolished/drastically modified/ reported only to graduate” with that premise. ”
– You are operating with the North American understanding of science that is extremely limited and is 100% math-based. The rest of the world is more enlightened. In my culture, I refer to what I do with the word “science” and call myself “a scientist.”
“What is the scientific character in Spanish Studies? Linguistics?”
– Everything.
“There are more jobs for undergraduates business students than the average of the other fields.”
– I’m sorry, I prefer to believe the person whose job it is to place people in jobs on a daily basis. I hear that all these folks with degrees in “Marketing” and “Finance” are impossible to place.
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“In my culture, I refer to what I do with the word “science” and call myself “a scientist.”
No problem with that. So it’s their conception of science that is too much restrictive. Accounting and finance (especially finance) can be highly scientific.
“I hear that all these folks with degrees in “Marketing” and “Finance” are impossible to place.”
I agree but related jobs outside the academic domain exist. It’s more (not great) possible to place than in economics and statistics for example.
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I agree but related jobs outside the academic domain exist. It’s more (not great) possible to place them than in economics and statistics for example.
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