Missouri State University and Evangel University have strengthened and expanded their cooperative relationship, making it easier for Evangel students to enroll in MSU’s accelerated master’s programs in business, accounting and cybersecurity.

A new memorandum of understanding (MOU) for each of the three programs was signed in July.

“Because Evangel students have been such a welcome addition to our College of Business graduate programs, we wanted to reduce barriers for their students to enter our MBA, Master of Accountancy and MS in Cybersecurity programs,” said Dr. Elizabeth J. Rozell, associate dean of the College of Business and Kenneth E. Meyer professor of management at Missouri State.

MSU’s accelerated master’s options allow outstanding students to be admitted into graduate programs and to dual-enroll for a limited number of master’s-level course work during their junior or senior years.

Evangel students will be evaluated and admitted using the same criteria and process as MSU students, including not having to take the GMAT exam if they have a 3.6 GPA or better.

“We know from past experience that Evangel students are well-prepared for graduate study in business, so removing the GMAT requirement was an easy decision to make,” said Rozell. “The agreement further strengthens our strategic partnership with Evangel.”

Long-time partnership

Evangel became the first university to sign an agreement like this with MSU in July 2006, in a ceremony held on the EU campus.

“This new agreement speaks well of the quality of our business students,” said Dr. Eveline Lewis, chair of Evangel’s Department of Business.

“The updated MOU provides a fast track option for our high achieving students to pursue their business graduate degrees without taking GMAT. As our department is growing, we hope more students will take advantage of this opportunity.”

Real-world applications

“This partnership is extremely beneficial,” said Terran Tipps, a native of Castle Rock, Colorado. “In my senior year at Evangel, I was able to take nine credits of graduate course work at MSU that counted toward both my undergraduate and graduate degree programs.”

Tipps graduated from Evangel University in May 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration in management. He dual-enrolled at MSU as a senior and will complete his MBA there, with a certificate in management, in May 2020.

“It is incredible to be able to follow up an amazing experience at Evangel with such a great program at MSU,” said Tipps.

Lauren Gore, a 2016 graduate of Ozark High School, is taking a similar route in her business education.

She has completed three years at Evangel, working toward a marketing major, with a nonprofit business and social enterprise minor.

This semester, she will start in the accelerated MBA program at MSU, and like Tipps, her master’s credits from MSU will count toward her bachelor’s degree at Evangel.

“I see the opportunity to do the MBA-A program as a smart decision logistically and financially,” said Gore. “This new season of learning and growth is exciting because I’m sure it will prepare me for what’s ahead.”

Making it work

Evangel University will accept applications to specific accelerated master’s programs from qualified Evangel undergraduate junior and/or senior students.

Evangel students accepted into an accelerated master’s program will be enrolled at Missouri State in an undergraduate exchange student classification. Those students will pay tuition and fees to Evangel according to the Evangel fee structure.

Missouri State’s financial aid office will work with Evangel to provide the necessary documentation of the joint enrollment for students receiving federal financial aid.