We, the Full-Time MBA (FTMBA) Classes of 2025, 2026 and alumni, are deeply disappointed by Booth’s decision to prioritize new degree programs at the expense of the FTMBA experience. Allowing Masters in Management (MiM) and Masters in Finance (MiF) students to take seats in FTMBA courses has jeopardized our academic opportunities, created unfairness, and eroded trust in Booth’s leadership. 

Unacceptable Issues:

1. Policy Violations
   - iBid states: "Phase 1 is for home-program sections only." MiM and MiF students are not FTMBA students, yet they bid in Phase 1 for FT classes. This is a clear policy breach.  
   - Dean Rajan and Starr Marcello both promised that MiM students would not take seats in our classes. This promise has been broken.  
   - Quantitative Portfolio Management: 19 FT students vs. 46 MiM/MiF students.  
   - EFPE: Went for 8,000 points, with 12 MiM/MiF students taking spots from FT students.  

2. Class Access Disparities
   - Many critical courses offer significantly fewer seats for FT students than for Part-Time (PT)/Weekend students:  
   - FSA: 70 FT seats vs. 130 PT seats—an 86% advantage for PT students, despite FT students being 30% more of the population.  
   - M&A Strategy: One section offered, with 23 FT vs. 47 PT/Weekend students. 
   - Forcing FT students into Saturday or night classes undermines the full-time MBA experience we were promised.

3. Unfair Bidding System
   - MiM and MiF students start with disproportionately more points compared to the FTMBA's 8,000, bid for fewer courses and earn points at the same rate as FT students. Why do non-FT students have a bidding advantage in FT courses?  
   - Bid inflation is preventing FT students from securing foundational courses and making it almost impossible to access electives later. FT students are being locked out of the classes they need to progress.  
   - Joint-degree students, like MBA/MPCS, are penalized as bid points for non-MBA courses have been cut to accommodate new programs. All two-year joint-degree programs should accrue 2,000 bid points per non-MBA course.

4. Harm to FT Students and Booth’s Brand
These decisions have serious consequences:  
   - Missed prerequisites for internships and future coursework.  
   - Inflated bid prices preventing access to foundational and cornerstone classes.  
   - Erosion of the exclusive FT MBA experience Booth markets to applicants.  
   - Diminished classroom learning due to lack of work experience among MiM & MiF students.
   - Alumni trust is at risk. This change will harm Booth’s future FTMBA yield rates. Short-term revenue gains should not come at the cost of Booth’s reputation.

MiM and MiF students should have their own classes, as they do at peer schools like Kellogg, and should not be competing for our seats.

We call for immediate corrective action:

1. Reverse Phase 1 bidding this quarter.
2. Create separate course sections for MiM/MiF students.
3. Increase the number of sections exclusively for FTMBA students.
4. Prevent MiM/MiF students from bidding on FTMBA courses entirely.
   
   

For more background: https://www.chibus.com/perspectives/2024/2/16/why-new-masters-programs-should-concern-all-boothies