Alex Lawrence, UCLA Anderson’s assistant dean of admissions, recognizes that for some, discussing the recruitment of African-American students and other traditionally underrepresented minorities just feels awkward, that the sensitivity surrounding the topic causes those unfamiliar with the issues to walk around the subject on verbal eggshells. But Lawrence, whose role has him living with the relevant issues every day, takes the topic on headfirst.
“This is an issue facing all of the best programs,” says Lawrence. “All of the admissions directors talk about it; it’s reality.” Lawrence says the relatively low admission numbers of black students in the Anderson Full-Time program is a problem that begins early on and that there are a limited number candidates that qualify for a school like UCLA Anderson. “The pipeline is limited,” Lawrence says, adding that all of the Top 25 schools are recruiting from the same limited pool of African American candidates who qualify for top programs. “The questions becomes: Do you lower your (admission) standards? Or should you be proactive to improve the number of students who meet your standards?”
UCLA Anderson takes the latter approach and its efforts include the Riordan Programs, which Lawrence led until he transferred to admissions. The Riordan Scholars Program focuses on high school students with an interest in college and business. The Riordan MBA Fellows Program targets recent college graduates who are considering graduate education in business management. Its core purpose is to educate, prepare and motivate these individuals to competitively apply and succeed in a top MBA program. The Riordan College to Career Program targets first-generation college students who are interested in preparing for internships and careers in management post-college.
The Riordan Programs, founded by former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan nearly three decades ago, was named the 2013 UCLA Community Program of the Year Landmark Award recipient. The Landmark Award recognizes programs that have, in part, fostered collaborations between UCLA and the greater Los Angeles community. The Programs positive impact over the years has been immeasurable. As example, Lawrence points out that the Full-Time Class of 2015 has the largest number of Riordan alumni in history.
Since 2010, UCLA Anderson has had a relationship with The Consortium for Graduate Study in Management, a national nonprofit organization focused on diversity and inclusion in American business. This growing relationship has resulted in a record number of Consortium recruits entering the UCLA Anderson MBA program. UCLA Anderson cultivates similar relationships with the Forte Foundation and the National Society of Hispanic MBAs that focus on recruiting women and Hispanic students, respectively.
“It’s important for us to leverage these relationships. Five to 10 years down the road, the discussion will change, because there won’t be as few candidates as there are today,” Lawrence says.
Due to the passage of Proposition 209 by California voters, UCLA Anderson may not consider race for admission purposes. But Lawrence and the admissions team do make it clear to minority candidates that Anderson is a diverse and welcoming community, where anyone will feel welcome and be given the opportunity to succeed in every way.
“We tell candidates to look at what Anderson is, a diverse community and a great place to receive an education, to further a career or start a business,” Lawrence says. “Los Angeles is also a big selling point. It’s a diverse city with major companies like Google, Starbucks and Apple that recruit our graduates. As a school, we can deliver for those seeking diversity.”
While maintaining relations with large national organizations, Lawrence also focuses on the personal touch to improve the diversity of classes. It’s not unusual for him to have current students or recent alumni contact an admitted student still trying to decide whether or not to commit to Anderson to discuss the value of the program. Lawrence also hosts luncheons with diversity groups and organizations, not only to preach the UCLA Anderson gospel, but also to find out how the program might meet the needs of such students.
One thing Lawrence learned from the luncheons is just how much education needs to be done to cultivate MBA ambitions in some communities.
“I realized that the very notion of a getting an MBA was not top of mind for many (African-American) undergraduate students,” Lawrence says. “Those whose parents were encouraging them to go to college talked about becoming a doctor, a lawyer or a teacher. They didn’t necessarily know people in business, so business school was not part of their dinner table conversation. They were not getting that messaging.
“We’re trying to change that,” Lawrence says. “We want these potential candidates to feel welcome. We try to give them a clear vision about what their experience could be, not only at Anderson, but beyond Anderson as well. It’s both a short-term and long-term approach.”
(Alumni who would like to get involved in recruitment should get in touch with Alex at [email protected] or call him at (310) 825-6944.)
Excellent article! Kudos on the diversity efforts.
Posted by: Angelica S. Gutierrez, Ph.D. | 02/26/2014 at 01:36 PM