The School of Business announced a new, “fast-tracked” MBA program, which will begin in Fall 2018.

The program cuts the number of credits a graduate student must obtain from 57 to 39 credits. Dr. William Lamb, dean of the business school, said that this will make the program both cheaper and faster to complete for students wishing to pursue an MBA.

“Everyone will now be able to complete the MBA in 12 months of full-time study,” Lamb said in an email interview. “Alternatively, you could take a job right after graduation and complete your MBA at Iona in less than two years—no matter which undergraduate major you pursued.”

Lamb said that the change in credits makes the program 30 percent cheaper for students.

The program now requires 24 core credits and 15 elective credits, according to Iona’s website. In the old program, a student could waive up to 24 credits if they received good grades in 8 core courses. A waiver will not be part of the revised program.

A student was required to pick a concentration under the previous MBA program. Students can still choose one of seven concentrations, such as Marketing, Accounting, Information Systems or one of multiple management concentrations.

“We created the new program so that it would be more attractive than what many other schools are offering—and more appealing to today’s students,” Lamb said. “Compared to the old program, it offers faster completion time, lower cost, more flexibility, and the same great faculty and courses we’ve always had.”

Another new aspect of the program is that it will no longer require the Graduate Management Admissions Test, which tests a students’ ability to succeed in an MBA program.

According to the GMAT website, an MBA takes on average two years to complete as a full-time student. A part-time student can expect to receive a degree in four to six years. This new program cuts those times on half.

The process of introducing the new program began in the fall semester. The proposal had to be approved by the School of Business and the Committee on Academic Affairs.

Lamb said that there was an emphasis on Iona students coming to the program.

“One of the most exciting things about this new program is that it will put our excellent MBA program in reach for more of Iona’s students,” he said.