Resident Sessions

Students attend three resident sessions over a 25-month period at Fairfield University. Each involves six business days and one weekend and incorporates a variety of classes, workshops and small group activities. The curriculum concentrates on the main areas critical to today’s bank executive:

• Influencing Public Policy and Government Relations
• Financial Services, including Commercial Banking coverage
• Finance
• Money & Capital Markets
• Strategic Planning
• Leadership
• Marketing

Student Assignments

Between resident sessions, students must complete a series of assignments directly related to the core areas. They participate in online and telephone briefings and meetings to reinforce material covered in their projects. During each session, students work together in study groups on class assignments. Formal and informal presentations and research papers will be the methods of delivery for both resident and inter-resident projects.

These assignments serve three purposes:

1. They allow practical application of theory and techniques taught in the lectures and small group sessions.
2. They utilize both individual and team format. More and more, teams are used by today’s companies to create and execute projects. The successful executive must understand how to maximize team membership and leadership to produce results that benefit the organization.
3. They allow the student to utilize his or her sponsoring institution as the subject of many of the projects. This encourages the banker to open new channels of communication within the bank and to develop a deeper appreciation of the challenges of senior management.

Level of Instruction

Classes in the National School of Banking are conducted at the graduate level. It is expected that the applicants, through academic standing or through professional experience, be prepared to participate in these courses. Preparation can include graduation from a state banking school or AIB diploma program, a Baccalaureate or Master’s degree, or extensive experience in the financial services industry.

Graduation

Diplomas are awarded by the National School of Banking in cooperation with Fairfield University at commencement exercises held on the last day of the third session. All students who have attended the three resident sessions and successfully completed all assignments will graduate from the National School. To qualify for graduation with honors, a student must achieve a grade point average of at least a 3.5 out of a possible 4.0, without probation.

The Chairman’s Award

The highest honor bestowed by the National School of Banking is the Chairman’s Award. This is presented to the graduate determined by the National School’s administration to best display the characteristics of the class: leadership and academic excellence.

Thomas A. McGrath Faculty Award

Established in 1991, this award is presented when appropriate to a faculty member who exemplifies qualities of outstanding dedication and service to the National School and its students. Father McGrath served as a faculty member of the school for 25 years and was an integral part of the shaping of the curriculum and the spirit of the National School of Banking.

Graduate/Undergraduate Credit Recommendations

The American Council on Education (ACE), the nation’s major coordinating body for post-secondary education, has recommended that 21 graduate credits or upper-division undergraduate credits be granted for completing the National School. Although this does not mean that credits will be granted automatically, ACE’s evaluations are held in high esteem and have been accepted at more than 1,400 colleges and universities throughout the nation.

Continuing Education Units 

A total of 190 CPE credits are available in the field of Specialized Knowledge and Applications and in the field of Management. Registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be addressed to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors, 150 Fourth Avenue North, Nashville, TN, 37219-2417. Web site: www.nasba.org