Institute Offers Free Business Classes

Talented young Russians without the money to put themselves through school can now get a free post-university business education -- thanks to the American Institute of Business and Economics.


"Most of our students just don't have any money," said Edwin Dolan, president of AIBE. "This program allows many people to study who otherwise wouldn't have the chance."


"It was very interesting and helpful, obviously," said Konstantin Melnikov, senior securities specialist at the brokerage firm Rinako Plus. He completed the program in 1992 when it was still affiliated with the American University in Moscow.


"It was the only place where someone who was bright enough to pass the entrance exams, but didn't have enough money, could study for free," he said.


The school is funded by foundation and corporate sponsors. It costs about $8,000 to finance one student for two years, said vice president Katherine Dolan, who founded of the school with her husband. Students are expected to work about 20 hours per semester as a personal contribution to their education. Edwin Dolan said the institute -- which opened its doors in 1993 -- is not officially accredited by any Western or Russian educational authorities, but grants a Certificate of Business Studies for a two-year program similar to the core courses of a typical American MBA program.


"A number of our students who go on to further degrees receive advanced placement in MBA programs, and may finish in one year instead of two," he said.


Graduates of the school now work in Russian companies and multinational corporations like Pepsi, Intel and Price Waterhouse.


"I came to the school because I thought it seemed interesting," said first-year student Pavel Berzhbitsky, 22. "At first I was going to study English, but decided it was better to study business."


Berzhbitsky, who is simultaneously enrolled in his sixth year at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, plans to work for a Western weapons company when he finishes the course.


The institute holds all classes in the evening, to allow students to work or study elsewhere during the day, said Edwin Dolan. Two-thirds of those entering the 1994-95 academic year were enrolled in other programs. AIBE was conceived of by the Dolans, who had both taught at Moscow's American University since 1991. When the business program there was sliced from two years to one, they opted to start their own project.


"We began an entirely separate institution, but kept the original program," said Katherine Dolan. "We just felt it had to be two years."


The program concentrates on basic macro- and microeconomic concepts in the first year, focusing during the second on business courses such as corporate financing, investments and accounting.


"We give basic economic courses on the principles of a market economy," said Katherine Dolan. "But the emphasis is on the business school."


American professors are shipped over to teach the courses, usually for one or two semesters, and all coursework is conducted in English.


This semester will see the first Russian member of the teaching faculty, due to heavy student demand for instruction on Russian accounting methods, which differ greatly from the Western tradition.


Interest in studying Western-style business practices remains high, though. Last April the school was deluged with some 400 students vying for 60 seats for the 1994-95 academic year. Registration began Monday for this year's test, to be held next month, and school officials expect a similar turnout.