PCBS gives students an advantage in the financial services industry and empowers them to meet today’s challenges, while looking toward the future.

DIVERSITY

PCBS celebrates a diverse student body. Students represent both large banks (54%) and community banks (42%), as well as regulatory organizations (4%), and are also diverse in terms of race, ethnicity, and educational background. Students appreciate the diversity and feel that the mix of perspectives enriches their experience.

COMPREHENSIVE

PCBS is the most rigorous of all the graduate banking schools across the country, offering a three-year program with an annual, two-week resident session. All students must participate in each of the three years, as our coordinated curriculum builds upon itself and is specific to the financial services industry. Not only does PCBS’ three-year program foster great learning, but it also builds deep and cohesive relationships.

CONSISTENCY

Students at PCBS are in classes that are taught from beginning to end (one or two weeks, depending on the class) by the same instructor. This approach greatly enhances learning and retention of concepts.

RIGOROUS & RELEVANT

PCBS students complete inter-session assignments in five core classes and also write an originally researched thesis. We are proud of the rigor of the PCBS program and view the inter-session work as essential and necessary for mastering the core concepts required of today’s banking leaders.

REAL-WORLD EXPERIENCE

PCBS’s capstone program in the third year, Bank Management Simulation, brings the students’ entire PCBS experience into focus. The PCBS Leadership Program is strategically designed as a coordinated curriculum, with the first two years taught by Michael Johnson, an internationally known expert on leadership. Faculty members teaching this simulation course work together to provide an integrated educational experience.

PCBS graduates receive a distinguished Executive Leadership Certificate from the prestigious Foster School of Business at the University of Washington, as well as credits towards an MBA.

NETWORKING & LIFELONG FRIENDSHIPS

PCBS facilitates networking opportunities for students by having them live in dorms on campus, which are brand new with ensuite bathrooms. Alumni reflect that the dorm experience, though a change from their day-to-day lives, fostered deep bonds and lifelong friendships.