Rohnert Park, Calif. -- Just a year after announcing its plan to roll out a master's degree program in wine business, Sonoma State University has granted admission to 10 students slated to begin graduate courses this fall. Supporters of the wine business program gathered on campus June 26 to celebrate the contributions that led the department, started in 1996, to this point.

Tom Blackwood, direct marketing manager for Ascentia Wine Estates and a 2004 alumnus of the wine business undergraduate program, said Thursday, "I'm really proud to be a graduate working in the business." When a résumé from a Sonoma State wine business graduate crosses Blackwood's desk, he said the job-seeker moves to the top of the pile, because the curriculum prepared by the department provides such a solid background for success in the wine industry.

Several recent graduates of the school's bachelor's of science program--such as Amanda Ravenscroft, who graduated May 24--already are contemplating enrollment in the Sonoma State wine business master's program. Just prior to graduating, Ravenscroft secured a job at Hartford Family Winery and said she felt immediately comfortable in the position, having gotten a broad industry background at school.

MBA program

The master's of business administration degree program is tailored to accommodate the schedules of college graduates already working full-time in the wine industry, according to Sandra Newton, the program's new coordinator. "We're really excited about the people who are joining," she said, adding that industry professionals had been asking for an MBA program that is specific to the business side of wine--rather than enology or viticulture--for years.

Approval of the MBA program was a long time coming, said Caroline Bailey of E. & J. Gallo, president of the department's Executive Advisory Committee. "We've seen a lot of 'first-evers,'" Bailey said of the department's evolution. From getting the approval of the board, to acceptance by the president of the university, to earning accreditation, the new master's degree represents the start of a new chapter for Sonoma State, which is within driving distance of several AVAs in Napa and Sonoma counties. To that end, students applying to the program are required to have completed "24 units of wine-related coursework or 24 months of wine industry work experience."

Graduate courses will cover subjects such as management, information systems, human resources, finance, sustainability, hospitality, marketing and research--all with a wine industry focus. Highlighting the differences between the Sonoma State program and those that teach the finer points of grapegrowing and winemaking, Sonoma State University president Ruben Armiñana said every great wine must have a great business behind it.

"We are the ones who make the money, who market, who teach about finance," he said. "You can have wonderful vineyards, wonderful wine, but if you can't sell it, soon the birds will be welcome to your grapes."

Raising awareness

Now that the wine business department cleared the hurdle to start its MBA program, Bailey said the next step is building awareness about the department, through newsletters, events and other means. Classes regularly take field trips to different production facilities, and area wineries for years have taken on interns from Sonoma State. Such practical experience is key to the success of program graduates, Bailey said. "Our vision is to be the leading wine business school globally," she told the donors in attendance Thursday. "Thank you for making that vision real.