EMBAC Membership

Hello Everyone,

I would appreciate your insight regarding the food service provided for your Executive MBA students.

• Do you utilize your university's internal catering services, or do you work with external vendors?
• What lunch and snack options tend to receive the best feedback from your EMBA students?
• Have you identified any food service approaches or menu options that work particularly well for executive-level students?

We appreciate any insights or best practices you would be willing to share.
Thank you in advance.

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Mireya Cortes
Manager, Student Services
University of Central Florida
Orlando FL United States
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Hello Mireya,

For our Executive MBA participants, we provide breakfast and lunch with coffee breaks. These are provided by a catering company. Noting that most our participants join from other countries, they tend to appreciate the food diversity and provision as they get to explore our local cuisine, adding to their overall experience. The menu is different during each residency and is chosen to tailor for most tastes, with vegetarian meals included.

I hope this helps.

Myriam Sultan El Ajami
EMBA Academic Affairs Manager
American University of Beirut
Beirut Lebanon

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Myriam Sultan El Ajami
EMBA Academic Affairs Manager
American University of Beirut
Beirut Lebanon
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Hi Mireya,

We have an internal catering coordinator that works with external vendors to provide catering for our students, along the following lines:

• Hot buffet dinner on a Friday evening - Generally very "meat, carb, and 2 veg" style but we also have theme evenings, so sometimes it is French or Italian or Mexican etc, so that students don't get too bored with what we provide
• Breakfast - European-style with croissants, yoghurt, and cereal
• Lunch - generally a warm buffet but a lot lighter than the diner, with more salads and bread
• Snacks - coffee with either fruit options, slices of cake, or chocolates.  

While we do try to cater for as many dietary requirements as possible, what we do find with our students is that the vegetarian / vegan options are not the most popular.  What is always appreciated though, is the cake and chocolates - students love sugar!

Hope this helps!

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Sonja van Staveren
EMBA Content Planner
RSM Erasmus University
Rotterdam Netherlands
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Hi Mireya, 

Catering is one issue that never leaves us. We have to use the internal university catering service, although they offer an executive menu which is mostly salad (they cannot do hot food) for lunch and pastries for breakfast. We also offer tea and coffee breaks. 

In general the food is good, but we see so many complaints from our EMBA students as the offering can get quite repetitive. 

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Iona Taylor
Programme Manager, Executive Degrees
King's College London
United Kingdom
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Hi Mireya,

We do a mix of outside vendors and the preferred university food service. We meet all day Friday and Saturday, so we provide a hot breakfast and lunch both days.
A plus service that we offer is that we have a contract with an outside vendor to attend to the snack/coffee/cold beverage table in the classrooms. One person attends and maintains these in the two classrooms, one for each cohort. That vendor is very attentive to what snacks and drinks each cohort likes best and provides us with feedback for what needs to be replenished or purchased. We also coordinate with that vendor for more grab-n-go items when a cohort has a field trip visit at a business or facility.

For the meals, we mix it up with the food options to avoid monotony. When a particular vendor or food option falls flat, we note it and don't revisit it. When one hits big, we also note that and make sure to offer it again.  We do big party-like meals for Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and encourage students to have family visit and be included for those.

Paul Laux

Executive MBA Admin

Executive MBA Program

TCU Neeley School of Business

(O) 817-257-7211

p.laux@tcu.edu

TCU Box 298530

Fort Worth, Texas 76129

Executive MBA Program - Neeley School of Business (tcu.edu)

 Past, Present, and Future: Watch Our Journey

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Paul Laux
Texas Christian University
TX United States
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Mireya,

We provide breakfast and lunch for our Executive MBA students, who are on campus Fridays and Saturdays. We also include coffee breaks and set up a snack table inside the classroom throughout the day.

For catering, we are required to use our university's internal catering service. They offer a wide range of options, including hot buffet selections, salad bars, and sandwiches, which helps provide variety for the students over the course of the program. Similar to TCU, we are sure to note which meals the students like and dislike.

One approach that has worked well for us is regularly gathering student feedback. We surveyed our students about their snack preferences, which helped us tailor offerings to their tastes and dietary needs. Having a mix of healthy snacks, candy, and grab-and-go items available throughout the day has been appreciated by our executive-level students.

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Ronald Magnuson
Executive Director of Graduate & Executive Programs
College of Charleston
Charleston SC United States
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Hi Mireya,

I order all our catering for Friday/Saturday classes and use a variety of external caterers in our local community. In general, our students really appreciate protein heavy and healthy options.

• Breakfast: We always provide a protein option with a pastry and a fruit bowl (protein examples - egg cups/bakes, Greek yogurt bar, breakfast sandwiches).
• Lunch: Build your own Mediterranean bowls, taco/burrito bowls, and sandwich/wrap trays and soup/salad go over really well for us. 
• Snacks: Popcorn, nuts (if no allergies), fruit strips, protein bars, beef jerky packs are what I re-stock the most.
• Drinks: We provide a fully-stocked mini-fridge in the classroom. We offer a variety of Pepsi/Coke products and sparkling flavored water. I also will get requests for energy drinks, but I stock those upon request. 

Before a new cohort starts, I send out a survey asking for their preferences. I usually find that they hold back on telling me what they like until they get to campus and realize it's okay to ask for specific items. I think they don't want to come off as asking too much. Maybe an Iowa nice thing :) 

After the first semester, I send another survey asking for their feedback on the food and beverages. From there, I know which items they liked best and what to avoid in future semesters. In the first semester though, I try to provide a very wide variety so they know what all the options are and can see what they like best. 

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Taylor Stoeckler
Executive MBA Coordinator
Iowa State University - Ivy College of Business
Ames IA United States
------------------------------

Hello Mireya,

At Georgia Tech, we use external vendors that are approved by the university. For our class weekend break service, we typically use the same external vendor, which has worked well for consistency and flexibility. They have been willing to work with us on both price and quantity, which allows us to adjust our orders dynamically from month to month based on student needs, attendance, and what seems to be working well.

For snacks and break service, we focus on offering a wide range of options that accommodate different dietary needs and preferences. We do not formally survey students on the specific types of snacks they prefer, but we do collect dietary restriction information and use that to guide our planning. Students appreciate being able to find something they can eat without feeling left out, and our vendor does a good job of helping us build out varied menus from class weekend to class weekend.

For breakfast, lunch, and dinner, our students often dine at the Georgia Tech Hotel, located across the street from our program space, which provides buffet-style meals. While the hotel offers a variety of options, the menu tends to be fairly similar week to week, and students have commented that the quality can be inconsistent. Because of that, students especially appreciate the occasions when we cater lunch separately, as it provides something different from the hotel buffet. We typically do this when there is a speaker, celebration, or other special event during the lunch break. Some options that have worked well include Mexican, BBQ, boxed lunches, wraps, sandwiches, and similar options.

We have also found that beverage service is an important consideration. We currently have a large fully stocked cooler (many Coke products and bottled water) and an industrial coffee machine that uses coffee concentrate, but the quality of the coffee is mediocre and students rarely use it. As we prepare to move into a new building this year, I am considering purchasing an instant espresso machine or another higher-quality coffee solution that students would be more likely to use.

Overall, the approaches that have worked best for us are providing variety, ensuring dietary needs are met, partnering with a flexible vendor who can adjust pricing, quantities, and menus as needed, and listening to informal student feedback so we can continue improving future class weekends. And, of course, while we love our students and take their feedback seriously, we also go into every class weekend knowing that we cannot please everyone. At this point, we consider at least a few food-related comments part of the EMBA experience and that's okay!

We appreciate the conversation. Let us know if we can help with anything else.

Peace,

~Trey

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Trey Sullivan
Assistant Dean, Executive MBA
Georgia Institute of Technology
United States
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Original Message:
Sent: 06/02/26 12:07 PM
From: Taylor Stoeckler
Subject: Food Service for Executive MBA Students

Hi Mireya,

I order all our catering for Friday/Saturday classes and use a variety of external caterers in our local community. In general, our students really appreciate protein heavy and healthy options.

• Breakfast: We always provide a protein option with a pastry and a fruit bowl (protein examples - egg cups/bakes, Greek yogurt bar, breakfast sandwiches).
• Lunch: Build your own Mediterranean bowls, taco/burrito bowls, and sandwich/wrap trays and soup/salad go over really well for us. 
• Snacks: Popcorn, nuts (if no allergies), fruit strips, protein bars, beef jerky packs are what I re-stock the most.
• Drinks: We provide a fully-stocked mini-fridge in the classroom. We offer a variety of Pepsi/Coke products and sparkling flavored water. I also will get requests for energy drinks, but I stock those upon request. 

Before a new cohort starts, I send out a survey asking for their preferences. I usually find that they hold back on telling me what they like until they get to campus and realize it's okay to ask for specific items. I think they don't want to come off as asking too much. Maybe an Iowa nice thing :) 

After the first semester, I send another survey asking for their feedback on the food and beverages. From there, I know which items they liked best and what to avoid in future semesters. In the first semester though, I try to provide a very wide variety so they know what all the options are and can see what they like best. 

------------------------------
Taylor Stoeckler
Executive MBA Coordinator
Iowa State University - Ivy College of Business
Ames IA United States
------------------------------

Hello,

Thank you all for sharing such helpful insights on how you manage food arrangements for Executive MBA students at your institutions. I truly appreciate the time and thoughtful feedback you provided.

It is always valuable to learn from peers across the EMBAC community-clearly, we are all working toward the same goal of supporting our students' experience.

Go Knights! Charge On!
Mireya - UCF

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Mireya Cortes
Manager, Student Services
University of Central Florida
Orlando FL United States
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 06/03/26 04:34 AM
From: Trey Sullivan
Subject: Food Service for Executive MBA Students

Hello Mireya,

At Georgia Tech, we use external vendors that are approved by the university. For our class weekend break service, we typically use the same external vendor, which has worked well for consistency and flexibility. They have been willing to work with us on both price and quantity, which allows us to adjust our orders dynamically from month to month based on student needs, attendance, and what seems to be working well.

For snacks and break service, we focus on offering a wide range of options that accommodate different dietary needs and preferences. We do not formally survey students on the specific types of snacks they prefer, but we do collect dietary restriction information and use that to guide our planning. Students appreciate being able to find something they can eat without feeling left out, and our vendor does a good job of helping us build out varied menus from class weekend to class weekend.

For breakfast, lunch, and dinner, our students often dine at the Georgia Tech Hotel, located across the street from our program space, which provides buffet-style meals. While the hotel offers a variety of options, the menu tends to be fairly similar week to week, and students have commented that the quality can be inconsistent. Because of that, students especially appreciate the occasions when we cater lunch separately, as it provides something different from the hotel buffet. We typically do this when there is a speaker, celebration, or other special event during the lunch break. Some options that have worked well include Mexican, BBQ, boxed lunches, wraps, sandwiches, and similar options.

We have also found that beverage service is an important consideration. We currently have a large fully stocked cooler (many Coke products and bottled water) and an industrial coffee machine that uses coffee concentrate, but the quality of the coffee is mediocre and students rarely use it. As we prepare to move into a new building this year, I am considering purchasing an instant espresso machine or another higher-quality coffee solution that students would be more likely to use.

Overall, the approaches that have worked best for us are providing variety, ensuring dietary needs are met, partnering with a flexible vendor who can adjust pricing, quantities, and menus as needed, and listening to informal student feedback so we can continue improving future class weekends. And, of course, while we love our students and take their feedback seriously, we also go into every class weekend knowing that we cannot please everyone. At this point, we consider at least a few food-related comments part of the EMBA experience and that's okay!

We appreciate the conversation. Let us know if we can help with anything else.

Peace,

~Trey

------------------------------
Trey Sullivan
Assistant Dean, Executive MBA
Georgia Institute of Technology
United States
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 06/02/26 12:07 PM
From: Taylor Stoeckler
Subject: Food Service for Executive MBA Students

Hi Mireya,

I order all our catering for Friday/Saturday classes and use a variety of external caterers in our local community. In general, our students really appreciate protein heavy and healthy options.

• Breakfast: We always provide a protein option with a pastry and a fruit bowl (protein examples - egg cups/bakes, Greek yogurt bar, breakfast sandwiches).
• Lunch: Build your own Mediterranean bowls, taco/burrito bowls, and sandwich/wrap trays and soup/salad go over really well for us. 
• Snacks: Popcorn, nuts (if no allergies), fruit strips, protein bars, beef jerky packs are what I re-stock the most.
• Drinks: We provide a fully-stocked mini-fridge in the classroom. We offer a variety of Pepsi/Coke products and sparkling flavored water. I also will get requests for energy drinks, but I stock those upon request. 

Before a new cohort starts, I send out a survey asking for their preferences. I usually find that they hold back on telling me what they like until they get to campus and realize it's okay to ask for specific items. I think they don't want to come off as asking too much. Maybe an Iowa nice thing :) 

After the first semester, I send another survey asking for their feedback on the food and beverages. From there, I know which items they liked best and what to avoid in future semesters. In the first semester though, I try to provide a very wide variety so they know what all the options are and can see what they like best. 

------------------------------
Taylor Stoeckler
Executive MBA Coordinator
Iowa State University - Ivy College of Business
Ames IA United States
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