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An intent of many business programs is to enhance the critical thinking capabilities of their students. Since AACSB accreditation requires evidence that business schools fulfill their goals, our students were required to take the California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST). As expected, the CCTST was significantly related to SAT performance and to Business Core GPA. Nonetheless, the especially strong relationships with components thought to emphasize critical thinking, such as performance in the business capstone course, were not observed. SAT scores alone predicted 56% of the variance in CCTST. None of our other predictors added significantly to this total.

Accrediting bodies, including Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business-International (AACSB), require evidence that business schools fulfill their stated missions. This often involves using the Major Field Achievement Test in Business (MFAT-B). In this article, the authors studied MFAT-B performance for its relationship to grade point average (GPA) and to general intellect to determine if the correlations between the variables were significant, given that the test is intended to reflect business knowledge. As expected, business core GPA was a significant predictor of MFAT-B performance. However, contrary to expectations, other GPAs and intellectual aptitude predicted the test scores equally well. Most important, student motivation was also associated with MFAT-B performance, and it enhanced prediction even after the authors accounted for other indexes. (Contains 4 tables.)

Standardized questionnaires often have been used to elicit student opinions on issues regarding accreditation by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business--International (AACSB). These questionnaires require students to rate a wide range of items that may or may not be important to them. In this study, the authors supplemented these questionnaires by asking graduating business students to evaluate their university experiences by describing aspects that were especially successful and factors that needed improvement. This open-format, "critical incidents" approach to outcomes assessment readily generated recollections of incidents useful in guiding program change. The incidents provided additional perspective on data obtained from the College Student Experiences Questionnaire. (Contains 5 tables.)