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This study demonstrated that women EMBA graduates experience broadened perspectives. They “think more broadly”, “understand more comprehensively” and report the “life changing” outcomes expected by their sponsoring organizations. The focus was on the development of women managers from specialist perspectives to a more integrated generalist perspective. Personal development, and career development literatures provided the theoretical basis for this study. Data were collected using invited essays, and semi‐structured interviews. Evidence of change appeared in the essays and the interviews. The essays indicated graduates experienced increased confidence, cognitive flexibility, and broadened perspectives. The interviews indicated: greater self‐determination, more flexible approaches to roles, greater value of self and time, more process‐oriented, increased understanding of self and others, the meaning of success was competence, and that competence was valued over political gamesmanship.

Demonstrates that EMBA graduates experience broadended perspectives. They “think more broadly”, “understand more comprehensively” and report the “life changing” outcomes expected by their sponsoring organizations. Focuses on the development of managers from specialist perspectives to a more integrated generalist perspective. Personal development and career development literatures provided the theoretical basis for this study. Data were collected using a triangulation design. Methods included survey, invited essays, and interviews. Evidence of change appeared in the surveys, 85 per cent of the comments indicating changes on the personal dimension. Essays indicated that graduates experienced increased confidence, cognitive flexibility, and broadened perspectives. Interviews indicated: greater self‐determination, more flexible approaches to roles, greater value of self and time, more process oriented, increased understanding of self and others, the meaning of success was competence, competence was valued over political gamesmanship, and disappointment with how employers used their talents after graduation.

Explores the developmental role and meaning of executive degree programmes in the lives of working executive participants. Uses Levinson’s concepts of developmental stages, the central components of the life structure, and Mead’s concept that meaning is found in the response of the other, as the theoretical framework. Data were gathered using semi‐structured interviews that explored respondents’ work life, biographical and family influences, and the educational experience. A short questionnaire was used to gather demographic data. The subjects were executive participants in the Executive Program at The Claremont Graduate School. The sample of 12 ranged from 36 to 55 years of age. The respondents were equally distributed by gender. The data supported Mead’s notion that the meaning of the degree programme would be found in the response of significant others. The interview data indicated that respondents enjoyed a high level of support for their educational goals from significant others at home and at work. There was no support for Levinson’s model where the role/meaning of the programme would be different for participants at different stages of adulthood. However, the experience did effect life structures in predictable ways.