[3] He graduated from Burnaby South High School, attended the University of British Columbia and earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Forestry in 1957.

[6][7] McArthur started his academic career as faculty member of the Harvard Business School in 1962.

[9] He had served on numerous boards and as Chair of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, based in Vancouver, British Columbia.

He also served as a key member on the Canadian Advisory Board for the Harvard Business School since it was founded in the early 1990s.

The Fellowship is named in honor of the former dean, who is a British Columbia native, and is funded by the generous support of Canadian alumni.