The Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) Program requires 60 units.  The academic year is focused on Fall and Spring semesters, but a substantive summer program includes elective courses often taught by visiting faculty. The program can be taken on a full-time (completion in 2 semesters) or part-time (completion in 3 or more years) basis.

The first year is comprised of foundational core business courses, which includes the Practice of Management series (A, B, and C).  The Practice of Management is a core requirement and is a sequence of courses that focuses on key principles of Peter Drucker. Other foundational courses include Business Analytics I, Organizational Behavior, Financial Accounting, Economics of Strategy, Marketing Management, Corporate Finance, Operations Management, and Strategy.

During the second year and third year, students align their individual, professional goals through elective courses and project-based courses.

Concentrations.  Upon completion of foundational courses and generally in the second year, MBA students have the option to direct their studies in a specific area of concentration. Up to 12 units of elective courses may count towards a concentration. Available concentrations include the following:

• Family Business
• Finance
• Global Management
• Information Technology Management
• Leadership
• Management & Entrepreneurship in the Creative Economy
• Marketing
• Strategy
• Supply Chain

Curriculum Opportunities

The integrative approach of the MBA curriculum is designed to allow students to progressively build upon and relate acquired skills and experiences as they progress through the program.

A number of courses bring students into direct contact with outside managers and current management challenges.  Internships, field studies, applied projects, and independent study programs allow students to test their skills on real-world problems in established businesses.  Visiting faculty and corporate leaders bring contemporary management issues and developments directly into the classroom.

Global Immersion.  International experience is available through a number of travel courses. Each year the Drucker School of Management offers an intensive seven to ten day travel course to international locations such as China, Costa Rica, Prague, and New Zealand. Domestic travel includes Silicon Valley and New York. The location of the international trips/courses will vary from year to year.

For full-time students who would like to live abroad for an entire semester, exchange semesters are available at the following institutions.

• Hitotsubashi University, Japan
• Rotterdam School of Management, Netherlands
• Universidad de San Andres, Argentina
• St. Gallen, Switzerland
• Waseda University, Japan

Department-Specific Policies

Transfer Credit.  Students are not permitted to transfer units but are able to waive courses.  

Course Waiver.  Students who believe they have sufficient prior academic preparation in the content of finance or math core course may attempt to waive the corresponding core course. Students who have taken a similar graduate course in the past may petition to have a course waived. Course waivers are determined on a course by course basis. For certain courses, the faculty may only allow a waiver via an exam. In some cases, certain certifications (e.g. CPA- Certified Public Accountants) may allow for waiver of some courses. 

Students must fill out a Course Waiver Form, present a syllabus or course description of the course and submit an official transcript with the listed course and grade received. The student should have received a grade of B or better and course should have been taken within five years.  The waiver forms are then reviewed by the Program Coordinator and sent to the relevant core faculty member for final review.  Please note that only the content of the course is waived, not the units.  The units must be made up through elective units.  Contact the Program Coordinator for additional information on course waivers.

Auditing.  Auditing is the process of attending a class without receiving academic credit. It is often referred to as a “listening” grade. The Drucker School does not allow the auditing of Management courses. This is due to the high demand of enrollment in Drucker courses.

Time to Degree.  Students are required to complete the program in six years.  Generally, student enrolled full-time, 12 units or more, may complete all degree requirements within two years.  Students enrolled on a part-time basis, 8 units or less, may complete the degree in 2-1/2 to three years.