Year 1 of the full-time MBA program features a robust cohort experience designed to ensure students learn the inner-workings of group dynamics which are so critical for business leaders today. The fall semester consists of core introductory courses in business law and ethics, financial accounting and reporting, economics, market-driven management, managerial statistics, and management information systems. The spring semester continues with additional core introductory courses in cost analysis and control, financial management, managing organizations, business strategy, and operations management.

As part of the Year 1 curriculum, students are grouped into functional teams. These teams undertake a comprehensive, company-sponsored project – the Application of Core Teaching (ACT) project – through which students generate and develop ideas for improving the organization’s performance. The ACT project provides students with a unique opportunity to synthesize knowledge and skills learned from all first-year courses, as well as past professional experiences, and employ them in a real-world context. The ACT project culminates in a case competition judged by the Year 1 faculty and sponsoring company executives. Previous sponsoring organizations include Aetna, General Electric, Hamilton Sundstrand, ING, Pitney Bowes, Pratt & Whitney, The Hartford, Wiremold and Xerox.

In the spring of Year 1, MBA students develop an Individualized Plan of Study in consultation with an advisory committee comprised of business school faculty, career counselors, and alumni/experts in the field. A student’s individualized plan of study consists of 8 courses (24 credits) and includes a primary area of specialization, 1-2 courses (3-6 credits) of experiential learning, and carefully selected electives. Once approved, the individualized plan becomes the student’s roadmap for Year 2 and ensures a coherent bundle of courses and experiential learning participation that best aligns with the student’s unique career goals and interests. 

Over the summer, students fulfill the MBA degree’s Internship Milestone, a requirement for successfully completing the program. Working with the School’s Business Career Center (BCC) throughout the year, MBA candidates secure a summer internship experience in any number of industries and companies, or even in one of the School’s experiential learning accelerators.

First Semester Courses

• Managerial Statistics

• Financial Accounting and Reporting

• Market-Driven Management

• Management Information Systems

• Introduction to Economics, Financial Markets and Information

• MBA Skills Module I

Second Semester Courses

• Cost Analysis and Control

• Financial Management

• Operations Management

• Managing Organizations

• Strategy, Policy & Planning

• MBA Skills Module II