CURRICULUM AT A GLANCE

Vanderbilt gives you the flexibility to shape your curriculum to meet your needs and career goals. Our Mod System gives you a leg up by exposing you to core and elective courses before interviewing for summer internships. You can further customize your curriculum by adding concentrations, specializations, and emphases, or by taking advantage of our many immersion learning opportunities and independent study courses.

VIEW THE CATALOG

FALL YEAR ONE

Orientation

Mod 1

Course Credits
Managerial Finance 2
Introduction to Financial Accounting 2
Leading Teams and Organizations 2
Managerial Statistics 2
Management Communication 1

Fall Break

Optional Short Courses and Career Opportunities
Course Credits
Executive Coaching 1
Essentials of Project Management 1
Advanced Business Research 1
Corporate Restructuring for Non-Distressed Firms 2

Mod 2

Course Credits
Managerial Economics 2
Marketing Management 2
Operations Management 2
Elective 2

Winter Break

Optional Career treks prior to Mod 3.

SPRING YEAR ONE

Mod 3

Course Credits
Strategic Management 2
Introduction to Managerial Accounting 2
Elective 2
Elective 2

Spring Break (optional courses)

Course Credits
International Seminar 1
Project Pyramid—Global Trips Around the World 1

Mod 4

Course Credits
Business in the World Economy 2
Elective 2
Elective 2
Elective 2

Summer Break

Students are expected to spend their summer in an internship. Last year, 100% of our students had a summer internship and over 50% of our students came back from their internship with a full time job offer.

FALL YEAR TWO

Mod 1

Course Credits
Elective 2
Elective 2
Elective 2

Fall Break

Example Optional Short Courses and Career Opportunities
Course Credits
Executive Coaching 1
Essentials of Project Management 1
Advanced Business Research 1
Corporate Restructuring for Non-Distressed Firms 2

Mod 2

Course Credits
Ethics in Business (Taken in Mod 2, Mod 3 or Mod 4) 2
Elective 2
Elective 2
Elective 2

Winter Break

Career treks prior to Mod 3.

SPRING YEAR TWO

Mod 3

Course Credits
Ethics in Business (Taken in Mod 2, Mod 3 or Mod 4) 2
Elective 2
Elective 2
Elective 2
Elective 2

Spring Break (optional courses)

Course Credits
Global Business Seminar—International Trip (offerings vary by year) 1
Project Pyramid—Global Trips Around the World 1
Social Entrepreneurship Projects—Follow Up From Project Pyramid Trips 1

Mod 4

Course Credits
Ethics in Business (Taken in Mod 2, Mod 3 or Mod 4) 2
Elective 2
Elective 2
Elective 2
Elective 2

Commencement

CURRICULUM STRUCTURE

The Vanderbilt MBA academic calendar is based on a modular system of intensive courses, each seven weeks in length plus an exam week. Two "mods" equal one semester.

Mods give you a fast start by allowing you to take courses in your chosen specialty as early as Mod 2 of your first year. You can complete significant study in your field of interest before taking on a summer internship.

The total number of courses over a two-year period allows you the freedom and flexibility to take electives within your chosen specialty or branch out by taking courses in cross-functional areas of interest within Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management or other schools at Vanderbilt.

As a candidate for a Vanderbilt MBA, you will study on campus for two years for a minimum of 62 credit hours. During your first year, you will receive an intense and immediate immersion in the fundamentals of management through 11 required core courses. The majority of core courses are taken during the first two mods.

During your second year, you will take a required ethics class while customizing your electives to your desired career goals. Each student will complete at least one Concentration, which consists of 12 credit hours in a single discipline beyond the Core. Students are then free to take a wide variety of elective courses that best match their career aspirations. 

Students interested in a "deeper dive" into a discipline may choose to pursue a Specialization of 20 credit hours. Emphases allow students to augment their course of study with 8 credit hours in one of three areas.

*Degree requirements and course information are subject to change; not all courses are offered every year. View the most recent Course Catalog containing academic policies, degree requirements and individual course descriptions for each of our degree programs.

CUSTOMIZE YOUR CURRICULUM

You’ll choose at least one concentration as your focus of study and may further customize your program by adding additional concentrations, specializations, or emphases. 

Vanderbilt offers STEM-designated MBA concentrations, allowing international students to extend their training in the US by 24 months

Concentrations

A concentration represents a minimum of 12 credit hours beyond the Core in a single discipline that is usually the foundation for your chosen career. Click on a concentration below to view course requirements or see more details about all MBA concentrations here.

*These concentrations are STEM-designated, allowing international students the eligibility to prolong their post-completion Optional Practical Training (OPT) in the U.S. by 24 months, for a total of 36 months after graduation.

Specializations

Specializations are focused course tracks for students desiring an in-depth study of the functional area for their chosen career. Specializations require 20 credit hours of coursework beyond the Core. The 20-credit-hour requirement represents the 12 credit hours earned in the related concentration plus an additional eight hours. Click on a specialization below to view course requirements or see more details about all MBA specializations here.

Emphases

An emphasis allows you to delve deeper into a particular industry or area of interest with eight hours of courses. Click on an emphasis below to view course requirements or see more details about all MBA emphases here.

Dual Degrees

There is a significant benefit of time savings in pursuing an MBA as a joint degree. The traditional MBA program requires 62 hours (four full semesters) of course work. However, when pursued as part of a joint degree, the requirement is reduced to 50 credit hours (three semesters), since we will accept 12 hours from the partner school as electives. Vanderbilt MBA offers the following dual degrees in conjunction with other professional and graduate schools at Vanderbilt: MBA/MD, MBA/JD. MBA/MALAS, MBA/MDiv, MBA/MTS, MBA/MPP.

Vanderbilt also has dual degree partnerships with Meharry Medical College. For more information on Dual Degree programs, click here.

CONNECT WITH A STUDENT IN YOUR AREA OF INTEREST

CONNECT WITH A CURRENT STUDENT

LEARN THROUGH IMMERSION

Get a glimpse of immersion learning
at Vanderbilt.

At Vanderbilt, learning is an active experience. You will have access to a wide array of hands-on activities, including industry-focused immersion experiences, conferences, career treks, case competitions, entrepreneurial opportunities, and more.

INDEPENDENT STUDY

Hear about Joshua Eniola's (MBA'21) independent study course.

At Vanderbilt Business, you can work with your professors to create independent study courses designed to meet your unique academic and professional goals.

INTERNATIONAL STUDY

Vanderbilt students can choose from a wide range of internationally focused electives. In addition, students have the opportunity to participate in international seminar and research trips or may choose to study overseas through exchange programs with schools throughout the world.

FACULTY PROFILES

Yasin Alan
Yasin Alan
Associate Professor of Operations Management
Email
615-343-2408
Kelly Goldsmith
Kelly Goldsmith
E. Bronson Ingram Chair, Professor of Marketing
Email
Tim Vogus
Tim Vogus
Brownlee O. Currey, Jr., Professor of Management
Email
615-343-8094
MEET MORE FACULTY

By the Numbers

  • 2 Our rank on the Princeton Review Best Business Schools 2023 list for Best Professors, based on student and alumni surveys
  • 7:1 The ratio of Vanderbilt Business students to faculty.
  • zero The cost to enroll in Vanderbilt courses outside of the business school.
  • 4 The number of research centers housed within the Owen Graduate School of Management.
See More Numbers Here

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF
AN MBA STUDENT

See what it’s like to be a student in the Vanderbilt MBA program.

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