Harvard Business School (HBS) has announced that its 116-year-old MBA Program, has been reclassified to qualify as a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degree, effective for the class of 2025 and onward.
This change is in recognition of the addition of a course on data science and artificial intelligence for leaders in the first year Required Curriculum (RC) and the recent significant growth of management science content in the second year Elective Curriculum (EC).
“This change will enable all students, particularly our international students, to pursue the opportunities a STEM-eligible degree affords,” said Jana Pompadur Kierstead, executive director, MBA and Doctoral Programs and External Relations.
The HBS MBA Program continues to emphasise the foundational, general management education with which it has trained leaders for over a century with the now integral tools and skills of management science.
Today, many roles in finance, strategy, innovation, and operations rely heavily on data science for important managerial decisions, and HBS faculty members have responded by developing courses and content focused on quantitative and analytical skills that now permeate both the required and elective curricula.
In the EC, class selections have increasingly focused on courses offering management science content, with students achieving, on average, more than half of their required credits from management science track (MST) qualifying courses. Some examples of recent and popular elective courses featuring management science content include Generative AI for Business Leaders, Data Visualization for Analysis, and Communication and Supply Chain Analytics.
In response, the HBS MBA Program recently requested that the Harvard University Standing Committee on Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) Codes reclassify the School’s entire MBA degree to the STEM Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods CIP Code.
As a result, HBS’s international students may now reside in the United States longer to pursue additional post-graduate opportunities through Optional Practical Training (OPT).
“What the world’s businesses need from their leaders evolves,” said Matt Weinzierl, Joseph and Jacqueline Elbling Professor of Business Administration and senior associate dean and chair of the MBA Program.
“Increasingly, those leaders are being asked to utilise management science when making tough decisions. Our faculty recognized this evolution and have created and integrated into their teaching cutting-edge, compelling content to ensure that our students are equipped to lead with these new tools. The formal STEM designation is in acknowledgement of this fundamental shift and opens up new avenues for our graduates.”
How much does a Harvard MBA Cost?
The cost of tuition for Harvard’s MBA program in the 2024-25 academic year is $US76,410, totaling $US152,820 (~$AUD235,000)over two years. The total cost of attendance, including health insurance, room and board and nine months of living expenses, for the Harvard MBA program is $USD118,854 per year or $USD237,708 (~$AUD353,000) over two years) for a single student.
MBA Program: Cost of Attendance (in $US) for the 2024-2025 Academic Year
| SINGLE | MARRIED | MARRIED WITH ONE CHILD |
MARRIED WITH TWO CHILDREN |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TUITION | $76,410 | $76,410 | $76,410 | $76,410 |
| HUHS STUDENT HEALTH FEE (SHF) | $1,592 | $1,592 | $1,592 | $1,592 |
| STUDENT HEALTH INSURANCE PLAN (SHIP) | $4,202 | $4,202 | $4,202 | $4,202 |
| HUSHP FOR STUDENT SPOUSES/DEPENDENTS | $0 | $9,112 | $13,828 | $16,198 |
| COURSE & PROGRAM MATERIALS FEE | $2,650 | $2,650 | $2,650 | $2,650 |
| HOUSING (9 MONTHS) | $17,280* ($1,920/mo) |
$26,820** ($2,980/mo) |
$34,560*** ($3,840/mo) |
$34,560*** ($3,840/mo) |
| FOOD (9 MONTHS) | $6,120 ($680/mo) |
$8,190 ($910/mo) |
$10,296 ($1,114/mo) |
$11,430 ($1,270/mo) |
| TRANSPORTATION (9 MONTHS) | $2,280 ($253/mo) |
$3,924 ($436/mo) |
$4,029 ($448/mo) |
$4,029 ($448/mo) |
| OTHER LIVING EXPENSES (9 MONTHS) | $8,320 ($924/mo) |
$10,736 ($1,193/mo) |
$13,351 ($1,483/mo) |
$15,071 ($1,675/mo) |
| TOTAL | $118,854 | $143,636 | $160,918 | $166,142 |
| COMPUTER (VARIABLE; NOT INCLUDED IN ABOVE BUDGETS) | $1,500 | $1,500 | $1,500 | $1,500 |
SOURCE: https://www.hbs.edu/mba/financial-aid/tuition-assistance/Pages/cost-of-attendance.aspx
*based on average area market rate for 2 bedroom apartment w/roommate
**based on average area market rate for 1 bedroom apartment
***based on average area market rate for 2 bedroom apartment
