The past few years have seen a surge in business schools that run MBA programs with a STEM designation. MBAs, that is, that are now classified as a science, technology, engineering or mathematics degree. The new STEM MBA designation is promising students a multitude of new opportunities – but what is it, really? Read on to find out what a STEM MBA is, which schools are running is and what this all might mean for you.
What Is a STEM MBA?
The structure of a STEM MBA is relatively simple. The foundational knowledge and core concepts of an MBA still remain, but STEM electives, courses and content have been added. This means that students completing a STEM designated MBA will graduate with expertise in business management and leadership, as well as STEM subjects, such as data analytics, technology management and statistics.
For some business schools, such as Harvard Business School, the entire MBA is now STEM designated and students of all majors have the opportunity to pursue a STEM MBA. For others, only students in specific concentrations and tracks will receive an MBA with a STEM designation.
See the chart below for which business schools have an MBA degree or major/specialization with a STEM designation (Note: The chart covers MBA programs; schools may offer other degrees, e.g. MS in Finance, that are STEM eligible). The majors are part of the full-time MBA programs.
| School | MBA STEM Designation? | MBA Degree or Major? | Which Degree(s)? | Which Major(s)? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona State / W.P. Carey | Yes | Degree | Full-time MBA | |
| Babson / Olin | Yes | Majors | Business Analytics; Business Analytics and Machine Learning; Quantitative Finance | |
| Berkeley Haas | Yes | Degree | All – Full-time, Evening & Weekend, Executive | |
| Boston College / Carroll | No | |||
| Brigham Young Marriott | Yes | Major | STEM Management Specialisation | |
| U. Chicago Booth | Yes | Major | Business Analytics and Analytic Finance | |
| Carnegie Mellon / Tepper | Yes | Degree | All – Full-time, Online Hybrid, Accelerated | |
| Columbia Business School | Yes | Degrees | Full-time MBA & Executive MBA | |
| Cornell Johnson | Yes | Degrees | One- and Two-Year Management Science MBAs, Johnson Cornell Tech MBA | |
| Dartmouth Tuck | Yes | Tracks | Management Science & Quantitative Analysis Track | |
| Duke Fuqua | Yes | Degree | Full-time MBA | |
| Emory Goizueta | Yes | Degrees | All – Two-Year, One-Year, Executive, Evening | |
| Florida Warrington | No | |||
| Georgetown / McDonough | Yes | Degree | Full-time MBA | |
| Harvard Business School | Yes | Degree | Full-time MBA | |
| Georgia / Terry | Yes | Degree | Georgia Pathway MBA | |
| Georgia Tech / Scheller | Yes | Degree | Full-time MBA | |
| Indiana / Kelley | Yes | Majors | Full-time MBA | Accounting, Business Analytics, Finance, Marketing, and Supply Chain & Operations |
| Johns Hopkins Carey | Yes | Degree | Full-time MBA | |
| Maryland / Smith | Yes | Degree | Full-time MBA | |
| Michigan Ross | Yes | Tracks | Finance or Operations & Analytics | |
| MSU Broad | Yes | Degree | STEM MBA | |
| Minnesota Carlson | Yes | Degree | Management Science MBA | |
| MIT Sloan | No | Other Degree | Master of Business Analytics | |
| Northwestern Kellogg | Yes | Major | Management Science | |
| Notre Dame Mendoza | Yes | Degree | MBA/MS in Business Analytics Dual Degree | |
| NYU Stern | Yes | Degree | Technology and Entrepreneurship Full-Time MBA | |
| The Ohio State / Fisher | Yes | Specialization | STEM Specialization | |
| Rice Business | Yes | Degrees | All – Full-time, Professional, Executive, Hybrid, Online | |
| Rochester Simon | Yes | Specializations | Optional add-on for all 10 specializations | |
| SMU Cox | No | |||
| Stanford GSB | Yes | Degrees | MBA and MSx | |
| UCI Merage | Yes | Degree | Full-time MBA | |
| UCLA Anderson | Yes | Degrees | Full-Time, FEMBA and EMBA | |
| UNC Kenan-Flagler | Yes | Concentration | STEM Concentration | |
| UPenn Wharton | Yes | 9 Majors | Business Analytics; Business Economics & Public Policy; Business, Energy, Environment & Sustainability; Environmental, Social and Governance Factors for Business; Finance; Operations, Information & Decisions; Quantitative Finance; Social and Governance Factors for Business; Statistics | |
| USC Marshall | Yes | Degrees | One-Year MBA, Full-Time Two-Year MBA, Part-Time MBA | |
| Texas McCombs | Yes | Degree | Full-time MBA | |
| UVA Darden | Yes | Specialization | Management Science | |
| Vanderbilt Owen | Yes | Majors | Finance or Operations & Analytics | |
| U. Washington Foster | Yes | Degrees | Technology Management MBA, MBA Management Science | |
| Washington U. / Olin | Yes | Majors | 5 Additional Hours | |
| Texas McCombs | Yes | Concentration | Management Science |
Why Are Business Schools Adding STEM?
The rise of the STEM MBA comes amidst news that a deficit of 1.1 million STEM workers is looming, and that STEM-related jobs are expected to increase by nearly 800,000 by 2031. Business schools who add the STEM designation to their MBAs are arming students with the skills that the job market desperately needs. They know that students on their new STEM MBA programs will have the opportunity to gain – alongside the management and leadership expertise of the core MBA program – in-depth knowledge of computer science, economics, data analytics, finance and more. Equipped with the combination of leadership skill and technical knowledge, students of the STEM MBA are likely to find the job market a rather welcoming place.
When considering the particular skill combinations gained through an MBA with a STEM designation, it’s useful to remember that one of the biggest employers of MBA grads are big tech firms. Business schools know that if, as an incoming hire, you can understand the big tech firms’ products, analyze their successes and also lead the business side of things – that’s going to make you a really attractive employee.
What Does This Mean For You?
Of the Harvard Business School reclassification to a STEM MBA, the executive director Jana Pompadur Kierstead said that “this change will enable all students, particularly our international students, to pursue the opportunities a STEM-eligible degree affords.”
Let’s take a look at what some of those opportunities might be:
Higher Employability
Students who graduate with an MBA in STEM are versatile. The roles in which they could succeed range from technology and finance to consulting and manufacturing, while rising demand for employees in artificial intelligence and data analytics opens up more opportunities still. The field in which they are entering is growing, and graduates who come equipped with technical skills and the knowledge on how to lead are in high demand.
Higher Earning Potential
The higher earning potential of students who graduate from an MBA program with a STEM designation is twofold. First, the acquired technical expertise and specialized STEM knowledge allows graduates to apply to higher-paid roles in more lucrative industries. Second, the growing demand for applicants with in-depth STEM knowledge means that companies often compete with each other for highly-skilled employees, often offering generous compensation packages to attract the best in the business.
Increased Problem Solving Ability
Students who complete MBA programs with a STEM designation are provided with plenty of opportunities in which to trial and improve their problem solving ability. Critical thinking is fostered and applied to both business and technical challenges, and students are encouraged to apply their analytical ability to both the business and the STEM side of things. Challenges are approached from diverse perspectives throughout the course, and solutions on both the technical and the business side of things are considered, perfectly preparing students for the careers that lie ahead of them at the intersection of technology and business.
A Note On Visas
You’ll notice that Kierstead mentioned in her quote that the opportunities of a STEM MBA designation were particularly pertinent for international students. The reasons behind this come down to a feature that sits separately from content or electives – and that’s visas.
International students completing an MBA are offered, post graduation, a 12 month OPT visa – standing for optional practice training, this visa extends the time until you require a sponsored visa from your employer or obtain a H1-B visa.
STEM MBAs, on the other hand, are offered a 24 month extension to this OPT visa, cashing in at a total of 36 months post graduation. The extra two years demonstrate clearly the high esteem in which the country holds STEM graduates and the level to which their expertise is considered crucial to the economic growth of the US.
From a graduate side, this makes it easier to apply for and receive job offers, to pay off MBA costs and to explore career next steps; from an employer’s side, this makes international graduates far more appealing as new hires due to the longevity of their current visa. No surprise then, that the 2019 GMAC survey found that MBA programs with a STEM designation reported growth in applications from international students.
