Vishal Gaur, Associate Dean for MBA Programs at Cornell University’s Samuel Curtis Johnson School of Business says that the revised core curriculum of the business school successfully met its objectives including improving technical and quantitative skills of the participants through enhanced coursework and greater emphasis on the development of personal and leadership skills.
Gaur said the MBA core curriculum was revised in fall 2014 following a year-long study involving alumni, corporations, students, and faculty. It sought to achieve three objectives: enhanced coursework for technical and quantitative skills and decision analysis tools, greater emphasis on personal and leadership skills, and development of critical thinking and integrative skills.
“The revision followed the guiding principle that the core should go beyond providing a foundation for advanced elective courses. It should be responsive to the needs of employers in critical areas and should shift the focus early toward practical application to better and more quickly transform students into well-trained MBAs,” he added.
Changes in the New Core Curriculum
The school made several changes to accomplish all three objectives. It replaced the statistics core course with a new Data Analytics and Modelling core course, with emphasis on data manipulation and analysis tools like Tableau, modern examples and case studies, and new topics such as data privacy, ownership, and ethics.
“The revision followed the guiding principle that the core should go beyond providing a foundation for advanced elective courses. It should be responsive to the needs of employers in critical areas and should shift the focus early toward practical application to better and more quickly transform students into well-trained MBAs,”
The finance core course was revamped to include comprehensive financial modelling exercises and extensive use of spreadsheets in class and on tests.
A new leadership curriculum was introduced. It begins with the Johnson 360 Leadership Assessment, then a course on leading teams, and the Leading Teams Practicum in year one. In the second year, students complete another 360 assessment and a principled leadership course.
An important feature of this leadership curriculum is its blend of coursework and practicums throughout the two-year program that develops students into effective leaders.
A new core course was added on critical and strategic thinking with small class sizes to facilitate extensive in-class discussion of case studies.
The change was not without its challenges. Operationally, it was difficult to schedule a second-year core course in a way that allows students to complete their preferred electives. “We also have to work continuously with students to balance various demands on their time imposed by academics, recruitment, and co-curricular activities with respect for their own personal lives.
“For example, soft- and hard-skills courses are mixed together so that students with skills in different areas can use their time effectively. Both faculty and staff have to be responsive to student needs and sensitive to their concerns,” he added.
Signs of Success
One indicator is the success in the internship. Students report well prepared for internships, being able to distinguish themselves by using tools taught in the core on internship projects and having a higher yield from internships to full-time offers. Johnson’s rankings in the Corporate Poll component of the Bloomberg Businessweek rankings have improved since the new curriculum was introduced, Gaur said.
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“A second aspect is stronger integration within both the first-year class and with second-year MBA students, who serve as Johnson Leadership Fellows. These fellows advise first-year core teams and act as Career Work Group leaders for first-year career preparations.
“This creates shared ownership with higher team success as well as opportunities for second-year students to mentor teams. Further, core teams and sections are created using a complex algorithm to enable a richer classroom experience and a stronger interaction among students in the entire class,” he added.
Gaur said the new core curriculum was efficient in preparing students for the immersion curriculum in their chosen functional area and industry.(Image Source:wikipedia.org)
