New York University Stern School of Business
Getting an EMBA from a top school is a massive commitment – and for some people in business, it’s overkill. They want to accelerate their careers, but don’t need the full business education. They want to upgrade or refresh their skills and knowledge, or get trained in a specific business area – without spending years doing it.
Today, New York University Stern School of Business is launching a new certificate program, offering a quarter-MBA that allows participants to parachute into Stern and take classes alongside enrolled MBA students.
Advanced Professional Certificate students are to take 15 units, a quarter of the number required for an MBA, on a part-time basis, in MBA classes that have capacity. Each student will follow one of three tracks: finance, marketing, or general business.
“The finance track could quickly empower people who didn’t major in finance in college, but who now work in the industry, with a broader perspective that helps them excel in their function,” says Isser Gallogly, assistant dean of MBA admissions. “Liberal arts majors can combine the fundamentals of marketing with the latest thinking in analytics and digital through the marketing track. Entrepreneurs without a business degree can customize the handful of business courses they want to take in the general business track. Others with an MBA may want to delve into a new area of interest.”
POSSIBLE TO FINISH IN LESS THAN A YEAR
Classes are at Stern’s Greenwich Village and Westchester locations, weekday evenings and Saturdays at Greenwich Village and weekday evenings at Westchester. Students taking the maximum nine credits per semester (usually three classes) could finish the certificate in less than a year; it must be finished within two years.
Stern created the program to respond to long-running demand, Gallogly says. “We definitely get calls all the time about it. People want to come in and take a few courses in an area they’re interested in, and they want that from a world class business school,” Gallogly says. “It’s going to be real. It’s not going to be some sort of sit-in-the-back-and-not-participate. These students will be participating, they will be part of the groups, part of the lectures. This is not some kind of audit situation.”
Gallogly says prospective applicants to Stern’s part-time MBA sometimes decide that program is too heavy, and more than they need; the certificate program will provide a shorter-term, less- expensive, and probably faster option.
While the new program represents a broadening of Stern’s offerings, it’s still coming out of a top 20 business school, and admission will be fairly selective. Applicants must have two years’ experience working, and either have an MBA or have taken the GMAT or GRE. Gallogly expects the student profile to be similar to that in Stern’s part-time MBA program – GMAT score between 620 and 730, one to 15 years of work experience, and 2.9 to 3.8 undergraduate GPA.
NO ROOM FOR THE WEAK
“We have to guarantee the quality of the program for everyone involved,” Gallogly says. “And we’re certainly not going to put someone in the program who’s not going to do well. It’s basically top quality MBA education, for people who are really looking for that education and are up to the caliber of our students but just don’t want to be doing the whole thing.”
The finance and marketing tracks require students to take a core course, but waivers may be obtained by students who can demonstrate proficiency in those areas. Students on those tracks will take four of their five classes within the track, with one elective.
To apply into the finance track, a student must have taken a statistics course and an economic course, on campus or online, from an accredited school.
The general business track may attract entrepreneurs interested in “a smattering across the board” to get up to basic speed on strategy, finance, marketing, accounting, and operations, Gallogly says.
Isser Gallogly, Stern School of Business
Certificate students will be able to take classes that still have space after Stern’s regular MBA students have enrolled in them. Small seminars are unlikely to have space, but typically Stern has about 15 classes that almost always have capacity, with many more having openings depending on the term, Gallogly says.
No career services are provided to certificate students, and the program does not include clubs.
JUMPING-OFF POINT FOR P/T MBA
A process is in place for certificate students to apply into Stern’s part-time MBA program, but the jump must be made before the certificate is awarded, or the 15 credits gained in the certificate program wouldn’t be valid for the MBA.
Base cost is $1,930 per credit, the same as for Stern’s part-time Langone MBA program, amounting to $28,950 for 15 credits for tuition, an amount subject to change from term to term.
The application period will open within a couple weeks, with a first deadline of May 15 for a fall start. The application will include an essay, and require a recommendation.
NEXT PAGE: Courses expected to be typically available, for each track:
Questions about this article? Email us or leave a comment below.