With faculty's backing, Wharton unveils course restructuring that will emphasize flexibility, ethics, and globalization
Bloomberg Businessweek
December 4, 2010
For the first time in 17 years, the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, one of the world's premier MBA programs, has announced a significant overhaul of its curriculum, shifting everything from the structure of required classes to how executive education is delivered. The curriculum change, which will be partially rolled out in the fall of 2011 and fully executed in the fall of 2012, was approved by approximately 87 percent of the faculty in a vote today, a school spokesperson told Bloomberg Businessweek.
One of the cornerstones of the curriculum overhaul is a new commitment by the school to offer an executive education course to MBA graduates free of charge once every seven years. The Wharton School (Wharton Full-Time MBA Profile)will be the first top school to do this, making a lifelong pledge to its graduates, says Dean Thomas Robertson.
"We can educate our students for today but that doesn't mean that 20 or 30 years from now—or even less—they won't need skills in another area," says Robertson. "We think that is a breakthrough. We're making a major commitment to our students."
