Electives
Electives
MBA students have the option to tailor their degrees to their career interests and goals by pursuing a full range of interdisciplinary electives across all functional areas of management, without having to commit to a concentration or “major.”
Please note: Elective course offerings vary by semester.
Financial services practitioners who are focusing on a career in investment management will gain a thorough understanding of the complex financial tools and models that are critical to the modern asset management industry. If you aspire to join the top ranks of investment managers and portfolio managers and become an expert in managing clients' wealth and assets, these Asset Management electives will prepare you for your career.
These courses help students become familiar with the broad range of issues common to all finance professionals. Students who focus on this area will be perceived as having enhanced market-specific knowledge and a faster learning curve by prospective employers.
Sample list of courses:
Corporate Finance
Derivatives & Risk Management
Equity Analysis
Financial Econometrics
Financial Statement Analysis
Fixed Income Analysis
Fundamental Analysis
Hedge Funds
Investment Management
Investments
Money & Capital Markets
The Mutual Fund Industry
Portfolio Management
Portfolio Theory
Role of Investment Management Firms in Financial Markets
Business Analytics is the scientific process of transforming data into insight to improve management decision making. The field takes its basic methods and tools from Management Science and Statistics and applies them to forecasting, predictive modeling, optimization, and “Big Data” decision analysis. Business Analytics professionals work in every business area, including finance, marketing, operations, supply chain management, risk management and consulting. The field is growing rapidly as a result of technological advances which allow deeper analysis of larger and more diverse data sets.
The courses in this area cover the three main realms of the field: descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive analytics. Descriptive methods are used in evidence-based decision making, where managers mine large historical data sets to understand the factors contributing to successes or failures in past performance. Predictive methods are used to develop forecasts and understand probable outcomes of proposed projects and interventions. Prescriptive methods are used to find optimal decisions.
Sample list of courses:
Analytics & Business Intelligence
Customer Relationship Management
Economic & Financial Forecasting
Financial Econometrics
Marketing Information Analytics
Marketing Research
Management Analysis
Pricing Policy Strategy
Quality Management
Risk Analysis & Simulation
Sports Analytics
Supply Chain Management
In the global economy, there has been a significant shift from a focus on manufacturing to a focus on service. It is important to note that this shift is occurring in two ways: first, service industries make up a larger part of our economy than ever before; second, many traditional manufacturing firms (e.g., IBM) now realize more revenue and profit from the service aspects of their businesses than from the traditional manufacturing operations. To address this change, the Operations and Strategic Management department, the Marketing department and the Information Technology department have developed a cross-functional set of electives devoted to educating emerging managers in the key elements of service management and service delivery.
Students taking these electives will be readily conversant with the complex nature of the service value chain, from supplier to customer, and will enter the workplace with the skills and tools necessary to enhance and leverage the key performance drivers in the service value chain. Industries with extensive service components include: financial services, consulting, hospitality, technology, healthcare, retailing and telecom.
Sample list of courses:
Analytics & Business Intelligence
Business-to-Business Marketing
Customer Relationship Management
E-Commerce
IT for Financial Services
Management of Financial Institutions
Management of Service Operations
Management of Technology & Innovation
Managing Projects
Marketing Information Analytics
Marketing Strategy
Risk Analysis & Simulation/Management Decision Making
Services Marketing
Strategic Brand Management
Strategy for Pharma & Bio-Technology
Supply Chain Management
Wireless & Mobile Business
The Corporate Finance electives teach a core set of skills in financial modeling, debt and equity issues, valuation, mergers and acquisitions, financial planning, risk management, financial reporting and analysis, and taxation necessary in corporate finance positions. Students develop the skills and knowledge base to undertake positions in investment banks, commercial banks, financial consulting, general management consulting, venture capital and private equity firms, and corporate finance within large and mid-sized firms.
Sample list of courses:
Contemporary Topics in Corporate Reporting
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance Theory
Corporate Valuation and Restructuring
Derivatives & Risk Management
Economic Crises
Financial Policy
Financial Statement Analysis
International Finance
Investment Banking
Investments
Management of Financial Institutions
Mergers & Acquisitions
Private Equity
Project Financing
Venture Capital
Students who are interested in pursuing careers in a corporate setting as senior-level managers in the broad area of financial management will want to pursue these electives. Students will combine financial accounting, control and finance through a comprehensive set of course offerings, and will be well positioned for job opportunities leading to chief financial officer, treasury, internal control, and budgeting director positions.
Course work will include close attention to developing skills and decision-making abilities relative to corporate governance, responsibility, and ethical behavior.
Sample list of courses:
Accounting Information Systems
Accounting Tools for Managers
Contemporary Topics in Corporate Reporting
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance Theory
Corporate Governance & Risk Management
Finance & Accounting in Hi-Tech
Financial Accounting Practice I
Financial Accounting Practice II
Financial Auditing
Financial Policy
Financial Statement Analysis
International Financial Reporting Standards
Taxes & Management Decisions
Theory/Contemporary Issues in Accounting
This set of electives provides students with an internationalized education arming them with global knowledge and preparing them for careers in international firms. They will be able to focus their studies in specific areas of international business, such as governance/compliance/reporting issues, law, entrepreneurship and marketing.
Recruiters in Boston, across the U.S., and internationally increasingly favor candidates who have international experience prior to graduate school, have either completed core and elective international coursework as part of their MBA, or have experienced study-abroad, travel-abroad, or international internship opportunities.
Graduates are well prepared to work internationally immediately following graduation, or be tasked with international responsibilities while working from a U.S. based office.
Sample list of courses:
Adapting Global Strategy to Emerging Markets
African Business
Bermuda Law
Cross-Border Strategic Alliances
Global Financial Markets
International Business Law
International Consulting
International Entrepreneurship
International Finance
International Financial Reporting Standards
International Management Experience
International Marketing
Managing Across Cultures
Managing Business in the European Union
Managing Global Competition in the 21st Century
Managing the Legal Environment of Business
With rapid and dramatic change permeating today’s organizational landscape the ability to lead and manage people and organizations is especially important in all sectors and industries. Leaders confront a series of challenges including globalization, outsourcing and offshoring, mergers and acquisitions, shifting market boundaries, new regulatory requirements, an increasingly diverse workforce, and pressure to innovate at an ever more rapid pace.
This set of electives is appropriate for people who want to 1) build on their technical/functional skills and assume greater responsibility for leadership and management in their organizations, 2) start new entrepreneurial organizations, or 3) work as consultants to other organizations.
Sample list of courses:
Boards & CEO's: Governing America's Businesses
Career Management & Work-Life Planning
Communication Skills for Managers
Consulting Clinic
Environmental Management
High Performing Teams
Leadership
Management Decision Making
Management of Organization Change
Management of Service Operations
Managing Projects
Advanced Topics: Managing of Professional Services
Managing the Legal Environment of Business
Negotiating
Nonprofit Management
Strategic Brand Management
Strategic Deal Making
Strategic Human Resources
Women & Leadership
With the establishment of the Internet and World Wide Web as a formidable marketing and distribution channel, and with greater use of IT as a customer segmentation, customer management and marketing tool, the once-separate disciplines of Marketing and IT complement and reinforce each other in new and exciting ways. Employers increasingly seek employees with skill sets at the intersection of Marketing and IT.
Students taking these joint marketing and IT electives will enter the workplace with a unique mix of hard and soft skills that will readily appeal to employers. Graduates will be conversant with the often-complex technical jargon of IT and will possess hands-on skills in areas such as data-mining and statistical model analysis. Graduates will also have an appreciation for the strategic aspects of IT use within corporations, enabling them to understand how new technologies might reshape the traditional relationship between firms and their customers. Graduates will be exposed to traditional and advanced marketing courses such as marketing research, consumer behavior and marketing information analytics. With complementary exposure to IT, they will be in a stronger position to move beyond focused marketing issues to more strategic concerns facing the firm.
Creative and analytical positions such as Internet marketing analyst, database marketer, market analytics specialist, ecommerce strategist, media planner, and CRM specialist are becoming increasingly prevalent. These positions show the importance of a skill set that can leverage IT to drive marketing strategies.
Sample list of courses:
Analytics and Business Intelligence
Consumer Behavior
Customer Relationship Management
Digital Commerce
Marketing Information Analytics
Marketing Research
Marketing Strategy
New Media Industries
Pricing/Policy & Strategy
Risk Analysis & Simulation
Social Media and Digital Business
Technological Innovation & Distribution
Product and Brand Management is the very heart of the Marketing discipline. Brand managers have P&L responsibility to maintain and grow specific products, product lines, and/or brands. They typically manage a circle of key relationships and functions that surround the brand: advertising agencies, promotion agencies, public relations, package design, product launch, production planning, channel strategy, licensing, and product design. A capable brand manager has exceptional strategic, quantitative, interpersonal, and presentation skills and must be comfortable and confident with decision-making and be able to readily bring people to agreement and consensus.
Boston College has a reputation for and network of successful brand managers at a variety of companies, including top-tier firms. However, the number of brand management slots available at leading marketing companies usually is limited and quite competitive. The Product and Brand Management electives are designed to build skills via in-class learning that will prepare students for a summer internship and then a full-time position in the broader world of brand management.
Sample list of courses:
Business-to-Business Marketing
Communication and Promotion
Consumer Behavior
Customer Relationship Management
Digital Commerce
International Marketing
Marketing Information Analytics
Marketing Research
Marketing Strategy
Pricing/Policy and Strategy
Product Planning and Strategy
Services Marketing
Strategic Brand Management
STEM-designated electives such as the ones linked below satisfy the electives requirements for students enrolled in the Full-Time MBA: STEM-Designated Track.
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