CUSTOMIZE YOUR MBA
As a Vanderbilt MBA student, you will choose at least one concentration as the focus of your study and may further customize your program by adding additional concentrations, specializations, or emphases.
A concentration represents a minimum of 12 credit hours beyond the core in a single discipline. We offer several career-focused concentrations, including: Accounting, Finance, General Management, Healthcare, Human and Organizational Performance (HOP), Marketing, Operations & Analytics and Strategy.
ACCOUNTING
Vanderbilt's accounting faculty are actively involved in accounting and auditing research. Accounting faculty members serve on the editorial boards of leading accounting research journals and are often cited in leading business media like The Wall Street Journal.
Required Courses
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Financial Reporting l | 2 |
| Financial Reporting ll | 2 |
Electives
Choose eight credit hours from the following:
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Taxation of Business and Investment Transactions | 2 |
| Federal Income Taxation of Mergers and Acquisitions | 2 |
| Federal Taxation of Business Entities | 2 |
| Financial Statement Analysis | 2 |
| Accounting for Mergers and Acquisitions | 2 |
Consumer Psychology and Marketing Analytics*
The Vanderbilt Consumer Psychology and Marketing Analytics concentration provides you with a foundation in marketing analytics and an understanding of customer psychology. *STEM certified
Required Courses
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Consumer Insights for Marketing Decision Making | 2 |
| Consumer Behavior | 2 |
| Quantitative Analysis for Marketing Decision Making | 2 |
| Marketing Analytics | 2 |
Electives
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Marketing Communications: Advertising and Social Media | 2 |
| Selling Strategy: Promotions, Persuasion and Public Relations | 2 |
| Brand Management | 2 |
| Marketing Strategy | 2 |
| Pricing Strategies | 2 |
| Retailing | 2 |
FINANCE*
Vanderbilt’s world-renowned finance faculty provide students with a strong grasp of the fundamental techniques required for the practice of financial management. The finance curriculum is continually updated to incorporate the latest developments and important innovations in the markets, as well as academic research. *STEM certified
Required Courses
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Investments | 2 |
| Corporate Valuation | 2 |
Electives
Choose eight credit hours from the following:
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Corporate Financial Policy | 2 |
| Applied Investment Management | 2 |
| Bond Markets | 2 |
| Advanced Corporate Valuation | 2 |
| Mergers and Acquisitions | 2 |
| Private Equity and Leveraged Buyouts | 1 |
| Derivatives Markets | 2 |
| Financial Data Analysis | 2 |
| Derivative Securities Valuation | 2 |
| Corporate Restructuring for Distressed Firms | 2 |
| Financial Institutions | 2 |
| Corporate Restructuring for Non-Distressed Firms | 2 |
| Entrepreneurial Finance | 2 |
| International Finance Markets | 2 |
| Seminar in Entrepreneurial Finance | 1 |
GENERAL MANAGEMENT
This custom-designed concentration allows you to take advantage of the full spectrum of courses offered at Vanderbilt and build your ideal plan of study, in consultation with a full-time faculty member and the Student Programs Office. The resulting proposal must be approved by the professor charged with overseeing your course of study. Students who feel that a general management concentration might work for them are encouraged to consult with the Career Management Center to receive guidance and coaching to achieve their career goals.
HEALTHCARE
The Vanderbilt healthcare concentration provides unique insight into the complex world of healthcare through a blend of solid business basics plus experiential and integrative learning. You will complete a rigorous curriculum that requires more healthcare courses than other programs of its kind. In addition, the innovative seven-week modular framework allows you the flexibility to take a variety of healthcare electives.
Electives
Choose 12 credit hours from the following:
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Practice of Transplant Administration | 4 |
| Healthcare Marketing | 2 |
| Healthcare Delivery Organizations | 2 |
| Healthcare Strategy | 2 |
| Healthcare Analytics | 2 |
| Healthcare Operations | 2 |
| Healthcare Innovation and Evaluation | 2 |
| Healthcare Economics and Policy | 2 |
| Healthcare Law and Regulation | 2 |
| Healthcare Data Analysis | 2 |
| Healthcare Information Technology | 2 |
| Healthcare Immersion | 2 |
| Healthcare Finance and Accounting | 2 |
HUMAN & ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE (HOP)
Vanderbilt is known for an exceptionally strong human and organizational performance (HOP) program built by award-winning professors and scholars who are experts in organizational design, motivation, leadership, strategic human resource management, compensation, negotiation, teams, managing change, and business ethics. The HOP concentration prepares you to implement business strategies and enhance individual and organizational performance.
Required Courses
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Strategic Human Resource Management | 2 |
| AND ONE OF THE FOLLOWING | |
| Managerial and Organizational Effectiveness | 2 |
| Leading Change | 2 |
Electives
Additional hours from the following to reach 12 total credit hours:
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Leading Change | 2 |
| Managerial and Organizational Effectiveness | 2 |
| Diversity in Organizations | 2 |
| Compensation Decision Making | 2 |
| Negotiation | 2 |
| Innovation Strategy | 2 |
| Healthcare Delivery Organizations | 2 |
| Labor and Employee Relations (not offered 2024/2025) | 2 |
| Practicum on Employment Discrimination: EEOC | 2 |
MARKETING
Our marketing faculty is diverse in its knowledge; areas of expertise include advertising, consumer research, branding, service marketing, networks, customer satisfaction, quantitative psychological research, and new products. The marketing program is flexible, offering students a wide variety of electives beyond the concentration requirements.
Electives
Choose 12 credit hours from the following:
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Healthcare Marketing | 2 |
| Marketing Communications: Advertising and Social Media | 2 |
| Consumer Insights for Marketing Decision Making | 2 |
| Consumer Behavior | 2 |
| Quantitative Analysis for Marketing Decision Making | 2 |
| Selling Strategy: Promotions, Persuasion and Public Relations | 2 |
| Marketing Analytics | 2 |
| New Product Development | 2 |
| Brand Management | 2 |
| Marketing Strategy | 2 |
| Digital Marketing Strategy | 2 |
| Pricing Strategies | 2 |
OPERATIONS & ANALYTICS*
The courses in the operations and analytics concentration focus on the design and management of the processes by which products are manufactured and services are delivered to customers. The core operations and analytics courses provide an overview of the field and elective courses examine critical processes in depth. *STEM certified
Required Courses
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Supply Chain Management | 2 |
| Management of Service Operations | 2 |
Electives
Choose eight credit hours from the following:
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Healthcare Analytics | 2 |
| Sports Analytics | 2 |
| Healthcare Operations | 2 |
| Operations Strategy | 2 |
| Essentials of Project Management | 1 |
| Data Management and Business Intelligence | 2 |
| User-Centered Design I: Identifying User Needs | 2 |
| User-Centered Design II: Prototyping New Products and Services | 2 |
| Strategy Execution (short course) | 1 |
| Business Analytics | 2 |
| Strategy and Operations Consulting | 2 |
| Data Visualization | 2 |
| Strategic Management of Technology | 2 |
| Spreadsheets for Business Analytics | 2 |
| Spreadsheet Macros (VBA) for IT Applications | 2 |
| Managing and Improving Processes | 2 |
STRATEGY
The strategy concentration is designed to equip you with the core concepts, frameworks, and techniques of strategic management that are essential to a career in consulting and beneficial to a leadership role in any field. Courses are analytical and focus on senior management decisions that enhance profit maximization while taking into account the competitive response to those decisions.
Required Course
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Corporate Strategy | 2 |
Electives Part 1
Choose at least six credit hours from the following:
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Corporate Strategies for Environmental, Social, and Governmental Issues | 2 |
| Game Theory and Business Strategy | 2 |
| Life Cycle of an Enterprise | 2 |
| Strategic Management of Technology | 2 |
| Innovation Strategy | 2 |
| Strategic Human Resource Management | 2 |
Electives Part 2
Choose no more than four hours from the following:
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| The Future of Energy Markets in a Low Carbon Economy | 2 |
| Corporate Valuation | 2 |
| Managerial and Organizational Effectiveness | 2 |
| Operations Strategy | 2 |
| Innovation Realization (2 of the 4 credit hours) | 4 |
| Healthcare Economics and Policy | 2 |
| Mergers and Acquisitions | 2 |
| Leading Change | 2 |
| Doing Business in China | 2 |
| Strategy and Operations Consulting | 2 |
| Launching the Venture | 2 |
| Pricing Strategies | 2 |
| Strategic Business Solutions to Address Structural Racism | 2 |
| Marketing Strategy | 2 |
| Business Models | 2 |
| Strategy Execution (short course) | 1 |
| Strategic Business Solutions to Address Structural Racism | 2 |
Degree requirements and course information are subject to change; not all courses are offered every year. The most recent Course Catalog contains academic policies, degree requirements, and individual course descriptions for each of our degree programs.