Explore Options; Plan Your MBA Academic Program

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
For MBA students entering in Fall 2012, the graduation requirements
for the Master of Business Administration degree are:
Graduate Credit Units*
Core Courses:
Required Foundation Courses 9**
Electives:
(5 cu usually needed for major;
1 cu of which typically comes from the core) 10**
Total Required 19
* Coursework at the Wharton School is measured in credit units (cu) .
See the section on Course Load .
** Taking accelerated Financial Accounting (ACCT612) or Corporate
Finance (FNCE612) will decrease the core course load by .5 cu per course
and increase electives by the same amount . The minimum total credit units
required is always 19 cu .
The Wharton MBA degree requires 19 credit units (cu) of
graduate level courses, up to four of which may be taken
outside of Wharton . All 19 cu must be taken while registered
in Wharton MBA program coursework, with the exception
of coursework taken in approved dual degree programs after
submitting the matriculation deposit for the Wharton MBA
Program . Students may take up to 21 cu without incurring
additional tuition charges, so the balance (2 cu) could include
undergraduate level courses . The only classes requiring additional
fees are the Global Immersion Program and Global
Modular Courses due to their international travel component .
There are waiver opportunities for some of the required
core courses . (See information about waiver requirements later
in this section or in the Waiver Information Guide .) If you do
waive courses, you must replace the waived credits with electives
. The minimum requirement for graduation remains 19 cu
at the graduate level regardless of waivers .
The MBA program is designed for a two-year full-time
residency consisting of four academic terms . While it is possible
to graduate in less time by attending three academic
terms and the summer term, summer course offerings are quite
limited . Summer study may also preclude an internship, which
is a valuable part of the MBA experience . It is also possible to
delay graduation to continue taking classes in the summer after
the fourth semester . Students may continue taking courses in
the fifth semester if the courses taken are needed for graduation
and they receive prior permission from the MBA Program
Academic Affairs Office .
8
Program Planning
MATHEMATICS REQUIREMENT
Wharton’s coursework includes rigorous analytical treatment
of several quantitative subjects and presumes familiarity with
college-level calculus . If you have never taken a college-level
course in calculus, we strongly urge you to take one before
arriving . All entering MBA students must demonstrate proficiency
in mathematics through either an online mathematics
examination administered prior to the Pre-Term program or
through an in-class mathematics examination offered during
Pre-Term . For those who do not demonstrate strong proficiency
in mathematics on the on-line exam, we offer a Pre-Term
math review course, STAT 611: Basic Mathematics Review .
This course serves as quick refresher of the math skills students
need in core courses and presumes prior exposure to elementary
calculus . The course should not be viewed, however, as a
substitute for basic undergraduate analytical skills .
PRE-TERM PROGRAM
The Wharton Pre-Term program is designed to allow you to
begin the process of immersion into the Wharton community .
Here you will meet your classmates and begin to develop the
bonds that will form the cornerstone of your MBA experience .
Special events and exercises will build the spirit and cohesion
that marks the Wharton brand .
You will be introduced to the academic rigors of the
Wharton community through preparatory classes, faculty lectures
and a competition of ideas that will bring you together
with your teammates, 2nd year students and your faculty . All
of this is designed to introduce you to the Wharton classroom
and its expectations .
A highlight of Pre-Term is the mandatory off campus
team building retreat where you will be assigned to your learning
team . The final week of August, is actually the start of the
fall semester and the Core Curriculum . The Teamwork and
Leadership course, MGMT 610, is offered through an intense
simulation completed with your learning team . This course is
taken for a grade .
As you move through Pre-Term, we also administer
waiver exams to those whose background will allow them to
move to more advanced topics in an area of study or allow
them to substitute elective coursework . To help you determine
whether to attempt a waiver and how to prepare for waiving
a core course, we provide you with the Get Started booklet, a
Waiver Information Guide, and a Waiver exam Guide, all available
through our website .
CLUSTERS AND COHORTS
As an entering student, you will become part of a “cluster .”
These clusters become a strong social group, often spending
significant time together outside the classroom . The clusters
will be subdivided, for the purposes of some of the core
courses, into “cohorts .” Each cohort within the cluster shares
the same faculty members for required fall courses .