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MicroMBA

The UC San Diego Rady School of Management’s MicroMBA

Now open to all graduate students and the general public!

Business is a science at the UC San Diego Rady School of Management, and our MicroMBA program is perfect for graduate students and professionals with STEM backgrounds, providing a unique opportunity to gain exposure to business concepts like operational strategy, finance, analytics, entrepreneurship and more.

You will be introduced to world class researchers who will serve as your instructors, become immersed in our quantitative STEM-designated coursework, learn alongside like minded peers and build your network.

The MicroMBA is a seven-week program, with each course offering a glimpse into the full MBA program at the Rady School of Management. The courses will be held online via ZOOM with select in-person networking opportunities available.

Courses include:

  • Business Analytics
  • Accounting for Startups
  • Emotional Intelligence
  • Corporate Finance
  • Financial Decision Making
  • Marketing
  • Innovation
  • Operational Strategy
  • Power and Leadership

The program will provide you with essential business tools and insights to bring back to your graduate studies or full time work in science, health or technology.

See what our previous students had to say!:

"The MicroMBA is a great way to expose non-business people to the excellent programs and expertise that Rady has to offer.” - W. Jenkins ‘22

“The professors did a really good job of summing up very heavy topics into short lectures!" - K. Sudqi '22

 "I really enjoyed engaging with the faculty and other students in the program.” - A. Phillips '22

The UC San Diego Rady School MicroMBA will prioritize UC San Diego graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, followed by general public applicants.

The MicroMBA program is in partnership with UC San Diego’s Division of Extended Studies and graduate student coordinators and volunteers.

Applications for this year are now closed.  We will open applications for next summer’s program in May 2024.

 

Program Format

This is a seven-week program. Each course is a glimpse into the full MBA program at the Rady School of Management. The lectures will be held online via ZOOM. Additional career-exploration and networking sessions will be offered through coffee chats with industry professionals online with select in-person sessions. There is an application process and if accepted, you will be notified and allowed access to the online sessions, materials and other information.

Pricing

The cost of this 7-week program is $1500.  Students and postdoctoral scholars, along with UC San Diego faculty and staff, are able to attend at a reduced rate:

  • UC San Diego graduate students and postdoctoral scholars: $350
  • UC San Diego affiliates who are not matriculated students/postdoctoral scholars: $525
  • Non-UC San Diego graduate students and postdoctoral scholars: $525

*When applying, please use your university email address; and UC San Diego students please be prepared to provide your student ID.

Attendance Policy & Grades

You must attend 10 of the 13 total sessions and two coffee chats in order to receive a certificate of completion. There will be no grades but attendance is tracked. 

Upon successful completion of the MicroMBA program, students will receive a verifiable digital credential. The digital credential (badge) may be shared on social media, with colleagues and/or employers in recognition of the achievement. In addition, official university transcripts are available upon request to verify participation in the MicroMBA program.

Class Location

All classes will be available via Zoom. Each class will have a separate ZOOM link created and sent to you via email one week prior to the course date. For those coffee chats with an in-person option, the room information (on campus at the Rady School of Management) will be sent in your chat confirmation email (see below).

Coffee Chats

We will host networking events called “coffee chats.” These are conducted at different times throughout the program and will feature prominent executives, entrepreneurs and other business professionals from the San Diego region who you will be able to connect with directly in an informal setting. You will be notified each week of the upcoming coffee chats and provided with the information at that time. You must attend a minimum of two coffee chats but we strongly encourage you to attend as many as you can.

2023 Program Schedule

#

DAY

DATE

TIME

TOPIC

 FACULTY

1

W

7/12

4:30pm-6 pm

Business Analytics  

Vincent Nijs

2

M

7/17

4:30 – 6 pm

Strategy 101: Industry Analysis

Anya Samek

3

W

7/19

4:30 – 6 pm

Power and Leadership

Pamela Smith

4

M

7/24

4:30 – 6:30 pm

Accounting/Accounting for Startups

Eric Floyd

5

W

7/26

4:30 – 6:30 pm

Emotional Intelligence

Chris Oveis

6

M

7/31

4:30 – 6 pm

Marketing Part 1

On Amir

7

W

8/2

4:30 – 6 pm

Marketing Part 2 

On Amir

8

M

8/7

4:30 – 6 pm

Corporate Finance

Ross Valkanov

9

W

8/9

4:30 – 6 pm

Financial Decision Making and Investments

Ross Valkanov

10

M

8/14

4:30 – 6 pm

Innovation

Vish Krishnan

11

W

8/16

6 – 7:30 pm*

Operational Strategy

Vish Krishnan

12

M

8/21

4:30 – 6 pm

Team Meeting to Prepare Case Analysis

Zoom TA

13

W

8/23

4:30 – 6 pm

Case Discussion with Faculty

Ross Valkanov

14

 W

8/30

6 pm

Networking Session (Optional)

In-person

Class offerings may change based on instructor availability.

 Accounting/Accounting for Start-ups: Students will learn how to build a bottoms-up financial model and how to create basic financial statements.

Business Analytics: Learn the importance of business analytics and how it influences fact-based decision-making.

Strategy 101: Industry Analysis: Conduct industry analysis and understand the competitive forces shaping strategic decision-making.

Power and Leadership: Learn how to build your power toolbox to become motivated, positive, and effective leaders.

Innovation: Learn the nuances of innovation for social and economic value creation.

Operational Strategy: Acquire practical tools and working knowledge to capture value with efficient and effective strategy. *Class time for Operational Strategy starts later to accommodate faculty participation.

Emotional Intelligence: Understand the personality traits you bring into the work environment and how they may influence the group dynamic and team projects.

Corporate Finance & Financial Decision Making and Investments: We take the perspective of an investor, who seeks to maximize the value of his investment while being exposed to the least amount of risk. Based on the fundamental concepts of market efficiency and risk-return trade-off, we will tackle important questions such as should investors time the market and how to make optimal investment decisions. Finally, we will introduce new trends in investments, such as socially responsible investing and Fintech.

Marketing: Intro to strategic marketing management: segmentation, targeting, positioning, and branding.