Starting next fall, Stern MBA students will have the option to specialize in artificial intelligence, with a curriculum focused on applying AI to careers including project management, digital marketing and investment banking. 

MBA students at the Stern School of Business can choose three of 28 areas to specialize in — now including AI, alongside others such as FinTech, corporate finance and brand management. Students in the AI specialization will need to complete one core data science and AI course, one class focused on AI concepts and skills — such as a dedicated class on AI agents — and at least one AI elective of their choice.

The specialization includes nine course options, including AI in Marketing Analytics, Leading in the Age of AI and Foundations of AI Agents, which Stern is among the first U.S. business schools to offer. 

“Our Foundations of AI Agents class aims to turn our MBA students from being disrupted by AI into being AI disruptors,” Ilan Lobel, a Stern professor and AI specialization advisor, said in the press release. “They will learn how agentic AI works, how to build and deploy their own AI agents and how to use state-of-the-art agentic AI capabilities to increase their own productivity.”

Lobel told WSN that the specialization would continue to develop as new AI technologies emerge. 

Stern began to offer AI-related programming in 2019 with the launch of its Fubon Data Analytics and AI Initiative, and the school renamed its MS in Business Analytics in 2024 to reflect the program’s AI-focused curriculum. Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management has similarly integrated AI through its MBAi program, which collaborates with the university’s engineering school, and Columbia Business School offers an AI and Data Analytics pathway for MBA students. 

Tech MBA student Kunal Naik told WSN that several of his professors have been open about AI use and assigned case studies on companies developing AI, such as Anthropic, Salesforce and Perplexity. 

“We’re transitioning away from just learning the structure of programming and more into how to work with AI to produce the code you need,” Naik said. “So we’re less getting into the nitty gritty of programming, and more like, it’s just another tool to get what we need done.” 

Stern is also continuing to expand its AI curriculum at the undergraduate level. Rohit Deo, vice dean of the undergraduate college at Stern, told WSN that the school introduced nine new undergraduate courses covering AI use in industries such as finance, marketing and real estate. 

“The courses range from intro to advanced level, and can be applied toward degree requirements or used as elective coursework,” Deo said. “We continue to put great care and thought into all aspects of teaching and learning.”

Contact Justin Yen at [email protected].