Harvard Business School Launches January Term Program
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BOSTON — Harvard Business School (HBS) is enhancing its MBA curriculum by offering a range of intensive seminars, independent opportunities, and an expanded Immersion Experience Program (IXP) during a new January Term between the fall and winter semesters. HBS is among the first Harvard schools to pilot the new term at the University in conjunction with Harvard's move to a common calendar this academic year. January Term offerings are open to first- and second-year HBS MBA students. The eight HBS January Term faculty-led seminars are being taught in small classroom settings covering a variety of subject areas, including leadership, negotiation, global trends, sustainable development, and health care. Off campus, students enrolled in January Term IXPs are spreading out to locations such as China, India, Peru, and Rwanda, undertaking field-based learning activities, company visits, and service projects as part of these international experiential learning programs. "The HBS January Term gives students the opportunity to reflect in a different way on what they are learning in the classroom through in-depth study and by applying their learning in the field," said Professor Joseph Badaracco, faculty chair of the HBS MBA program. "Our offerings include a mix of small seminars, international immersions, and independent professional development opportunities that allow students to take a deep, interactive dive into topics, industries, and regions that inspire them." More than 400 first- and second-year MBA students are participating in nine faculty-led IXPs, as this program, which debuted in early 2007, continues to grow and evolve. The IXP experience is generally made up of three elements: pre-departure activities to introduce and prepare students for the trip, an intensive Immersion Experience (lasting one to two weeks), and a post-program opportunity for sharing lessons learned with the wider HBS and Harvard University communities. HBS students are undertaking the following immersions:
During some IXPs, including this year's Rwanda program, students work for local organizations on week-long projects. In addition to the nine January programs listed above, two international IXPS in Brazil and Costa Rica will take place in March. The HBS faculty-led January Term seminars are being held between January 11 and 22. They cover a wide variety of topics and feature case discussions, explorations of literature, lectures, guest speakers, student working groups, and student presentations. For example, the president of Houston's MD Anderson Cancer Center, the CEO of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, the CEO of Commonwealth Care Alliance in Boston, and the CEO of Sun Yat-Sen Cancer Center in Taiwan will join Professor Michael Porter for an in-depth examination of value-based health care delivery. The seminars and faculty leaders include:
During the January Term, students can also enroll in short seminars focusing on deal making, sales leadership; and restructuring; explore career opportunities through student-led Career Treks in North America, Europe and Asia; or receive career coaching, among other independent study opportunities. "This extraordinary array of options for the January Term is a complement to the close-to-practice learning that goes on in HBS classrooms every day," said Professor Badaracco. |
About Harvard Business School
Founded in 1908 as part of Harvard University, Harvard Business School is located on a 40-acre campus in Boston. Its faculty of more than 250 offers full-time programs leading to the MBA and PhD degrees, as well as more than 175 Executive Education programs, and Harvard Business School Online, the School’s digital learning platform. For more than a century, faculty have drawn on their research, their experience in working with organizations worldwide, and their passion for teaching, to educate leaders who make a difference in the world. The School and its curriculum attract the boldest thinkers and the most collaborative learners who will go on to shape the practice of business and entrepreneurship around the globe.