In the Elective Curriculum, students may choose from a number of courses that explore the integration of environmental issues and management practices or that address broader issues of sustainable markets.

In their second year, students choose elective courses, many of which focus on or support the understanding of environmental issues as they relate to business. Here are the offerings for 2023-2024.

In order to tailor their academic experience, MBA students, during their second year, may cross-register for courses in other select graduate programs. Joint degree programs exist with the Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Law School, and Harvard Medical School.

• Harvard University Center for the Environment (HUCE) Course Guide

  A list of Harvard courses most relevant to environmental studies.

• Harvard Law School
  • Harvard Law School Climate Solutions Living Lab: An innovative, project-oriented course in which advanced students from graduate schools across Harvard University work together in teams to design real-world practical tools for advancing climate change goals. Spring Course.
  • Harvard Law School Course Catalog
• MIT Climate Ventures Course

  The class gathers cross-disciplinary skills (technology, business, policy, law, etc.) to form teams around new technologies emerging out of several of MIT’s labs. Over the course of the semester, students will work with their team to build out the venture’s business and market-launch efforts. Open to Harvard Graduate students.

Many HBS students extend their learning beyond the classroom through faculty-supervised Independent Projects (IPs). IPs take many forms—for example, students have advised companies on their sustainability strategies, written business plans for environmental ventures they would like to launch, and co-authored teaching cases with faculty.

Current students can find details on registering for Independent Projects here (login required). IP registration must be completed by 8:30 am on the first Thursday of the relevant term and is not part of EC preregistration. Students planning for fall may want to connect with a potential faculty supervisor before leaving campus for the summer; those planning for spring IPs may want to plan their projects before leaving for winter break. It’s up to the student or student team to scope and find a faculty supervisor.

Short Intensive Programs (SIPs) (login required) are courses that offer a great opportunity to think about career choices, gain practical skills, and explore topics you might otherwise never get to study. These short courses (3-4 day) are offered in January and there are often business & environment SIPs.

Immersive Field Courses (IFCs) Immersive Field Courses are for-credit courses designed to offer second-year students an off-campus, experiential learning opportunity during the January term. A cornerstone of these courses is the expertise of faculty, who develop course content focused on teaching objectives achieved primarily through student-centered active learning exercises, which could include teams projects embedded with a company or a research topic identified by faculty. In both cases site visits and guest speakers will be an additional element of the course. As such, these courses provide students with an opportunity to apply first-hand the knowledge and skills gained from their on-campus MBA coursework in an off-campus setting. Courses kick off in the fall with several required on-campus sessions to set the context for January. These sessions vary and could include lectures, case discussions, and project work with your team and company if applicable.

HBS students have traditionally been immersed in a case-study method that has encouraged them to think like leaders. Field Immersion Experiences for Leadership Development (FIELD) gives students meaningful opportunities to act like leaders, translating their ideas into practice.

Many FIELD Global Immersion projects frame environmental problems as business opportunities. For example, students recently worked with a Chinese solid waste recovery and recycling company to develop a service to encourage customers to recycle their cell phones and other electronics. Other students helped a Chinese agribusiness identify opportunities to support smallholder walnut farmers and grow their business. Still others helped a Moroccan company that converts used cooking oil into a cleaner form of biodiesel to start collecting oil from the catering, restaurant, and food manufacturing sectors.