MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences

A joint degree for innovators who aspire to launch & lead technology ventures.

The world needs more entrepreneurs and innovators with deep understanding of technology and management. To meet this need, the MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences Program builds upon students’ existing technical knowledge and skills and prepares them for leadership and founder roles in technology ventures.

Harvard Business School (HBS) and the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) through the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences offer a joint degree program for aspiring entrepreneurs, which confers an MBA from HBS and a Master of Science (MS) in Engineering Sciences from SEAS. The program is completed in four semesters over two years, augmented by summer and January term coursework amounting to three-quarters of a fifth semester. Designed to train future leaders of technology ventures, the MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences Program will provide a strong foundation in general management and convey concepts and builds skills in engineering, design, and innovation management.

Harvard Business School gratefully acknowledges Denise Dupre and Mark Nunnelly (MBA 1984) for their generosity, which supports the MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences joint degree program.

Curriculum

Successful technology ventures are able to meet customers’ needs, leverage technology for advantage, and have a viable business model. Leaders of those ventures must be trained as designers—of products, business models, and organizations and build skills in engineering, design, and innovation management.

What is the mission of the program?: The program aims to educate future leaders of technology ventures by providing a strong foundation in general management, building design skills, and deepening students’ understanding of engineering.
How is the new Harvard MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences Program distinctive?: This program has a balanced emphasis on engineering, design, and business fundamentals—all of which are crucial for success when leading technology ventures. To succeed, a technology venture must meet customers’ needs, leverage technology for advantage, and have a viable business model. By extension, leaders of technology ventures must be trained as designers—of products, business models, and organizations. The program conveys concepts and builds skills across three domains: engineering, design, and management.
What are typical students’ backgrounds?: MS/MBA: Engineering Sciences students aspire to lead technology ventures. They have undergraduate degrees in engineering, computer science, or a related field, with a record of academic excellence. They have at least two years of full-time work experience, ideally in designing and/or developing technology-intensive products.
What are typical students’ career objectives?: Most students aim to found technology-intensive startups. Others aspire to lead new ventures in established technology companies. Immediately upon graduation, students who do not pursue their own startup should be well qualified for positions as product managers, managers of engineering teams (i.e., "tech leads"), and consultants in firms that design new products.