Harvard Business School, Kennedy School Announce New Joint Degree Program

Pioneering program will prepare graduates to lead at the interface of public and private sectors

http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/ksgnews/PressReleases/040307_joint_degree.htm

CAMBRIDGE, MA – Harvard Business School (HBS) and Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government (KSG) announced today the creation of a fully integrated joint degree program in business and government that represents an innovative approach to preparing leaders for a growing area of practice of critical importance to global society.

Armed with the skills required to manage complex organizations and shape innovative public policy, students will be prepared to work in positions of influence at the interface of business, government, and nonprofit organizations, dealing with challenges in such critical areas as health care, the environment, economic development, and government regulation.

“Graduates of this new program will be able to address some of the world’s most pressing issues — issues that call for collaboration between the public and private sectors and that require leaders who can effectively operate in both areas,” said Kennedy School Dean David T. Ellwood. “It will provide graduates with the skills and knowledge necessary for them to fulfill key leadership roles throughout the world.”

The program, which was approved by the Harvard Corporation on April 2 after endorsements by votes of the faculties of both schools, will admit its first students in the fall of 2008. It will take three years for candidates to complete, and they will earn degrees from both schools upon graduation.

“From tax policies and trade agreements to a wide range of laws and regulations, the interaction between business and government for the greater good of society has never been more important,” said Harvard Business School Dean Jay O. Light. “As they embark on careers that will have a significant impact on corporate policy and public affairs, students in this new program will benefit from the strong practical focus that is the hallmark of both schools.”

The culmination of a multiyear effort by faculty and administrative task forces from both HBS and KSG, the program will blend offerings from the current required and elective curricula of both schools along with new, specially designed courses and seminars and a program of two summer internships.

The program will offer students the choice of two options: Master in Business Administration/Master in Public Policy (MBA/MPP) or Master in Business Administration/Master in Public Administration-International Development (MBA/MPA-ID). To pursue either of the new joint degrees, students must be admitted independently to both Harvard Business School and the Kennedy School.

For the first two years of the integrated programs, the course of study will focus primarily on the rigorous required core curricula at the Kennedy School and the Business School. It will also include an HBS-KSG Joint Degree Seminar developed by faculty from both Schools.

In their third year, students will take courses chosen from the electives offered by both schools along with two additional integrative courses developed for the program. These courses include a Business-Government Integrative Course taken in the first term of the third year, and a Business-Government Capstone Exercise supervised by faculty from both schools in the final term that will provide students with an opportunity to assimilate and apply what they have learned by working on an actual practical challenge presented by a client.

Students must also complete two separate summer internships during the program. Between the first and second years, students will work in a public service or policy-based position; and between the second and third years, they will obtain positions in a private sector or non-profit organization.

“There is no academic program in the world that can match the theoretical, analytical, and practical elements offered in this new program,” said Robert Stavins, Albert Pratt Professor of Business and Government at the Kennedy School, who co-chaired the HBS/KSG Joint Degree Faculty Task Force with W. Carl Kester, Deputy Dean for Academic Affairs and Mizuho Financial Group Professor of Finance at Harvard Business School.

“In a truly integrated joint degree program such as this, students will be able to synthesize the lessons they learn in each school to become professionals skilled at devising innovative approaches to a broad range of complex challenges in society,” Kester added. “There is also a wealth of expanded opportunities for faculty collaboration in research in this arena.”

The new programs will replace an existing concurrent degree program at KSG and HBS—an arrangement that enabled students to earn both degrees separately. Both schools will continue to support all concurrent degree students until they have graduated. Harvard Business School also offers joint degree programs with Harvard Law School and Harvard Medical School. The MBA/JD was launched in 1969. The MD/MBA program began in 2004. The Kennedy School offers a joint degree program with Harvard Law School.

About Harvard Business School

Founded in 1908 as part of Harvard University, Harvard Business School (www.hbs.edu) is located on a 40-acre campus in Boston. Its faculty of more than 200 offers full-time programs leading to the MBA and doctoral degrees, as well as more than 40 Executive Education programs. For almost a century, HBS faculty have drawn on their research, their experience in working with organizations worldwide, and their passion for teaching to educate leaders who have shaped the practice of business around the globe.

About Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government

Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government (www.ksg.harvard.edu) maintains an abiding commitment to advancing the public interest by training skilled, enlightened leaders and solving public problems through world-class scholarship and active engagement with practitioners and decision makers. The school offers the depth, reflection, insight, and excellence of ideas and teaching that can shape future leaders, affect public policies, and make an impact on people and their daily lives.