In August 2020, SMU Cox launched the new STEM-designated NextGen MBA Curriculum, designed to shape future leaders who are not just job-ready, but also future-prepared. The NextGen Curriculum integrates three foundational pillars: Leadership, Analytics, and Experiential Learning, to develop graduates who can confidently navigate any business environment. Cox graduates are equipped with a curriculum anchored in analytical rigor, refined leadership skills to support complex problem solving, and knowledge with practical application gained through hands-on experiential learning.
At this point in your career, you'll get the biggest boost from an MBA program that lets you tailor the curriculum closely to your goals. Our unique modular system makes the SMU Cox Two-Year MBA not just rigorous, but highly customizable. Here's how it works: begin with core courses that give you a solid foundation in business and prepare you for specialized elective courses throughout the program. A required summer internship helps you zero in on your electives, which become the focus of your second year. With more than half your MBA classes devoted to your specific interests, you can build a unique academic experience at Cox that will get you exactly where you want to go.
Choose Your Area of Focus
Customize your learning through electives that drive towards majors and minors. Students can select up to two areas to pursue. Each concentration requires 12 to 16 specific credit hours.
Interested in an interdisciplinary program of study? In partnership with SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts and, Dedman School of Law, Cox offers you options to broaden the scope of your degree.
Feed your passion for the arts at the Meadows School of the Arts while you pursue a rigorous business education at the Cox School of Business. In just 22 months you'll have a foundation on which to build a successful business career in the arts. Many MA/MBA graduates go on to work for art institutions or nonprofit organizations in a management, development or business capacity.
If you're set on pursuing business law or want to explore in-house counsel opportunities with major corporations, consider the four-year JD/MBA offered through the Cox School of Business and the Dedman School of Law. An accelerated three-year program is also available for One-Year MBA students. By combining law and business courses, you'll gain an understanding of commercial affairs from different viewpoints and graduate with the two most powerful degrees you can get.
We don't just teach business — we're immersed in business. When they’re not educating you in applicable knowledge and skills, your professors are consulting for Fortune 500s, publishing books and research, running their own businesses and serving in government. Small class sizes of 30-35 students for core courses and a calendar full of events where you can mingle informally mean you’ll be able to build one-on-one relationships with the academics and professionals who are invested in your future.
Professor of Practice and Executive Director, Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship
Dr. Simon Mak (@profsmak) is Executive Director of the Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship and Professor of Practice in the Department of Strategy, Entrepreneurship, and Business Economics at the SMU Cox School of Business.Professor, Maguire Chair in Energy Management
Kumar Venkataraman is the James M. Collins Chair in Finance at the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University.
Professor of Practice Brierley Endowed Professor Director, Brierley Institute for Customer Engagement
As Director and the Brierley Endowed Professor (Professor of Practice, Marketing), Marci provides strategic leadership to the Brierley Institute for Customer Engagement, the first academic institute in the nation devoted to the study of customer engagement.Have a question? Join us for an upcoming event to learn more about our MBA programs.