​Putting Theory into Practice

Hands-on experience is embedded into the BSBA curriculum.



Many, if not most, courses contain an applied-learning component. For example, in your freshman-year Foundations in Business course, you work in a team to create and develop a hypothetical consumer product and present your concepts during an end-of-the-course capstone presentation. In the Investment Praxis elective, you manage a $1 million equity portfolio.

In addition to internships and semester-long study abroad programs, Olin offers shorter-term immersion courses that allow you to explore a topic in-depth, and on location. Examples include:

  • Luxury Goods in New York City
  • Business, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship in Israel
  • Venture Advising in Budapest and Israel
  • Business and Government in Washington, D.C.

Some experiences (such as Economics of Entertainment and Business of Sports in Los Angeles) are not-for-credit.

Boost your marketability with hands-on experience

Since 1991, Olin’s Center for Experiential Learning has paired teams of business school students with Fortune 500 corporations, nonprofit organizations, and start-ups looking for cost-effective – or pro bono – management expertise.

“Olin is ahead of the curve on the experiential-learning courses it offers undergraduates,” says Ron King, center director, senior associate dean – special projects, and Myron Northrop Professor of Accounting. “The courses build maturity, team leadership, and dynamic intelligence,” which includes the ability to communicate persuasively and solve problems quickly in real-world situations.

So you succeed in business as well as in the classroom.

CEL Practicum: Faculty-led teams of four or more students work with company representatives on a specific, semester-long management project. You gain valuable knowledge, experience, and connections. You also receive academic credit for the project. Client deliverables usually include a final team presentation and report. Read more.

Taylor Community Consulting Project: St. Louis nonprofit organizations have benefited from Olin student consulting teams for more than 20 years. Teams of two to four students are assigned to each six-week project, and each student must contribute at least 75 hours of work. Projects address a wide range of management needs, such as market research, brand auditing, strategic planning, and financial and operational assessment. Each project concludes with a final presentation. Read more.

CEL Entrepreneurial Consulting Team (CELect) provides opportunities for students who want to run existing companies or to launch their own firm. Read more.