Professional MBA Curriculum

The same high standards, with greater flexibility.

Our PMBA program has the same high academic standards, professors and courses as our Full-Time MBA program. The difference is that you take what you learn each evening and apply it immediately to your job.

The Core and Your Cohort

Your first year is marked by a focus on business fundamentals and close work with your cohort.

During your first four semesters (summer included), you dive into comprehensive core courses that lay the groundwork in the functional areas of business—marketing, accounting, finance, data analytics, strategy and more. Because these courses are based on the latest research and practices, they immediately apply to today’s business challenges.

You take these core classes with your entering cohort. Within that group, we place you in smaller teams of four to five peers. These teams are designed to complement everyone’s professional and educational experience and expertise. You will come to depend on your team, collaborating on assignments, studying together and relying on one another for support.

Program Speed and Flexibility

Choose from a wide array of electives to customize your WashU MBA. Electives are offered Monday through Thursday evenings, on the weekends and in weeklong formats between semesters.  

We allow up to three missed classes per course due to business travel, family matters or other relevant issues. In those cases, you’ll be provided with a Zoom link to the missed class session. You can also choose to take all your courses remotely for a full semester. 

About 85% of PMBA students finish their degree within three years. You can speed up the program and finish your degree sooner rather than later.

Weekender and Weeklong Electives

In addition to our evening electives, you can choose to take elective courses on the weekends or in a weeklong format.

• Weekenders = 1.5 credit hours, Friday through Sunday on select weekends. These will be scheduled on weekends during which core PMBA classes are not in session (in between semesters/mini terms).
• Weeklong elective courses = 3 credit hours between semesters.