Weatherhead School of Management Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) students aspire to leadership roles within organizations. Through a curriculum developed by some of the world’s foremost business experts at Case Western Reserve University who pioneered principles of leadership, you’ll expand your capacity for leadership and strengthen your knowledge of how business works.
Our courses are designed to approach critical disciplines like strategy, finance, marketing and accounting through the lens of leadership. Find out more about our curriculum.
I have been stretched and challenged by the content of many of the classes, while other parts of the curriculum came more easily and naturally to me, and yet still vastly expanded my awareness, my language, my foundation for leadership, all while absolutely inspiring me. From basic accounting, to design, to the four-semester leadership series, I have personally been strengthened in my capacity for leading and my confidence to do so.”
Executive MBA Program Structure
The EMBA program is delivered over five semesters, or 21 months. Both fall and spring semesters consist of four three-day residencies. These residencies take place once a month, Thursday through Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The summer semester is delivered abroad through the weeklong International Study Experience.
The Weatherhead EMBA is a lock-step cohort program. A new EMBA cohort begins each September.
You’ll self-select learning teams, which represent essential study partnerships over the course of the program as well as invaluable resources for networking and organizational support. Learning teams often grow as close as a second family, with members establishing impactful, life-long relationships. Team members go on to be each other's mentors, advisers and even employers. Learning teams meet weekly outside of the classroom, either face-to-face or remotely, to achieve course objectives and enhance the learning experience. In addition, faculty often host optional study and review sessions, which are also recorded for virtual access.
Executive Coaching Component
The Executive MBA curriculum emphasizes a unique, personalized approach to learning, with a focus on self-awareness as the key to becoming an effective leader. Each candidate in the Weatherhead EMBA program is assigned an executive coach who will help you take full advantage of the academic experience while providing guidance as you develop as an individual and leader.
Application Project
Weatherhead’s EMBA degree program includes an in-depth application project that integrates design practices in management education. You’ll spend a semester exploring your organization for a “design opportunity”—an opportunity to create value by deploying resources and capabilities in new ways. You’ll assume leadership responsibility, and, with the support of a team of peers in the program, execute a design project that generates a return for the organization.
Experiential Learning Day
The EMBA Experiential Learning Day is a continuation of working with students to understand academic theories and how they are applied in the business world. We partner with organizations to connect our students to leaders in the fields of finance, strategy, operations, and others to understand how the theories learned in the classroom are actually applied and the results that they yield. Each day is customized to maximize the benefit to both the company and the students.
There are multiple benefits to both students and companies. Companies gather feedback from up-and-coming executive leaders, gain insights and unique perspectives around projects, and test ideas and new products. Students gain a practical view of how companies move from theory to practice, connect with companies and executives, work directly with company leaders to address critical issues and see corporate leadership in action.
International Study Experience
Each EMBA cohort chooses its destinations for the trip, which typically occurs around mid-June and lasts about eight to 10 days. During the summer semester, students travel abroad for a portion of the program during which faculty reinforce business fundamentals through a global lens. Weatherhead faculty and experienced professionals from institutions and organizations worldwide coordinate hands-on activities with global and local entities, as well as in an academic setting, in the region selected for that year’s study experience.
You’ll explore the nature of global leadership and operations while improving your understanding of the role of culture in business and society. You’ll return to your own organization with a renewed commitment to employ the knowledge, skills and holistic perspective developed during your experience abroad to benefit your colleagues at home.
Students generally visit two different countries as part of their tour. Previous cohorts have traveled to such destinations as Spain, Morocco, Greece, South Africa, Argentina, Vietnam, China, Sweden, Latvia, Germany, Switzerland, Turkey, Japan, South Korea, London, Milan, Ireland, Scotland, Hungary and Romania.
Design a better world through an Executive MBA. Apply online today.
EMBA Curriculum
Year One
Fall Semester
- Orientation / Building the Learning Environment
- EMBA 441 – Leading Change: Self
- EMBA 451 – Business Model Design
- EMBA 438A – Business Statistics and Quantitative Analysis
- EMBA 436 – Accounting for Business Executives
- EMBA 450 – Managerial Marketing
Spring Semester
- EMBA 473 – Leading Change: Teams
- EMBA 445 – Expanding Boundaries
- EMBA 438B – Business Statistics and Quantitative Analysis
- EMBA 439 – Corporate Finance
- EMBA 437 – Economic Analysis for Managers
Summer Semester
Year Two
Fall Semester
- EMBA 472 – Leading Change: The Organization
- EMBA 478A – Leading Design in Organization
- EMBA 446 – Managing Risk and Real Options
- EMBA 464 – Legal Environment
- EMBA 443 – Supply Chain Management