MBA

It makes perfect sense that one of the country's leading sustainability MBA programs is located in Portland, Oregon — one of the country's most sustainable cities. From the #1 Beyond Grey Pinstripes MBA ranking to accolades from U.S. News & World Report and the Princeton Review, the Portland State MBA program is continually recognized for its ability to produce future business leaders with an innovative spirit and a commitment to social, economic, and environmental stewardship.

Leadership, Innovation and Sustainability

Portland State's unique MBA curriculum combines a solid, traditional MBA core with an intense focus on three key ideas:  

• Leadership: No other MBA program in the Northwest offers the focus and integration of Portland State's multi-phase leadership component. The leadership program, directed by PSU instructor and Impact Entrepreneurs founder and Executive Director Carolyn McKnight, begins with a 360-degree evaluation to help MBA students define their core strengths and weaknesses. This assessment is integrated into two courses on leadership and the one-on-one counsel students receive from their designated MBA coach. The leadership component culminates in our two-day Leadership Immersion, a two-day business simulation workshop designed to assess students' technical and leadership skills. Many MBA alumni point to the Immersion as one of the most transformational and empowering experiences of the MBA program. 

• Innovation: MBA students learn how to manage innovation from new idea to new product, and how to incorporate innovation into even the most traditional business practices. Through the Pioneering Innovation course, students gain an understanding of the innovation process and how it can be sustained in the global economy. Students often take their ideas from this course to the real world by launching a start-up or pitching their idea at one of many entrepreneurship competitions held annually in Portland, Oregon.

• Sustainability: MBA students explore the core ideas of corporate responsibility, ethics and stewardship, and living systems. Students are also able to deepen their applied skills and knowledge through Sustainability courses such as Social Innovation, Product Design and Stewardship, and Metrics of Sustainability.