The University of Chicago Booth School of Business today announced changes to the curriculum for its Executive MBA Program. The changes include the addition of new courses; increasing the international exchange component of the program from four to five weeks; and restructuring its elective offerings -integrating directly into the core program the ability for all students to specialize.

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The changes take effect beginning with students who enter the program in June 2013. Students will be offered a capstone course that provides the opportunity to integrate concepts and tools from much of the Executive MBA curriculum in a complex, multi-round simulation culminating in presentations to a panel of investor-judges.

In addition, students will be able to specialize by choosing elective courses in a particular academic area. Those areas are expected to be capital markets, corporate finance, entrepreneurship, strategy, marketing and leadership and management. Previously, specializations were only possible by taking an optional week of classes at the end of the program, meaning only a fraction of students were able to take advantage of this feature.

By shifting these into the core, all students will be able to take advantage of the school's well- regarded research faculty in these disciplines. The elective courses will be taught at Harper Center, Chicago Booth's state-of-the-art facility on the University's main Chicago campus, which also houses the school's full-time MBA program.

The length of the program will remain at 16 weeks of instruction spread over 21 months, the school said. With the exception of the elective courses taught at Harper Center, students in the U.S. take classes at Gleacher Center in downtown Chicago, students in Europe take classes at the school's London campus in the City and students in Asia take classes at the school's Singapore campus adjacent to Orchard Road.

"With these changes, students will be exposed to more members of our faculty, create closer connections with our other MBA programs and will spend more time studying alongside Executive MBA students from all of our campuses," said Dean Sunil Kumar.

"Many students have told us the international exchange is important and creates a unique learning environment."

Before the changes, Booth Executive MBA students spent four weeks of class sessions studying with students from the school's other campuses, with all students spending time in Singapore, London and downtown Chicago. Beginning next year, students will spend five weeks studying with students from the other campuses and will also spend two weeks on the main campus of the University.

To make room for the added courses, classes in strategic leadership and quantitative marketing have been shortened and some offerings such as technology strategy have been reorganized and will now be part of the elective offerings.

Booth has more than 500 students studying in its part-time Executive MBA Program on campuses in Chicago, London and Singapore. All courses are taught by members of Booth's faculty.