New MBA Concentration Supports Interest in Social Impact
The Business, Society, and Sustainability concentration will help MBA students develop the social impact skills that create positive change in for-profit, nonprofit, and government sectors.
- By
- September 10, 2025
- Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation
In response to growing student interest in social impact, the University of Chicago Booth School of Business recently expanded the number of concentrations available to students in the Full-Time, Evening, and Weekend MBA Programs by adding a concentration in Business, Society, and Sustainability.
The new concentration allows students to focus their academic studies on the relationship between business and society, demonstrating to potential employers that they have dedicated a significant portion of their academic program to studying courses related to the social sector; corporate citizenship and environmental, social, and governance issues; the role of business in society; and ethics.
“This new concentration equips students with tools and frameworks needed to lead in a world where business decisions increasingly intersect with societal and environmental issues,” said Robert H. Gertner, the Frank P. and Marianne R. Diassi Distinguished Service Professor of Economics and Strategy and John Edwardson Faculty Director of the Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation. “By deepening their understanding of how business influences social outcomes, students are better prepared to create meaningful impact—both within traditional corporate settings and across the broader social sector—throughout their careers.”
The concentration requires students to complete four relevant 100-unit courses from options such as Social Sector Strategy and Structure, New Social Ventures, and Impact Investing.
“The courses within the Business, Society, and Sustainability concentration helped me understand the larger interdependency of stakeholders, like businesses, governments, and media, and how aligned interests can create meaningful change,” said Sydney Photiadis, MBA/MPP ’25. “I gained a great deal from my courses, like the Corporate Social Responsibility Social Impact Practicum—which allowed me to take on real projects for real companies to help them create more sustainable products—or Designing a Good Life, which helped me understand the barriers to ethical action within business, and how to design better organizations to incentivize ethical behavior.”
Visit Business, Society, and Sustainability to learn more about the concentration and its course offerings.
