Stanford University Graduate School of Business

At the Stanford Graduate School of Business, we believe that organizational leadership is a noble and critical pursuit. Institutions, whether private, public or nonprofit, have tremendous potential to affect the quality of life of people around the world. As such, leaders of these enterprises have a unique opportunity to create positive social and environmental impact.

For nearly 35 years, the Public Management Program at Stanford has prepared MBA students to tackle social and environmental issues as corporate managers, nonprofit leaders, government officials, board members, and volunteers. The School offers more than 30 elective courses addressing ethics, corporate social responsibility, environmental sustainability, international development, social and environmental entrepreneurship and public and nonprofit management. These concepts are also integrated throughout the core curriculum. Our curricula has been so popular that 25 percent of the 2004 graduates earned a specialized Certificate in these areas in addition to their MBA.

To reinforce the curriculum, the School hosts speakers and conferences on social and environmental issues nearly every week. Students can also choose from a variety of experiential learning opportunities including serving on nonprofit boards through the Board Fellows program, or providing nonprofit consulting through the Future Alumni Consulting Team.

Extensive career support is provided through sourcing more than 200 summer and full-time positions with nonprofits and public agencies. To help make these positions financially feasible, the School offers two significant subsidy programs: Stanford Management Internship Fund (SMIF) and the Loan Forgiveness Program. Both are among the most generous offered by any business school.

Over the past four years, the School has significantly expanded its commitment to social and environmental management through the creation and expansion of the Center for Leadership Development and Research, the Center for Global Business and the Economy, and the Center for Social Innovation (CSI).

The Leadership Center aims to support the development of ethical, insightful leaders through an extensive co-curricular program and research agenda. The Center for Global Business and the Economy launched in May 2004 with a major conference on issues of global business and global poverty.

The School�s centerpiece for commitment to social and environmental impact is the Center for Social Innovation, whose sole purpose is to foster innovative solutions to social problems by building the leadership and management capacity of individuals and institutions pursuing social value creation. More than 40 scholars and 20 staff from across Stanford contribute to CSI programs including research, teaching and community engagement. In 2003, CSI launched the Stanford Social Innovation Review, the only magazine published by a leading business school that focuses on corporate social responsibility, philanthropy and nonprofits. CSI�s teaching activities include curricular and extra-curricular offerings for MBA, undergraduate, graduate and executive education.

At Stanford, students develop a deep understanding of business as a social and economic institution, enabling them to be more effective leaders in corporations, social purpose ventures, public institutions and nonprofit organizations.