Preparing for Your First Semester

The academic experience is the center of your time here at Haas. Over the course of your MBA, you’ll work on building broad, foundational knowledge as well as diving deeper into specific areas of interest. You’ll have the opportunity to learn from faculty who are leaders in their field and to develop your skills individually and in collaboration with your peers.

The Cohort System

The cohort system is designed to foster collaboration and integrate teamwork throughout your MBA experience. Your incoming class will be divided into four cohorts of approximately 75 students each. You will attend lectures with your assigned cohort throughout the entire core curriculum (unless you’ve elected to waive one or more courses). Within each cohort, you’re divided into a ~5 - 6 person study team. Students are assigned to their cohort and study teams by the Academics Office and will be announced during New Student Orientation. 

Fall Classes and Scheduling

As you think ahead and prepare for the fall, it can be helpful to have a sense for what your schedule will be like and the academic commitments of the core curriculum. Please familiarize yourself with the important dates at the bottom of this site in order to avoid conflicts and contact us as soon as possible if you have any questions or concerns about being able to attend.

Important takeaways:

• • Core courses take place Monday - Thursday between 9am to 4pm.
  • Some core courses will have Friday morning and afternoon discussion sections to review material covered in lectures.
  • Due to the University administrative holidays, there will be some make-up classes held on Fridays and students are expected to attend.
  • Your exact class schedule will depend on your cohort assignment. We strongly encourage you not to make outside commitments for the fall semester until after you’ve received your cohort assignment during New Student Orientation.
  • The Academics team will enroll you in your cohort’s core courses in late August; there is no action needed on your part to register.
    
    • To activate the Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP), the Academics team will enroll all students in a placeholder MBA293 unit at the end of July. This placeholder class will be dropped once we add students to their cohorts.
  • Make-up exams are only available under exceptional circumstances and with prior approval from the FTMBA Academics Team, so please pay particular attention to the midterm and final exam periods.

Accommodating Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities are eligible to receive academic accommodations through the Disabled Students' Program (DSP). Please follow the application process to request accommodations well before the fall semester begins to have accommodations in place. Students with questions can send an email to Rebecca Whitney, a Disability Specialist in DSP. Please note that this application process may take a few weeks to complete, so please begin it as soon as possible if you would like to use accommodations for the fall.

Academic Calendar

To help students plan for their first semester, please take a look at important dates here. Please pay particular attention to exam dates and make-up classes.

MBA Quantitative Readiness Course

We specifically designed this free online course to ensure you are fully prepared for the academic challenges that lie ahead, and strongly recommend that all admitted students complete the course before arriving in August. The course has 7 modules covering topics you will encounter in your MBA course work and the math they use. It is a self-study class, so you may go at your own pace.

You will receive an email invitation to the Haas MBA Quantitative Readiness Course after the deposit deadline has passed.

Note: If you are taking UCB Extension Math for Management, it is not necessary to also take this course.

NEXT: Required Skills