MBAs are becoming more
specialized at top colleges

Business Analytics, Digital Management,

and Fashion Marketing

Universities are launching new Master's and Executive Master's specializations in order to meet market needs, according to a special report about business faculties published in the September issue of Lebanon Opportunities.

The American University of Beirut (AUB) will launch a Master's in Business Analytics in the coming school year. “Around 25 candidates applied to this Master's so far,” said Maya El Helou, Director of Graduate Programs at the Olayan School of Business at AUB. This specialization gives students the knowledge, tools, and skills to analyze big data, in order to make effective business decisions, improve performance, and turn organizations into ‘smart’ businesses.

The Lebanese American University (LAU) is in the process of launching new specialized Master's that the market needs, such as a Master's in Human Resources and Fashion Marketing. “We look at the market’s needs, and integrate the new courses accordingly,” said Samar Makhoul, Accreditation and Continuous Improvement Coordinator at LAU.

This year, the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) will launch an Executive MBA with emphasis on digital management, designed in collaboration with the French Ecole Supérieure des Sciences Commerciales d'Angers (ESSCA). “Banks, factories, and trading companies are all going digital. This program will help them manage their business digitally,” said Elie Assaf, Dean of the Faculty of Business at USEK. Assaf said that the university is also preparing to launch a Doctorate in Business Administration.

The American University of Science and Technology (AUST)also introduced additional courses to their MBA programs, including business analytics, retail, healthcare, entrepreneurship, design, and sports management.

All the universities review the undergraduate and graduate curricula with international partners and professors every few years to improve them and introduce new courses, according to our sources.