New Accelerated MBA Program Integrates AI

A fast-paced Master of Business Administration program integrating artificial intelligence is coming to Cal State East Bay. The 12-month program, which launches this fall, offers students a foundation in business analytics and leadership skills to advance their careers in today’s data-driven world.

CSUEB’s Hybrid One-Year Accelerated MBA Program aims to equip future business leaders with the skills needed to navigate the rapidly evolving technological landscape through leadership, technology and innovation. 

“AI is important in business today for many reasons, but especially because it optimizes time,” said Associate Professor and Economics Department Chair Dr. Filippo Rebessi, who will teach an AI-integrated economics class in the program. He earned his doctorate in economics from the University of Minnesota and is currently working on an international economics research project. “Because of AI, a process that may have taken weeks can now be done extremely fast. We can now generate graphs, estimate economic models and gather data within minutes. AI will refine your work better, and also having that extra time can empower you to create new ideas.” 

Students who join Rebessi’s class will gain in-depth knowledge of how AI can be applied across various business functions, including macroeconomics, such as interest rates, gross domestic product and a country’s overall economy. Rebessi says AI has push the business world to evolve rapidly. 

“Coding used to take a long time, for example, but AI can do it now, so it’s showing us this is complementary technology,” said Rebessi.

During this AI-integrated MBA program, students will engage in workshops, case studies and hands-on experiences that will prepare graduates to manage teams, projects and organizational change effectively. Rebessi says it ensures graduates will not only understand how AI works but how to leverage it strategically to drive business success.

“If you use AI effectively in business, by knowing what are the best prompts to use and how to ask the right questions, you will get nicely written analyses and organized reports,” said Rebessi. “When new technology is introduced, it opens many potential things for us. In the long run, AI will be a good thing.”  

Offered in a cohort hybrid format, the new MBA program will allow students to balance their work and studies with a blend of 40 percent online learning and 60 percent in-person classes.