Washington University, Olin Business School
Employers are urgently looking for workers with specialized, job‑ready skills, and Washington University’s Olin Business School is stepping up to the plate.
Kathleen Lees reports that WashU Olin is launching three new specialized master’s programs built directly around the skills employers say they need right now. To gather those insights, the school went straight to St. Louis employers and asked which skills they struggle to find in prospective hires.
According to Todd Gormley, Olin’s vice dean of education, companies want people who can quickly upskill and reenter the workforce ready to contribute. In response, instead of creating broader degrees, Olin designed three fast, targeted programs: AI for Business, the Business of Sports, and Wealth Management.
THREE NEW MASTER’S PROGRAMS
The AI for Business program is Olin’s standout new program for good reason. AI is no longer optional. It’s in nearly every industry. Lees says that job postings increasingly expect applicants to not just know how to use AI tools, but to understand them conceptually. Olin’s new program leans into this. Their students will be able to choose from three tracks – using AI to forecast financial trends, decoding customer behavior, and navigating responsible AI.
With more than 200 alumni already working in sports, the school recognizes that the business side of athletics is booming and competitive. This was the inspiration for their second new master’s program – the Master of Science in the Business of Sports. This program was built based on Olin’s existing sports business minor and prepares students for roles in partnerships, media, and team operations.
Their third new program, Wealth Management, involves a field that is growing rapidly each year. In fact, according to Jimmy Zhao at McKinsey & Company, the wealth management industry is expanding steadily, fueled by an estimated multi‑trillion‑dollar intergenerational wealth transfer expected by 2048. Even more, this industry’s revenue is expected to go past the multi‑billion‑dollar mark by 2030.
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