NYU Stern MBAs gathered at the American Museum of Natural History
When you picture business school today, what stands out at Stern is that the line between classroom and real world isn’t blurry—it’s gone. From day one, students are solving real business problems through structured, faculty-led projects, and Stern’s location in New York City gives it immediate access to companies, clients, and markets that most schools only dream about. The school’s suite of experiential learning opportunities is built into the curriculum and immerses you in the business industry to solve real-world problems.”
The phrase “built into the curriculum” matters. At Stern, it’s not optional or extra credit. For example, the full-time MBA page describes how students partner with real companies on real challenges in the same semester they’re taking core courses. Stern doesn’t just talk about “experiential” as a catchword—it designs entire programs around it.
One standout is the “Stern Solutions” series. These are project-based courses in which MBA students work with industry practitioners and companies to tackle live challenges—whether it’s tech startup growth or strategic business pivots. “In this program,” says a current MBA student, “you’re not only learning, you’re doing.” This high-touch, real-client work separates it from more traditional case-style learning.
Location plays a role, too. Stern’s campus in Manhattan means students have a short ride—or even a subway trip—to partner firms, startups, media houses, financial institutions and global brands. Stern’s NYC environment is a laboratory for experiential learning. That “lab” metaphor fits perfectly: being in the middle of the business world means the school doesn’t just simulate practice; it steps into it.
The experiential offerings span nearly every domain. On the Stern website you’ll find references to FinTech experiential courses, tech-company immersions, sustainable business projects, consulting corps, board fellow programs and more. The breadth ensures that whether a student is focused on analytics, sustainability, finance, innovation or social impact, there’s a hands-on option that fits.
Another dimension is scale. Stern’s experiential opportunities are not niche or limited to a few students. The undergraduate capstone, for example, now requires all seniors to engage in an NYC consulting capstone course, evidence that Stern isn’t just offering elite spots—it’s embedding experiential learning across the entire cohort.
One project that captures the spirit of Stern’s approach took place in Italy. As part of the Stern Solutions series, a student team worked with a company that offers live and on-demand cooking classes taught by Italian nonnas—grandmothers who share traditional recipes and family stories. The MBAs were embedded in the company’s strategic challenge, helping to scale international growth, refine its value proposition, and craft a global go-to-market plan. It’s the kind of project that blends business analysis with cultural intelligence—exactly what experiential learning is supposed to do.
From the student perspective, those immersions are transformative. One recent student from a military background said the experiential component “was extremely useful” because it allowed them to hit the ground running and make a measurable contribution in a client-facing role. When students can already point to tangible work in their résumé before graduation, you know a school’s approach is working.
The teaching structure reinforces that strength. Faculty at Stern are not just lecturers—they act as project sponsors, client liaisons, and mentors for teams working on real problems. Lynn O’Connell, Senior Director of Experiential Learning at Stern, summed it up well: their team “creates academic experiences to connect curriculum theory to real business application.” It’s an elegant definition of what experiential learning is supposed to accomplish.
Stern also evolves its experiential learning to mirror the pace of industry change. For example, its FinTech experiential courses let students collaborate with early-stage digital finance companies, while sustainable business projects pair MBAs with firms exploring ESG transformation. By continuously updating these opportunities, Stern keeps the curriculum tethered to the real world.
When you put it all together—location advantage, curriculum integration, diversity of offerings, faculty mentorship, and student outcomes—it becomes clear why Stern stands out for experiential learning in 2025. For your article, you can say that Stern built a model where theory and practice live side by side, where every student touches real business, and where New York City itself becomes the ultimate classroom.
In short, for those evaluating “best in class” in experiential learning, Stern sets the bar. It’s embedded in the curriculum, broad in scope, aligned with industry, and accessible at scale. Its leadership isn’t accidental—it’s the product of a deliberate effort to make learning as dynamic and real as the business world students are preparing to lead.
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