Blockchain in business school: Interest among MBA students hasn’t waned despite crypto crash

Few sectors are as volatile as cryptocurrency. Over the past year, the value of digital currencies rose and then plummeted, finally imploding with a widely reported market crash, layoffs and losses. Despite the uncertainty, academic interest in the sector has not waned, say professors.

“The price of crypto goes up, goes down; the interest is not related to that, says Gregory LaBlanc, who is a lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business and the University of California—Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. “Crypto is one of those things that people think they need to know about if they want to be an educated person in today’s business world.”

And crypto is no longer niche. Businesses across the board, from legacy banks to sectors outside of finance, are increasingly exploring crypto alternatives. As a result, business students in MBA programs must be familiar with digital assets and the advantages and disadvantages of a decentralized banking system.

“There’s no doubt there’s still a lot of uncertainty and immaturity and hype in the blockchain space,” acknowledges Kevin Werbach, professor of legal studies and business ethics at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and director of Wharton’s digital assets and blockchain. project. Yet the need remains for business schools to incorporate this emerging industry into their curricula. “We need people who will work for large traditional firms who also understand that.”

In response to interest from MBA students and demand among potential employers, some top-ranked business schools are incorporating blockchain and crypto into their curricula. Here’s what you need to know.

Although the idea of ​​teaching crypto in business school is relatively new, there are a number of schools that offer relevant courses: Stanford, Columbia University, Fordham University (Gabelli), and the Miami Herbert Business School at the University of Miami. Because of the content overlap, these classes may be held at a business, law, or engineering school—or even taught in conjunction with those schools.

Whichever program you choose, first aim to gain a basic understanding of the barter system, the gold standard, and modern checking accounts—this history will help contextualize decentralized finance. Without understanding the fundamentals of the business, technicalities alone will not help you succeed, and vice versa.

“In general, for most people, the width you get is more valuable than something narrower,” says Werbach.

For those who are only interested in understanding the concept, a cryptocurrency can serve as a starting point to explore other domains, such as data architecture, payment infrastructure or contract execution. “Crypto really acts as a clearinghouse for a whole bunch of business areas,” LaBlanc says.

For those interested in founding or working for a crypto startup, an extra step of training will go a long way—like an accelerator program, which Berkeley Engineering offers.

Because of how quickly this field is evolving, it is important to seek training that is not only taught by academics. As with other sectors, a program that brings in guest practitioners will help balance the theoretical concepts with practical learning.

“It’s almost like trying to hit a moving target,” says David Yermack, a professor of finance and business transformation at New York University (Stern) who helped spearhead the school’s early cryptocurrency offerings. The school was among the first in the country to do so in 2014.

Location can also be meaningful, according to Yermack. Some schools are close to major employers, offering a curriculum tailored to meet the demands of the local economy – and this proximity can be invaluable when you’re looking for a job. Programs should also ideally be placed in schools with a naturally strong technological focus, and those that at least conduct research in the area.

Ultimately, even if your top choice of an MBA program doesn’t offer a class in crypto, look for other related courses, such as fintech, cybersecurity, and risk management. Although Berkeley does not currently have a faculty-led crypto class, the fintech class has relevant elements in it. However, the school does have student-led courses in crypto available for credit. LaBlanc will teach finance at Stanford Business this fall, where he plans to incorporate crypto classes.

Students looking for post-graduation jobs in blockchain or crypto should expect to face stiff competition. With many startups going out of business this year, this trend is likely to continue in the future.

“There are some people who like to take risks, and MBA students tend to fit that profile,” says Yermack. “In many ways, crypto is ideal for them.”

Trade school students should also be prepared to continue expanding their skills after graduation. “A field that changes as fast as crypto — no matter how much you learn in an education program, you have to learn a tremendous amount on the job,” says Werbach.

Wherever you end up working, whether in crypto or outside of it, there will be demand for this expertise. In Werbach’s view, one of the best positions to be in is working for an employer that isn’t primarily focused on emerging technology, but where you have more expertise than others in it.

Students should aim to develop a “personal knowledge network” after graduation, engaging with resources, such as podcasts, and a community, such as an online forum, that are relevant to them, Werbach says. Doing so will help keep you updated on the latest trends and developments.

Professors are slowly expanding available graduate school offerings on crypto and digital assets. It’s an area “where both teaching and research need to move,” says Yermack. It will take time, but it is inevitable.

More companies will look to blockchain for a variety of management strategies, such as supply chain coordination. “These things will be so unexpected, it will just be part of the normal business landscape,” LaBlanc says. When the time comes, there will be no need for special cryptocurrencies; it will be incorporated into the company’s curriculum. For now, the field is still green.

“It’s really important to develop a healthy skepticism and BS detector, because there’s a lot of incredibly exciting technology,” says Werbach, before warning that some developments could turn out to be a scam. “To be successful, you have to be able to separate the wheat from the chaff.”