SOCIAL IMPACT, INNOVATION, AND INVESTMENT SPECIALIZATION
OVERVIEW
The Social Impact, Innovation, and Investment (SI3) specialization provides students with the training to practice across sectors (private, nonprofit and public) as agents of social change. By learning the language and tools of both business and policy, you will be able to innovate products, services, delivery systems, enterprises, and investment approaches necessary to improve lives and solve major domestic and global challenges. You will also be uniquely qualified to assess and measure the social impact that arises from these innovative approaches. Students in the specialization are provided a foundation with required courses traversing ideation, entrepreneurship, and social finance.
Graduates will be prepared to enter the burgeoning social innovation sector as social entrepreneurs, impact investors, impact measurement specialists, corporate social responsibility managers, and a variety of consultant or for-profit and nonprofit management roles where the combined tools of seeking both financial return and social impact are becoming increasingly important.
PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
Below is an overview of the required coursework. For detailed information, view the program checksheet
DEGREE CORE requirements
Students complete the following courses:
specialization REQUIREmentS*
Students complete the following courses:
*In Spring and Fall 2022, PADM-GP. 2310 Understanding Social Enterprise will be the required course in place of PADM-GP. 2132 Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation By Design.
Students must also choose and complete one of the following courses:
Focus Areas
Focus Areas are optional groupings of courses to help you choose electives. You can go deeper in your specialization and develop more advanced skills by choosing electives within the specialization-related focus areas below. To pursue depth in a focus area we suggest completing 9 credits. To pursue breadth, you may also choose electives across focus areas.
Social Enterprise
The pursuit of social impact and innovation through entrepreneurship and formation of enterprises.
PADM-GP. 2132 Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation By Design and PADM-GP. 2310 Understanding Social Enterprise are the foundational courses in this area.
Social Finance
Courses that explore the use the tools of finance to address societal changes. These courses focus on sustainability, investing and managing businesses with multiple social goals to achieve financial returns alongside social returns.
PADM-GP.2311, Social Impact Investment; PADM-GP.2142, Financial Management II; and PADM-GP.2147, Corporate Finance & Public Policy, are foundational courses in this area.
Social Innovation, Design, and Technology
Courses that explore the process of ideation, and the use of data and technological tools to achieve social innovation.
PADM-GP.2145 Design Thinking: A Creative Approach to Problem Solving and Creating Impact is the foundational course in this area.
School-wide Focus Areas
In addition to the courses in the specialization-related elective focus areas above, to gain a breadth of knowledge and skills you may also wish to choose electives from across course offerings, including from the school-wide focus areas or a different specialization. Relevant school-wide focus areas for you to consider as a SI3 student include, Communication Skills; Environment and Climate Change; Philanthropy and Fundraising; Social Justice and Democracy; and more.
CAPSTONE
The Capstone Program, a year-long consulting or research project, puts you out in the world resolving a problem or conducting an analysis for a client organization. Social Innovation students may instead choose a capstone where they work on a pre-approved, team-generated project developing a business case or prototype to create social impact or launch a social enterprise.
Students must complete the following courses:
CAP-GP.3301 & 3302 Capstone: Advanced Lab in Social Innovation I &II
or
CAP-GP 3148 & 3149 Capstone: Advanced Research Projects in Quantitative Analysis I & II
