Starting in the 2023-2024 academic year, Wharton undergraduate students can declare a concentration in Environmental, Social and Governance Factors for Business (ESGB).
The concentration in Environmental, Social and Governance Factors for Business (ESGB) is designed to provide in-depth foundations for those interested in the complex relationships between business and the natural environment and business and society more broadly, including management of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks and opportunities, the business and economics of energy, and the ways in which firms incorporate ESG factors into their governance.
There is a strong need for a new generation of expert business leaders who understand the rapidly evolving trends in business models, technology, regulation, and financing with implications for the environment and society as a whole. Students choosing the ESGB concentration are therefore ideally suited for the ever-expanding set of careers in many fields. Relevant courses are offered by departments including Accounting, Business Economics and Public Policy, Finance, Legal Studies and Business Ethics, Management, Marketing, and Operations Information and Decisions.
Requirements and Specializations
The ESGB concentration is fulfilled by completing 4.0 credit units (cu) of coursework from the list of courses approved for the concentration.
In addition to the option of having an ESGB concentration without specialization, ESGB concentrators may choose to earn one of two transcript-level specializations—Business, Energy, Environment and Sustainability (BEES) or Social and Governance (SOGO)—by completing at least 3.0 credit units (cu) of their required coursework in their focused area as set forth below. Accordingly, the three options for students are:
Option 1
Concentrate in Environmental, Social and Governance Factors for Business (ESGB)
Take four credit units (4 cu) from the list of courses approved for the concentration.
Option 2
Concentrate in Environmental, Social and Governance Factors for Business (ESGB) with a Specialization in Business, Energy, Environment and Sustainability (BEES)
Take at least three credit units (3 cu) from the Environmental list and up to one credit unit (1 cu) from the overall list of courses approved for the concentration (whether Environmental or Social and Governance).
Please Note – Students who declared BEES prior to the creation of the ESGB-BEES concentration and specialization can follow the existing rules for the program set forth on the BEES Concentration page.
Option 3
Concentrate in Environmental, Social and Governance Factors for Business (ESGB) with a Specialization in Social and Governance (SOGO)
Take at least three credit units (3 cu) from the Social and Governance list and up to one credit unit (1 cu) from the overall list of courses approved for the concentration (whether Environmental or Social and Governance).
Questions?
If you are a current Wharton student, contact Sara Jane McCaffrey at mcsa@wharton.upenn.edu.
If you are interested in applying to Wharton, contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office at +1.215.898.7507 or visit admissions.upenn.edu.
Additional Information
This concentration is jointly administered by the Business Economics and Public Policy Department, the Legal Studies and Business Ethics Department, and the Management Department. The faculty advisors to this concentration are Professors Arthur van Benthem (BEPP), Witold (Vit) Henisz (MGMT), and Sarah E. Light (LGST).
Helpful Links
For more information about resources at Wharton and the University of Pennsylvania more broadly on climate, energy, environment, and sustainability, please click here.
Wharton’s STEM Concentrations
Interested in a STEM-certified business degree? This concentration is designated as a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics concentration, which helps students excel in high-demand roles that require both business and technical acumen.
Our STEM concentrations offer another benefit for international students, who can obtain a STEM OPT extension for their F-1 visa after graduation. The extension allows students to apply the skills they learned in their STEM degree studies in full-time employment in the U.S. If you choose one of these concentrations, you will be eligible for 36 months of post-completion OPT (compared to 12 months for a non-STEM major).
Undergraduate students must take four credit units from the following list of courses
Environmental
- ACCT/BEPP 2640 – Climate and Financial Markets
- BEPP / OIDD 2610 – Risk Analysis and Environmental Management
- BEPP/OIDD 2630 – Environmental & Energy Economics and Policy
- FNCE 2560 – Energy Finance
- LGST 2150 – Environmental Management: Law & Policy
- LGST 2600 – Climate and Environmental Leadership in Action
- MGMT 8970 – GMC on Sustainability (in Germany) (by application)
- OIDD 5250 – Thinking with Models
Recommended courses to supplement the ESGB concentration
ESG Analytics
For students interested in ESG analytics, we note that while the STAT Department does not have courses that count toward the four required credit units for the concentration, the following courses may be of special interest:
- STAT 4100X – Data Collection and Acquisition
- STAT 4220 – Predictive Analytics
- STAT 4230 – Applied Machine Learning in Business
- STAT 4240 – Text Analytics
- STAT 4350/5350/7110 – Forecasting Methods for Management
- STAT 4420X – Introduction to Bayesian Data Analysis
- STAT 4700/5030 – Data Analytics and Statistical Computing
- STAT 4710/5710 – Modern Data Mining
- STAT 4750 – Sample Survey Design
- STAT 4770X – Introduction to Python for Data Science
- STAT 4810X/5810X – Convex Optimization for Statistics and Data Science
- STAT 4900/5900 – Causal Inference
Students may petition to substitute up to 1 CU of Global Modular Courses that are clearly focused on ESGB topics. Petitions are expected to demonstrate that the student is pursuing a coherent plan of ESGB studies at Wharton. For information on the petition process, students should contact faculty advisor Sara Jane McCaffrey (current Wharton students only; prospective students should contact the Admissions Office).
Get Involved with the ESG Initiative
At the ESG Initiative, we are committed to creating transformational opportunities for students. We offer a robust set of student programs and resources to match your interests in ESG and business. Conduct ESG investment research. Join a community of like-minded peers. Consult on real-world projects through a selective fellowship. Attend speaker series and networking events. Apply for funding for unpaid internships. And more.
Social & Governance
[1] FNCE 4020 is 1.0 credit course; however, if students take this to fulfill their capstone requirement, which is 0.5 credit units, they may only count 0.5 credit units toward their concentration.